E-trac mounting height?.

Build projects, things that guys have come up with to make a Pinz better (or worse?) and aftermarket add-ons.
Tyler
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E-trac mounting height?.

Post by Tyler »

So I got some e trac for my future seatbelts. After I get the seats for my 710m of course. What's the proper mounting height along the inside of the bedrails so that the seatbelts rest comfortably across the laps?. Any thoughts?. Is there a guide or a guess?.
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pcolette
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by pcolette »

I suggest using some c-clamps to temporarily hold the e-trac in place while you trial fit the seat belts. Once you have your seats installed you'll be able to get a pretty good feel for the best height for the seats belts to attach.
I have my e-trac located about 3 inches up from the base of the bench seats and it has worked out ok for me.
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Stekay
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by Stekay »

As low as possible. They're lap belts not waist belts. I'd also recommend you look into L-track. The E-track everyone has been using is extremely overkill for a seat belt. Google Schroth racing harness MTG.
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TechMOGogy
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

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Jimm391730
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by Stekay »

If you're going to have belts, they need to be mounted properly. Period. Someone submarining under a belt from wearing it too high is a potential huge cause for serious injury, especially for children. Vertical e-track or L-track might be the answer. You'll have to see for yourself. I don't feel convenience should be part of the equation.
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Jimm391730
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by Jimm391730 »

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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by Jack Russell Racing »

^ My e-track is in about the same location as shown above. No issues.

One quick tip --- When not in use, I try to keep the belts indoors or in a watertight bag in the cab. Its kind of a pain, but I would prefer to avoid any possible UV or water degradation on the belts when not in use. Since I haul around my son, his friends, and our assorted baseball and hockey teams, I want to ensure the belts are in their best possible condition whenever used.
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David Dunn
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by David Dunn »

Stekay is right.
“submarining is only one of the problem with belts mounted up high. Mostly from fore/aft facing seats. I had looked into seatbelts back when I had “M”s. Seat belts in side facing seats pretty much are good for 2 things, meet the letter of the law and in an accident, keep the person with the vehicle. But still are better than nothing to keep occupants from ejection in a sudden maneuver ( as the case of one of the more tragic Pinz accidents)
In my searches, one of the more dangerous problem of seatbelts anchored up high was the high possibility of internal organ damage and movement from an emergency stop/accident impact caused by the seatbelts as inertia forces the body forward in an impact. Side facing seats are far worse, as the body is whiplashed from side to side.
The seatbelts “should” be anchored down low, preferably mounted to the floor. If you notice in Jim's pic above, the seatbelt would apply force at the waist on an adult and probably at the base of the rib cage on a child.
Unfortunately, the Pinz does not lend itself to the "best" mounting and maintain all it’s utility features, from troop carrier to cargo bed.

And to remind people of SDP's attention to occupant's safety, all the Ks had seatbelts AND shoulder belts on all the outboard front facing seats positions.

Though it doesn’t have anything to do with a Pinz, but the forces applied in any situation, modern MRAPs ‘ side facing seats are a bucket design with 4 or 5 point harnesses to keep the occupant within the bucket’s “cocoon” safe.
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Jimm391730
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

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Andre
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by Andre »

I vote we delete any posts referring to possible unsafe conditions in any given vehicle(both implied or inferred) as to keep the safety police from taking away any ones toys. Be Responsible Owners. My .02
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undysworld
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by undysworld »

Pinzgauers are not inherently safe vehicles!
I was going to jump all over this statement.

We spent a LONG time fighting WisDOT's contention that Pinzgauers were not safe enough to operate on-road. (Many of you will recall that we were tossed off the road here for a year.) FWIW, we ultimately won. Our contention was that if a vehicle was built to meet safety standards of it's day, and still in good repair, then it still deserved to be able to be licensed. (Remember, people die in brand-new cars every day.) Other factors made a larger difference to the overall "safety" of a vehicle, such as driver's ability, conditions, other vehicles, etc.

Then I read this, and figured we were basically in agreement:
To be as safe as possible in a Pinzgauer on the road (and off road) drive within your abilities and be on the lookout for others who are not driving safely. Remember, as the driver you have the safety of your passengers in your hands.
I'd add that Pinzgauers, just like most vehicles from that same era( and especially ex-military ones), are inherently less safe vehicles than current-spec ones, but still meet all applicable equipment requirements. They are considered "Motor Vehicles" by U.S.DOT-NHTSA. But they were not originally designed to drive the U.S. highway system at it's current speeds, evenif they are capable of reaching it's highest speed limits. As Andre said: Be Responsible Owners.

Sorry if I'm touchy about this subject. I've spent thousands of hours dealing with the problems that a misperception of our trucks caused. They are safe enough to deserve to be on the streets.

State DMV's monitor forums and the internet, so be judicious in what gets posted online. No sense stirring a turd that don't need to be stirred. :oops:


EDIT:
Geez, guys. I'm very sorry. I certainly didn't mean to get things all riled up. I'd have voted to leave the posts in place, FWIW. My only concern was the one sentence that could be taken poorly, if taken out of context. Safety concerns are things that we all (should) care about, and some people could benefit from the discussion. The question of Etrac mounting height was asked, and deserves to be answered.

If you want to discuss how "safe" a Pinz is overall, ask an insurance agent. For sure, new cars with air-bags, ABS, collision avoidance, etc. are designed to be safer than any 40-year old truck was. But insurance rates for old cars are still generally lower than for current ones. Why? Because most of us try harder to stay safe, and don't drive as far or often.

Pinzgauer safety equipment compares favorably to that of other cars of that year of manufacture. If you really want to know how it's supposed to be done currently, U.S. seat belt requirements can be found be searching for NHTSA Standard 209 and NHTSA Standard 210, Seat Belt Assemblies and Seat Belt Assembly Anchorages, respectively. However, since your truck is older than 25 years, it is exempted from those requirements, even if they're still good advice to follow when possible. Your state's laws may have specific requirements, and they need to be met. (For example, in Wisconsin, each passenger must wear a seat belt.)

The Etrac system (while perhaps not meeting current requirements, and maybe not absolutely ideal), seems to have worked well for many. It's not a matter of convenience, it's a matter of a good compromise between feasible and ideal. It's way better than having no seat belts. A search should provide lots of pictures and details. Jim's version made it stronger, I believe.

IMHO, unless you're only providing nooses for neck restraints, any seat belt/s you add are probably making a safety improvement, and that's a good thing.
Last edited by undysworld on Sat Dec 27, 2014 2:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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TechMOGogy
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by TechMOGogy »

removed
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

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GRCameron
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Re: E-trac mounting height?.

Post by GRCameron »

+1 for removal
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