There’s not many folks who...
There’s not many folks who build performance vehicles without seatbelts these days, and every application is a little different. Juliano’s knows that, and that’s how they became one of the country’s biggest distributors of automotive seat belts.
We spend a lot of time planning and working on our pickups with the intention of ending up with good looking high-performance classics. Lots of time and energy is expended choosing mechanical components, dress up items, paint colors, and so on, but too many times a good set of seatbelts end up being an afterthought. Along with good looks and wow-factor, safety should be up there near the top of our overall rodstoration plans since our pickups are more than likely destined to carry friends, spouses, and even our children or grandchildren. Bob Juliano of Juliano’s Hot Rod Parts has for years been a believer in the safety-first school of hot rod building. In fact, his extremely successful business has been built around the safety-first focus he wholeheartedly espouses to this day.
The following shows just how easy it is to install a set of three-point seatbelts in a classic pickup, in this case a Tri-Five Chevy. It’s a task that can be accomplished in a short amount of time yet, it’s an extremely important facet of any build, be it a hot rod, classic truck, or muscle car. CT
Here’s one of Juliano’s three-point...
Here’s one of Juliano’s three-point shoulder harness assemblies (with hardware) designed for use with bench-style seats. The install is being performed on a ’55 Chevy pickup, and as you’ll see it’s an easy task that’s well worth the small amount of effort required to make your classic pickup driver and passenger friendly.
The first step is to locate...
The first step is to locate the mounting point for the shoulder strap portion of the belt assembly. This is best done by sitting in the truck and holding the belt across your chest and moving the mounting point up or down until it's in a comfortable position at or above your shoulder.
Once you’ve found a location...
Once you’ve found a location that’s comfortable and marked the location at the rear of the pickups rear doorjamb (B-pillar), the first step is to drill a mounting hole that will accept one of the 7⁄16-inch mounting bolts supplied in the belt kit.
Install the 7⁄16-inch shoulder...
Install the 7⁄16-inch shoulder bolt by threading it into the pillar bracket and then give the yardstick (or whatever you’ve used to position the bracket) a gentle tug to remove it from the bracket.
Next, locate one of the B-pillar...
Next, locate one of the B-pillar brackets from the hardware kit and tape it to a yard stick or something similar so you can feed it up behind the inner skin of the cab and align the large hole in the bracket with the hole previously drilled behind the B-pillar.
Next, drill a 1⁄8-inch hole...
Next, drill a 1⁄8-inch hole through the sheet metal and into the bracket just below the shoulder bolt.
Install a POP rivet through...
Install a POP rivet through the 1⁄8-inch hole to hold the bracket in place during assembly of the shoulder point.
With the POP rivet holding...
With the POP rivet holding the shoulder bracket, you can then remove the shoulder bolt and slide the shoulder point D-ring of the belt assembly over the bolt and reinsert the bolt into the bracket.
Then, tighten it up just enough...
Then, tighten it up just enough so the D-ring is able to pivot back and forth and snap on the plastic cover to finish it off.
With the shoulder D-ring and...
With the shoulder D-ring and cap assembly in place up on the B-pillar the next step is to position the retractor and L-bracket into the cab corner area and mark the location so you can drill the anchor point.
Before you drill, it is a...
Before you drill, it is a good idea to take a look underneath the cab to be sure you have a clear spot (at least the size of the anchor plate). If all is clear, drill a mounting hole at the mark you made earlier.
Next, place the L-bracket...
Next, place the L-bracket over the hole in the floor and the anchor plate right underneath the floor as well. Make sure the welded nut on the anchor plate is facing down toward the ground and then thread the mounting bolt through the L-bracket and the anchor plate beneath.
That done, bolt the retractor...
That done, bolt the retractor assembly and the black bracket on the opposite end of the belt to the L-bracket and tighten in place.
The next step is to lay out...
The next step is to lay out and drill the holes for the inboard belt arms. Again, be sure there’s room underneath the floor for the anchor plates before drilling.
The final install step is...
The final install step is to bolt the inboard belt arms through the floor and the anchor plates underneath as well. Make sure the welded nuts are facing the ground same as the retractor anchor plates were earlier.