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New Aluminum Seat Coming Soon - You'll Love the Installation!
We're still tweaking the design, but our new aluminum seats will sit in a base with a series of holes. A number of the holes in the base will have captive nuts attached to the outside. You will easily be able to position the seat to the desired legroom position and install with grade 8 button head cap screws from the inside. You would also be able to reposition the seat without having to remove it from the car.
The seat combines great support with ease of entry and exit. We are developing an upholstery pattern that will keep the sides independent of the center. This way, people who need maximum width can have either thinner foam on the sides or no upholstery at all. Multiple widths will be available. The shell design will also make it easy for it to be wrapped in vinyl like carbon fiber for those who prefer a custom look.
Will it be strong enough to get by without a back support? The Kirkey and Ultrashield seats need back supports fastened to something solid in the car so they don't collapse backwards when the occupant's body rebounds toward the rear from the harnesses at the end of an incident.
Will it be strong enough to get by without a back support? The Kirkey and Ultrashield seats need back supports fastened to something solid in the car so they don't collapse backwards when the occupant's body rebounds toward the rear from the harnesses at the end of an incident.
Bill
There is nothing special about the 5052 aluminum used on these seats so they would require the same precautions.
You can see below what we are working on for the Miata first, since it is one of the hardest cars to fit seats in. I posted this on a Miata forum and after we get that project done I will look at brackets for the C5/C6.
The base will look something like below, with a series of built in nuts on the outside. I want to get at least 6" of adjustability in it and still have a wide span of attachment on the sides. I will probably design it so the base can bolt to floor rails in two locations.
Button head bolts will be used from the inside. You can see that the seat back sits inside the seat bottom and overlaps around the lap belt openings. The sections bolt together and are .25" thick in that area. Then you will have at least 2 grade 8 bolts going through both sections and into a steel bracket. Most seats have just 2 bolts through side mounts on each side but you can add as many as you like with this.
The seat would work with those but there may be some conflicts of interest. This seat is designed for those wanting a seat that sits low to the floor. The seat would likely hit the bracket if you had longer legs and wanted the seat to install past the rear floor bolts. Since the base will be made from one piece of steel wrapping the seat bottom some people may decide to enlarge one of the unused holes to 7/16" and bolt lap belts on the sides.
Do you have plans to have these certified? If not, I am not sure to what extent your target market may be able to use them. Even for DEs, if there is a fixed race seat in the car, it is usually necessary to have a certified seat.
I like the idea of super flexibility in mounting and adjusting, so don't take my questions the wrong way.
Do you have plans to have these certified? If not, I am not sure to what extent your target market may be able to use them. Even for DEs, if there is a fixed race seat in the car, it is usually necessary to have a certified seat.
I like the idea of super flexibility in mounting and adjusting, so don't take my questions the wrong way.
-Kevin
I have read of events requiring that a seat that is not FIA certified be back braced and there are numerous adjustable back braces available.
We are not after hard core racers. We are more trying to meet the needs of people who need to sit lower in the car, want more support than the stock seats and the ability to wear a harness if needed.
Do you have plans to have these certified? If not, I am not sure to what extent your target market may be able to use them. Even for DEs, if there is a fixed race seat in the car, it is usually necessary to have a certified seat.
I like the idea of super flexibility in mounting and adjusting, so don't take my questions the wrong way.
-Kevin
I've never seen a DE check seats, mounting or certification.
To Marrad:
I made a similar setup, I mounted a Kirkey directly to a Planted mount and I use the lap belt bracket you linked. My seat is pretty far back in a C5, about 3 inches from the bulkhead in the rear.
IMO you should make this seat to be compatible with this bracket as this is what most street/HPDE guys use. Seems to me you will sell more of these seats to street/HPDE/Autocross guys like me.
I put the planted bracket and lap belt bracket with belts in the car, then bolt the seat in and then slide the cover on.
Last edited by FASTFATBOY; 12-12-2016 at 10:02 AM.
I haven't designed brackets for the Corvette yet but the 16" wide seat for the Miata will look like below. All the upholstery will install and remove with velcro. We will work on suede and leather panels soon. It is more designed for people who don't want to climb in and out of a racing seat for daily driving but need better support than stock and more headroom. I have some 17" versions coming and will provide more info and pictures showing installation when I can.
11-12-2016, 01:32 PM
New Aluminum Seat Coming Soon - You'll Love the Installation!
