please take a seat...........

[phillpot]

As anyone who has had the seats out of an S will know getting a spanner on the bolts is a tad awkward because they sit down in a channel, too narrow to get a socket or spanner on the bolt head but not narrow enough to stop the bolt turning.

One solution is a tack of weld on each bolt, ok if you have a welder.

Popular solution seems to be a nut to tighten the bolt into the runner then "penny washers" to help spread the load when seat is refitted.




Not over impressed with this idea, a lot of weight on a relatively small area, my first "solution" was to use strips of wood with holes big enough to clear the nuts in place of the washers. Weight (even my slender figure) now spread as originally over full length of runners.




This worked fine but over time the wood has got damp and soggy so next plan was alluminium box section (25 x 12mm) with 8mm holes one side and holes big enough to clear a 13mm socket the other, some plastic end caps tidied things up.




Another idea was to use solid alluminium bar and do away with the nuts. This however returns to the "how to turn the bolts" issue? Could use cap heads (Allen bolts) but these only seem to come as bolts (partially threaded) not Sets (fully threaded) so we went for "button heads".

Edited by phillpot on Saturday 7th January 21:07

[phillpot]

glenrobbo said:

I've seen and used plenty of fully threaded cap head Allen screws in my long career in engineering

Ah but metric, in stainless? ...

glenrobbo said:

If you're trying to tighten or undo a hex bolt or screw with its head inside a channel section, just jam it with a flat-bladed screwdriver between the side of the channel and the relevant flat on the head of the fastener.

Not so easy when you're reaching under the car with the other hand to do the nut up!


......... and wouldn't work with my threaded bar design

[phillpot]

gmw9666 said:

Alternatively drill a hole.......................

Ingenious, have you actually done that?

I like using "Nylok" nuts, could prove a little trickier as these couldn't be wound on by hand past the hole?

Would have to be quite a small hole, minor diameter of an M8 bolt is only 6.65mm

[phillpot]

Alan Whitaker said:

Hi All
Bugger the stainless why not just weld the bolts in the rail and be done with it, Bolt up and dose with sealer.

Alan

Because we don't all have a welder!

Alan 1209 said:

if you look in product attributes you'll see these are fully threaded.

Yes, but far too short at 25mm!

and I can't be arsed to go all through their website to see if they do 50mm fully threaded

[phillpot]

Plenty of alternative ideas but I like mine because bolts are positively held in place, drop the seat in, bolts pop through floor, nuts (and sealer) on, job done.
No fannying around wedgeing or holding anything

It does, of course, lift the seat slightly, may be an issue if you look down on people like Ed China and Richard Osman!

[phillpot]

Buzzlt said:

How about plan S.................... ?

I like a re-useable system

Got S seats in my Taimar and until find all the water leaks seats are out rather frequently to dry out the carpets!

Buzzlt said:

I do however like the bar with the thread in but shouldn't that be stainless too ?

Too heavy

alluminium much easy to cut, drill and tap (and cheaper!)

[phillpot]

Hi Paul, bolts are M8 x 50mm


Might sound quite long but by the time they've gone through my amazing brackets, the carpets and the floor then a big penny washer and Nylok nut there are not too many threads left exposed.

[phillpot]

Thought I'd try some rubber washers between underside of floor and penny washers...........



centre hole is punched smaller than 8mm so they should seal onto the bolts (that's the theory anyway)


do you realise how difficult it is to find an old inner tube these days!

[phillpot]

Kitchski said:

Many mass-produced cars have seats that are anchored at four points, as opposed to spreading the load across the runner.

But they tend to have metal floors

[phillpot]

Kitchski said:

I myself have thought about making metal frames to spread the load of the seats in the event of an accident

Nothing to do with possible accidents, I just don't see having that having 15+ stone of lardy arsed driver sat on four washers as particularly "good engineering".

Kitchski said:

advise anyone who's done the same and is now worrying about it, not to worry.

I don't think it is "bad engineering" to the point that anyone should be worrying about it if that is how their seats are secured, but there are ,imho, better inexpensive ways of doing it