[Dan66]

For those of you who have already ordered some Andover shoulder belts...what "offset" did you choose? I assume the 8.5" is correct, but I'd like to be sure.

If anyone can remember exactly what they ordered (front AND back seats), and resulted in a good fit, I'd certainly appreciate the measurements or part numbers.

Thanks!

 

[mlnielsen]

I bought my Andover shoulder belts a few years ago. I mounted the upper pivot to the roof structure, and got the long "offset". If you were to mount it to the door jam, you should use the short "offset". Sorry, I don't have any part numbers to give you. I only converted the fronts to 3pt.

 

[Dan66]

Thanks Mark - that's actually very useful information. I do plan to mount to the door jam, so you told me just what I needed to know.

As for the rear seats, I'm not exactly sure about those yet. I had the idea to route the belt under the access panel and anchor the retracting spool in the trunk. I'll have to give it some more thought.

I remember a few years ago I would've been APAULED at someone doing this to their car - perish the thought of doing it to my OWN! Funny how time changes our priorities...cool vs. practical!

 

[eelkram]

These guys did a pretty good job with their rear belts:

http://www.mustangsafety.com/rear_seat_belts.htm

And if I remember correctly.. I think "PCHCruiser" had a nice set up for his rear seats too.

 

[Guest]

I just got mine delivered last week. I will be working on the installation over the next several days.

It took them about a month to deliver even though the guy on the phone said "they will be shipped tomorrow". I was a little annoyed.

I got the long drop as I will install them in the roof rail. I prefer the roof attachment since, in a collision, there will be less spinal compression than with a design that attaches below your shoulder. To each, his own.

 

[mlnielsen]

Well, my explanation is a bit simplistic, but gets my point across.

The easiest install would be to drill a mounting hole thru your door jam and inner rear quarter panel. Because of the proximity of the jam to your shoulder, a shorter "offset" mount is required. There simply isn't room for the longer mount.

To install it to the roofline, you have to remove the headliner to gain access, fabricate a mounting plate, weld it to the roof structure, find an appropriate seatbelt mounting shoulder bolt, replace the headliner. I tried to streatch my headliner, but it tore at the seam. I have a few bad photos on my website.

This subject has been discussed before, I suggest you try a few VMF searches.

 

[Guest]

I was on the phone with Andover today. they were nice and helpful, kinda. They said they have no setup for a convertible. I spoke with Paul who is sopposed to be their best tech guy. He said the same thing, "only spot in a convertible is that little corner in the door jamb with the small pioit point (2 inch)." Anyway, this kinda stinks cause we have to drill right through our inner and outer sheetmetal. If a later owner ever wants to go back original, it would be tought to weld that back and hide it well enough. Anyway, I still like the idea of mounting the retractor to the left of the drivers seat and behind. I can let the belt come straight up and through the black plastic holder on these 98 model seats. then it would come across my chest to the buckle and then across my lap to the side frame rail. I heard this stuff about spinal compression, but how true is it? I mean, won't the seat belt just lock up in a wreck and hold me in place? It's not actually going to retract in and squeeze me. I want to add the three points but this is bugging the heck out of me. MMMmmmm...rant. I feel a little better now.

 

[PCH_Cruiser]

Like others said, use the 2 1/2" offset for door jam mounts. Here's a link to my web page showing my Andover belts installed front and rear.

 

[Guest]

Hey, thanks for the reply. Mine is a 67 convertible but I will me mounting them the same as you. in fact I'm going to order them in the morning first thing. Question... Why mount through the sheetmetal floor when you can go sideways through a steel frame rail? Yours is the third I've seen through the floor. Wouldn't the frame rail be stronger? Also, the 1x3 plate you have in the door jamb... did you make that or did it come with kit? Did you need a special bolt to go through there? Thanks!

 

[PCH_Cruiser]

IIRC, going through the frame rail would be prett tough. Remember that the frame rails are pretty thin steel that is just shaped into a box for rigidity. As long as you reinforce the area under the bolt, it will be strong enough. If you just used a nut and washer, it will be much easier to pull through the floor than a larger 2" square plate. The 1x3 plate is just some 1" x 1/8" steel that I cut into 3" lengths. I think I bought it at Home Depot. The bolts I used were grade 8 bolts. I don't remember the length that I needed.