Has anyone noticed
 

Just kicking around Ebay looking for new seatbelts. There is add after add for belts from names I'v never heard of before.. And looking closer , on most you won't find DOT or SFI mentioned. On some they do say they are not certified. Suggesting they are for show. Did the Chinese enter into this relm now?

Check out Speedway Motors - Street Rod Parts, Race Parts, Ford Flathead Parts, Sprint and Midget Racing Parts, Pedal Car Parts. Lots of safety stuff.

I have "Crow" brand on my ERA.

DD

I had RJS in my Cobra. They were SFI and they were really inexpensive.

If you're not racing, who cares? I'm sure if you have a 5 point, those belts are probably as strong as anything out there. And besides, the SFI rating on all belts are only good for a few years anyway.

Mike:
Go with a "name" manufacturer. I've been an FAA Master Parachute Rigger for over 30 years and you would not believe what I've seen people try to pass off as "safety" equipment. If it meets SFI standards you at least have a reasonable expectation that they'll keep your backside in the seat where it belongs if things get interesting.
DonC

Whats wrong with what Finishline or Shell Valley sells? I agree if you are not breaking the sound barrier who cares. Buckle up and cruise.

I have an older EM replica. It has a go fast motor. If I ever atempt to track it or do anything that is sanctioned I know that I may have to go home just because I do not have a part or piece that doesn't say SFI and have a current date. The deal is when I install new belts again they will be certified. What I'm running now is an older set of Simpson lap belts with link- latch. The shoulder straps are made fron DOT belts and work and adjust just great. But they are not certified. Hell, if they were they now would still be too old. The latch link is a both hands sitting still deal. Everything goes together all at at the same time. If you drop an end and lean to reach to pick up the erant belt end, all previously stacked ends seam to come off the link and you start stacking everything over again. Next set of belts will be the cam type latch. The drivers will be five point, clip-in probably with a sternium protector. I have a cross brace at the lower part of the rollbar just above just the body, with two eyes for shoulder strap anchors. The passenger will also have cam latch but shoulder straps will both have to go through the metal grommet in the rear bulkhead to be anchored to the frame in the trunk replacinig a " Y "type shoulder setup. I've seen many allmost jumped on but never committed. But what I was getting at in the original post was, out of 910 listings found, most were variations on what would appeared to be the real deal but with no certifications on safety equipment. I considered them counterfits probably made in a third world country by people that have never seen a racecar. I'm looking for a deal but there is a line for me when it comes to safety equipment. I remember watching a movie last week where two young store clerks started a game. The objective of that game was to be the first one to find a piece of merchandise not made in China. There is probably a reason they were not certified.

True story. I worked with a guy that had surved in the US Airforce on Okenowa. He was friends with a local reserantuer. The resturant owner had asked my friend if he wanted something special, something he missed from home. My friend told this resturant owner that he'd really like a pizza. The Okennowian resturantuer didn't know from pizza, so he asked about pizza and my friend described a pizza and gave him a picture of a pizza from a magazine or such. Next time my friend went back to that resturant there was what looked like the pizza in the picture, but it didn't taste anything like a pizza. Please pardon the spelling if I made any mistakes.

I don't think your going to find a DOT rating on ANY of the racing type harness belts. They don't stretch enough and are considered unsafe by DOT. Too much G force is transmitted to the body in an impact.

The only ones I know of that are DOT rated are from Schroth, which have a decelerator sewn into them (a portion of the belt is folded over and sewn together, and in an accident the stitches break lessening the G force). This system also is left and right side of the car speciffic so that in an impact the driver and passenger are moved away from each other slightly to avoid their heads contacting each other. Those are only available in a 2" wide design the last time I looked (a few years ago).

Look for an SFI or FIA rating. But as noted thats only certified valid for a few years due to the potential for UV damage to the belt material. If you are racing and your sanctioning body accepts FIA rated belts, buy those ! FIA rating is for 4 years from manufacture while SFI rating is only for two years. FIA will be cheaper in the long run for racing applications. In a street driven car there is no appreciable difference.

Also, the Y type shoulder straps (two shoulder straps with a single anchor point) are no longer SFI approved.

Is this because they can cut into your neck when they are under a load?

I believe it was due to the single anchor point for two straps, but as of 2006 or so they were no longer SFI approved ans Simpson stopped making them.
I was looking for a set of Simpsons, and they were in short supply at the time. I ended up buying a pair in blue as the supply of black ones had pretty much dried up at that point. I had Simpson lap belts and was looking to add the shoulder straps at that time.

Thanks for the info.

I use Pyrotect cam lock type..

Current Passenger shoulder belt is a sewn "Y" with a single strap going through a single metal grommet in the rear bulkhead being anchored with a bolt in bracket to the frame inside the trunk. Not that there would ever be anyone in that seat when pressing the loud pedal approaching it's limits.
So two individual shoulder straps going through that one grommet to the same anchor point in the trunk wouldn't be accepted either?
How would two anchor eye bolts in the rear bulkhead, providing I put a metal plate inside ? What spread would you suggest? The highest I could locate the anchors in the rear bulkhead is still lower than most adult shoulders. Any suggestions?

There seems to be a relaxed attitude about this. Didn't Dale Earhardt's belt fail because of an improper angle of the belt? At 60 mph, a stop into an imoveable object is catastrophic. I would opt for Stroud or the like with all the SFI ratings. For the overall cost of your car and your butt, it's nothing.

I thought Dale E demise was a broking neck? Or lack of a neck brace?

seat belts
 

"At a news conference five days after the fatal crash, NASCAR officials announced that a seat belt had broken in Earnhardt's car. Daytona International Speedway physician Dr. Steve Bohannon said he thought the faulty belt had allowed Earnhardt's chin to strike the steering wheel, causing a basilar skull fracture, killing him. The manufacturers of seat belts for NASCAR, Simpson Race Products, maintained that the belt had failed because it had been installed in an unapproved fashion in order to increase Earnhardt's comfort."
He wasn't wearing a head restraint which probably compounded the failure and may have killed him without the belt problem. The reason I brought up Earnhardt was to say that even the best belts can fail if not properly installed.

Ernhart died because his head and helmet missed the steering wheel. His head and brain tried to seperate from his spine . Not that the result would would have been pretty had he hit the steering wheel while wearing the open faced helmet that was his preferance. They now have outlawed open face helmets for competition. You'll see open face helmets only on personalities on camera but not under competition conditions. What I read was that his head and body were propeled at an angle just to the right of the steering wheel . The lap and shoulder straps stoped his body but his helmet and head kept going a little bit more. As the Nascar season restarts soon , look at how much more the seat and straping confines the driver. Fullfaced helmets, helmet restraints, side braces off the seats to support and control tha drivers head, body, and legs. Much more now than when Dale senior drove. Now the Nascar drivers can't move much more than their arms and feet. They rely on mirrors and spotters on radios to see where everyonelse is. Entry and exit is now such a problem that they now have installed roof escape doors for some drivers.