Simpson harness shoulder straps

[gwnorth]

Call me a wimp, but I find the shoulder straps are uncomfortable, cutting into my delicate skin and chaffing when pulled down tight. Don't want to wear nomex underwear everytime I go for a drive. Any clever quick cheap solutions to this problem? Been thinking about wrist sweat bands but don't remember seeing any black ones.

[Mustang Man]

Most any belt company (Simpson, Impact, Schroth) have velcro or zip on belt pads. You can get them and wear them while driving and then quickly remove for display (if you don't like the look)...

HTH...
Mark

[OCCPete]

I've got covers on my belts:

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/GFR-4098BK/?rtype=10

http://static.summitracing.com/global/images/prod/large/gfr-4098bk_w.jpg

I took the labels off and my wife sewed on some Cobras:

http://www.ffcars.com/photopost/data/500/medium/IMG_6068.JPG

Pete

[Dennisb]

sheepskin works well too.

[Bill_VA]

Simpson makes matching pads, I have them and love em.

[MrJeffreyB]

Same as OCCPete but I kept the G-Force labels...

[Cobradavid]

Simpson makes matching pads, I have them and love em.

x2. Big difference in comfort.

David

[Gumball]

Helmet with HANS device works great, but maybe too much for the street ;-)

[gwnorth]

Thanks, everyone, for the input on the shoulder strap pads. I was hoping for something a more creative and less expensive. $80+tax+shipping for 2 pair of the Simpson ones sounds a little steep up here in Canada. You Yanks must have bought them before the recession. The Summit G-Force set is only $40 but that still sounds like a lot for a little to me. Maybe I'll go looking for a sheep as DennisB suggests.

[patpur]

Mine are stashed behind the seats for serious driving. Otherwise I just use the lap belts.

[Lex]

Mine are stashed behind the seats for serious driving. Otherwise I just use the lap belts.
Lap belts only is not a good thing! Even at 20 mph you will go foward 1st then whip back and crack the roll bar or on a rear end just the opposite. I bought a set of camlocks and love them. Quick in and out and after you get used to it its no worse than straping yourself into a normal car.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w220/lex446/P9174687.jpg

[Mustang Man]

Ask Mikey P what happens when you only wear lap belts... .:(

[Mikey_P]

Yes Mark, I have become a believer.

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h77/pelletm/Roadster%20Wreck/Wreck8-1.jpg

[Gumball]

If you're handy with a needle and thread you could probably make copies of the commercial versions quite easily for very little money. The reason those are expensive is that they are typically SFI rated and made from flame-resistant material. If that isn't something you need, you could make similar versions using black cloth (or something like Alcantara if you want a faux-suede look), a little foam, and some velcro. The way the commercial ones are made is as follows - the fabric is 3X the width of the belt, the foam is the same width as the belt and is placed on the center of the fabric. One side of the fabric is then wrapped over the foam and it is sewn together on the three open sides. The other side of the fabric that is left gets a piece of velcro sewn onto it the full length (with the other side of the velcro sewn onto the padded "pillow". Then, you just wrap the pad around the shoulder harness. I've had these in racecars before and they do help a tremendous amount, but like I said, if you don't need fire-resistance, making a set should be no problem.

Hope that helps.

[Cobradavid]

Lap belts only is not a good thing!

Very true. If you wear only lap belts, your upper body will not be restrained in an accident. Just look around the cockpit and see all the things your face will smash into - steering wheel, shifter, dash switches, windshield post, wind wings brackets, door top, etc. There's a really good reason all cars now come with shoulder belts.

David

[gwnorth]

Thanks, Gumball, for your description. There is a shoemaker locally who does offbeat projects (he made me a tonneau cover for my Lotus Elan) and I've been thinking along the line of what you've described.