DIY 3 Point Seat Belt Installation 1960-66 Cab

[Chevystep]

Wow, great write up and bookmarked! I think I already have shoulder belt fasteners (the upper ones) in my 66, but with only lap belts in it. Maybe they were thinking about it in late 66? I'll try to get some pix and some measurements of them and their location.

[Lugnutz65]

Originally Posted by Chevystep

Wow, great write up and bookmarked! I think I already have shoulder belt fasteners (the upper ones) in my 66, but with only lap belts in it. Maybe they were thinking about it in late 66? I'll try to get some pix and some measurements of them and their location.

Some of the 1966 trucks had shoulder belts. Some had plugs to go in the holes if that truck was not optioned with the shoulder belt. The factory location is important to some so I'm sure your info will be helpful to them.

[Nevada51]

Thanks for this, it's an excellent write up - very comprehensive.

I did a similar thing for rear belts in a VW beetle but instead of welding the point in, we used Sikaflex sealant on one side of the washer, pulled it in to place, and held there while it formed a bond. The bond strength is probably not great, but as mentioned, its not the strength of the welds that matter, it's the washer etc behind the metal that does the work. I thought it was worth mentioning this as the whole thing could then potentially be done by someone who doesn't have a welder, and/or where you don't want to damage the cab paint.

Cam

[DakotaKid]

awesome writeup, when I do my BBW conversion, ill weld the top one together before I reinstall the rear window surround. Great on measurements!

[GWs62]

Great write up. I just finished my seatbelt install (Seatbelt Planet) and since my cab is painted I used rivets instead of welding. Drilled a small hole in the washer that matched the small hole I drilled in the cab. Lined them up and bingo!

[vince1]

I am about to drill the upper holes. Lugnutz did you weld a 7/16" or a 1/2" nut to the washer and coarse or fine threads? Thanks for this. It certainly takes out the guess work.

[62 short step]

Nice! Now I need to do mine!

[Lugnutz65]

Originally Posted by vince1

I am about to drill the upper holes. Lugnutz did you weld a 7/16" or a 1/2" nut to the washer and coarse or fine threads? Thanks for this. It certainly taTkes out the guess work.

The nut you weld to the washer needs to match the bolt threads that come with your seat belt set. So just make sure the bolt used for the shoulder mount matches. That's all there is to it.

[vince1]

I guess it is off to the junk yard tomorrow to find a donor vehicle and will report back if I find something suitable.

[J Williams]

Very nice write up! Thanks man

[vince1]

I went for the Silverado seat with built in belts.

[Vortech]

My GMC has seat belt holes existing around 2" further back at the base. Think I would have an issue using these holes and just making the upper holes as suggested in this thread?

[Vortech]

passenger side

[The Rocknrod]

Vortech - Mine were close to yours, that's where I mounted the L-shaped bracket for the retractor on mine.

[Vortech]

great, thanks

[Arne]

Originally Posted by GWs62

Great write up. I just finished my seatbelt install (Seatbelt Planet) and since my cab is painted I used rivets instead of welding. Drilled a small hole in the washer that matched the small hole I drilled in the cab. Lined them up and bingo!

Same issue here, the interior of my truck's cab was painted by the PO before I bought it. So welding wasn't an option.

My belts also came from Seatbelt Planet, and I ordered a pair of mount plates for the upper mounts. These plates have a pair of small holes for rivets (or small bolts, I suppose).

https://www.seatbeltplanet.com/i-304...tegory:1389311



After drilling the main hole, I set the plate over the hole from the outside, and marked only the lower rivet hole. I figure the whole point is not to add any strength, but just to hold the plate in place when you take out the seat belt later. A single rivet will do that just fine.

By using only the lower hole for the rivet, the rivet head is hidden by the seat belt when everything is in place. No welding or painting needed.

[Vortech]

what length do you need for the center lap belt.

[Arne]

I didn't get a center belt, at least not yet. But the 60" should be correct, I've used that one on a different project for a single lap belt, and it was just fine.

[slepysal]

I used the same pate Arne used. I wound up using "new" surplus Hummer 3 point.... fit and work well

[highwinger]

Originally Posted by Lugnutz65

I got the belts from Seatbeltplanet.com. They are the Lift Latch 140 inch with 20 inch adjustable buckle. The all metal lift latch buckle can get very hot if you live in a hot climate so choose the buckle mechanism that fits your needs. My seat is all the way back and the buckle end belt is barely long enough. Adjust the behind the seat anchor location a little more forward if needed. I am very satisfied with the quality of the belts and mechanism. They also have pre-made anchors that will do the same thing I did when I welded the nut to the washer. The belts do NOT come with any anchors kits so be sure you order that stuff too.

Thank you very much for the wonderful write up! You made the install very straight forward.

[Lugnutz65]

Originally Posted by highwinger

Thank you very much for the wonderful write up! You made the install very straight forward.

You are very welcome.
Here’s an update that I’ll soon add to the original DIY.
I just finished installing 3 point seat belts in my 1963 cab. Another C10 owner commented to me that he was able to reach up into the B pillar high enough that he didn’t need to tack weld the fender washer/nut assembly to the inner wall of the B pillar.
Here’s what I did this time. I used 5 minute epoxy to hold the nut onto the fender washer. Once it was dry, I used masking tape to attach my crescent wrench to a large heavy paint stick. Then I used a VERY MINIMAL amount of masking tape to hold the fender washer/nut to the wrench. I was able to easily feed this up inside the B pillar and line it up with my predrilled hole. I was able to tighten the shoulder strap bolt onto the fender washer/nut with no problems. I then pulled DOWN on the paint stir stick to free the wrench from the fender washer/nut. The driver side required removal of the gas tank filler neck to gain access to the B pillar, so I guess I’d still recommend removing the tank to minimize frustration.

[ls60apache]

as always great tech from lugnutz...also thanks for the T5 info that i used on my 57 210

[Braunschweiger]

Another great idea from them.

[Lugnutz65]

Originally Posted by ls60apache

as always great tech from lugnutz...also thanks for the T5 info that i used on my 57 210

I’ll send you a PM about this.