has anyone cut their harness shorter successfully and passed sva.bought some from mac1 motorsport and they are fully adjusted and still an 1" or 2 long.

There are only a few manufacturers qualified to sew harnesses to the appropriate legal standard and your local trimmers will probably refuse as they would not be covered by insurance if you had an accident and there was any comeback on them. If you do them yourself, you would probably get lucky and SVA man not notice,so not fail them. Then all you have to worry about is are they good enough to save your ass in a crash. And they might well be.

Why not cut your brake lines while you are at it.......just as dangerous!!! Buy ones that fit like the Willans harness for the westfield.

It makes me laugh....people will spend a fortune making a car or bike go faster but scrimp on safety.....muppets!

Add a nice spikey steering wheel and you'll be well away

Nice insults boys, keep it up. Maybe we can alienate every 7 builder/driver ?

Why not just offer quiet advice instead


Note to: Chris W,

I don't hide behind anon name posting, I stand by everything I say.

I really feel the site needs a slightly greater control input regarding a real name and email adress in profile.

[Edited on 23/12/04 by Rob Lane]

As I understand it, the correct material for the stitches along with the correct number of stitches per inch, or cm., along with the level of workmanship used to build the rest of the car should be O.K.
If you trust your abilities to build chassis and suspension components then a bit of sewing can't be too difficult
It's not that long ago that good harnesses were not readily available and most racers had to make their own.
Feel free too disagree.
Rob Lane - well said.

I used long Britax harnesses, the shoulder belt which passes through the mounting hooks is only looped through and wasn't sewn originally. I simply cut the belts, melted the ends with a soldering iron to prevent fraying and re-fitted. SVA no problem, he didn't even mention it (about the only thing he didn't mention!!!)

Marcus

Nice insults boys, keep it up. Maybe we can alienate every 7 builder/driver ?

Why not just offer quiet advice instead

It was quiet advice......belt manufacturers have worked hard to produce a safe product, we should not encourage people to cut belts because they have bought the wrong size!....

No, your post was insulting and demeaning to someone who asked a genuine question.

Incidently, resewing harnesses is not frowned on, it just has to be done correctly.

Unfortunately, some seatbelts have stitching that is designed to come apart a bit under impact, as a way of softening the blow on the body. Do you know whether this belt is that kind, or not?

Modified harnesses may work in a crash if they're done properly, as Syd said - and they may not. I'd rather be sure.

Personally I'd sell the belts on eBay and buy some new ones that fit. A pair of Sabelt harnesses cost me just over £40 a while ago, brand new.

regards,

David

Syd - your comment about age made me smile, esp. the "23" bit. I've recently watched a series about WW2 bomber crews where the captain was usually around 21 and the average age of the crew was 19! Another programme showed a US aircraft carrier where the deck crew have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. Average age? 19.
Responsibility is about a state of mind, not age.

[Edited on 24/12/04 by David Jenkins]

I agree with David , personaly would not modify seat belts in any way but its up to the individual I suppose, me I'd rather not go through the screen because a seat belt failed. As for age , as you get older you tend to get a little less brave or maybe more sensible. Not intended to wind anybody up just my observations. Rusty

Syd - your comment about age made me smile, esp. the "23" bit. I've recently watched a series about WW2 bomber crews where the captain was usually around 21 and the average age of the crew was 19! Another programme showed a US aircraft carrier where the deck crew have one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. Average age? 19.
Responsibility is about a state of mind, not age.

[Edited on 24/12/04 by David Jenkins]

I have frequently modified harnesses. Like everything else, if you take a realistic view of the situation, then safety shouldn't be an issue. I contacted the (US) manufacturer of the harnesses and asked what composition and breaking strain their thread was on the pretext that their US standard wasn't recognised by CAMS (Australian race sanctioning body) and I needed to satisfy CAMS that their harnesses would be suitable.
Once I had that information, I had a local automotive upholsterer (who has done dozens of harnesses) alter my harnesses using the same quality of thread.
Before I took my harness to be modified, I altered them how I wanted them and stapled them with a standard paper stapler. I also stapled the original manufacturers label in place.
I cut the surplus webbing off with an old knife from the kitchen drawer. I heated the knife over a flame and pressed down on the webbing to produce a nice clean sealed end.
Although I probably broke several laws and codes, I'm quite confident in the final product, and it looks professional and tidy too.
FYI, some harness are made from Nylon webbing and others use various sinthetic fabrics with higher breaking strains. Nylon webbing is designed to stretch. It's this ability that makes Nylon superior. In an accident, the Nylon webbing extends thus allowing a controlled restraint of the driver. Other types of webbing is non-compliant and can easilly snap limbs in a serious shunt.
Most race sanctioning bodies require a 75mm clearance between the driver's helmet and the underside of the roll cage partially for this reason.

Yep, I'm going to cut and shortern mine and will not even think twice about it. There are far more worrying things that I have done in my build and that are hereditary with this type of car anyway.
The belts will be no good anyway if a HGV rolls over you.
Pat...
Besides - that's why the steering wheel has to be padded!