Shoulder harness mod on 14-19-2

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planebones

New member
I have modified each of the 9 planes I have owned over 40 years to be equipped with double shoulder harnesses. (To tell you why I am motivated as such would be an unsolicited flying horror story) I have not figured out how to mount them in my Cruismaster, as the tubes are in the wrong places, at angles,(and the aircraft is already covered) Has anyone come up with a way to install them? thanks Ken
 
Ken, there is a configuration for this and some good documentation on the bracket design as well. Actually there is a tube that runs horizontally in the upper fuselage that is suitable for this purpose. I will collect some pictures and post them later. What harness are you considering? Hooker or something else? --Rob
 
I put the Hooker single in mine. With passive on the pilot’s side and fixed on the passenger side.
If I had it to do over I would put passive on both with the double shoulder harness. I attached to the cross bar just behind the front seats, it was very simple and did not interfere with the back seats as much as I thought it would.
 
I bought a pair of new Am-safe dual shoulder strap belts on e-bay. They are beautiful but the shoulder straps are pretty short. I am still looking for the lateral tube in the overhead you mention as my plane has a lot of insulation up there and I only see angle tubes and nothing above the pilots right shoulder area. I need to take more of the headliner down....will it ever be the same?
 
Bellanca has a drawing entitled Inst'l-Seat Belt & Shoulder Harness drawing# 206178 circa 1973. I used this to put my shoulder harness in the crate. In my FSDO they say any shoulder harness is better than no shoulder harness. How true. Lynn the crate
 
If you ever need one some day you would be glad to have one on, I know from past experiance in my younger and dumber days hanging upside down at 120 and being in a steel cage with straps is not a fun way to ride. The rider got a scratch after unbuckling upside down on his head from hitting the roof of the car. I consider myself lucky and think any safety is a good thing!
 
Ken, I have attached a couple of pictures of the fuselage structure as found on my "parts plane". You can see that there is one cross-member tube that runs straight across the top of the fuselage and sits directly above and in line with the rear spar carry-through. This is in a good position, and plenty strong enough, to attach the brackets for the harness straps. Hope this helps! --Rob
 
Thanks Rob: you are a Rockstar! Me overhead has so much insulation that I couldn't get back that far ( and at the same time is binding the trim tubing [or are there other reasons for a stiff trim?]) I am going to wrap seat belt webbing around that tube and bring it forward. thanks for the effort to send me the pictures. Today I installed fuel totalizer in the system . Ken
 
Ken, the problem with the trim shaft being stiff to turn inside the tube is a known issue. The solution, short of a major disassembly, seems to be getting some lubricating oil worked into the tube. I believe someone has mentioned AeroKroil, and I recall someone also mentioning that you might need to cut a hole midway in the tube to introduce the oil - maybe others could offer some feedback based on their experience. From my perspective I don't want any resistance in cranking the trim knob so I consider this an important maintenance issue as is the trailing edge play in the trim tab itself.
 
When my trim quit turning I disconnected the front of the inner aluminum drive tube, then I pulled it out the back of the aircraft, and using a long stick of 3/16 stock, a small cloth patch, and mineral spirits I cleaned the old grease out of the tube like a gun barrel. Then I applied some low temp capable silicone grease to the drive tube as I fed the drive tube back into the housing. Even at -18F the trim adjusts nicely now.
 
Thanks for the trim advice Ralph. I drilled a hole in the trim tube behind the baggage compartment and injected ATF oil....(and now have a well lubricated body) I found a slot in that tube under the cabin air outflow vent on the roof and have been putting oil in their one drop at a time, and the trim has loosened up and is working smoothly.
 
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