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porker buzz
Samba Member
Joined: March 28, 2009
Posts: 113
Location: uk
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 Posted: Thu Oct 26, 2017 10:01 am Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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| they can easily be modified to bolt in without to much trouble so if you sell van you can easily remove them or gain access underneath a lot easier |
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parteephoto
Samba Member
Joined: February 21, 2013
Posts: 13
Location: Portland, OR
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| Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2017 12:25 am Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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Any chance someone has photos of the bolted install that tencent describes? The photobucket links broke 
Thanks!
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'86 wolfy westy wkndr syncro bostig, in progress  |
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RoryGirl
Samba Member
Joined: October 14, 2016
Posts: 982
Location: WestWorld Nanaimo BC
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| Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2017 1:26 am Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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| parteephoto wrote: |
Any chance someone has photos of the bolted install that tencent describes? The photobucket links broke
Thanks! |
Pics will show with this -
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/photobuc...aedg?hl=en
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1991 Twin Slider VR6
1985 Audi 4k |
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Gruppe B
Samba Member
Joined: January 16, 2007
Posts: 1331
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| Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2017 9:35 am Post subject: |
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| tencentlife wrote: |
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| but am concerned about the possibility of the bolts shearing in an accident and throwing myself and passenger through the windshield. |
You should get in the habit of using seatbelts.
(That's not snark; it contains a specific answer to your question if you think about it for a moment) |
I see this is an old post (7 years)....
Seatbelt won't work when rear ended at high speeds. The bolts need to be strong enough to hold your weight being pushed against the seat back.
Saturn had a seat design failure where when the car was rear ended at speed the seatbacks failed and the passenger and driver would be thrown unsecured into the back seat of the car.
The same issue would happen if the bolt heads failed using this installation method. |
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SyncroChrick
Samba Member
Joined: January 10, 2005
Posts: 1034
Location: San Francisco, CA
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| Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2018 11:24 pm Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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another vote for Tencent method...I installed my swivel seats today and decide to bolt them instead of welding. I want to be able to go back under the seat later and add some soundproofing material, and perhaps install a drawer from RMW.
Once I realized that the swivel seat itself is hold on by 4 bolts, putting 6 bolts for the base did not seem like a problem...
Tencent was correct, you have to be very precise with the location of the holes.
I'll try to add a couple pictures tomorrow. |
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jttosh
Samba Member
Joined: May 16, 2004
Posts: 451
Location: Cuyahoga Falls,Ohio
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| Posted: Fri May 17, 2019 5:36 pm Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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What years had the swivel seats? Just Westys?
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"listening for the secret,searching for the sound" |
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dhaavers
Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010
Posts: 8375
Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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| Posted: Fri May 17, 2019 7:10 pm Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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^^^ From the factory it was all "full campers", all years...not "Weekenders"...not tintops. (Samba terminology, NOT OG VW)...
  
- Dave
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86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS> |
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jttosh
Samba Member
Joined: May 16, 2004
Posts: 451
Location: Cuyahoga Falls,Ohio
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| Posted: Fri May 17, 2019 7:17 pm Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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Well... Thanks Dave!
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"listening for the secret,searching for the sound" |
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16CVs
Samba Member
Joined: February 22, 2004
Posts: 4228
Location: Redwood City, California
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| Posted: Sun Dec 15, 2019 6:30 pm Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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I have a set of seat rotaters and am wondering if the new Nylon Bushing from FLAPS are worth changing in or just re use mine as they all seem to be there and fine.
I had them installed and was happy with how simple the install was. If you have a van without them they are worth every penny, and great when parked.
Stacy
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1987 Syncro Westfalia Triple knob (bastard)
1989 Syncro Tristar Triple knob "Swedish"
2013 Jetta Hybrid a true "Zwitter"
Samba member # 14980
Call anytime number 650 722 4914 .
Keep Your van running and upkept tastefully for the love of the hobby.
Don't let your van end up in an "abortions" thread. |
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Make America Vanagon
Samba Member
Joined: October 14, 2017
Posts: 66
Location: Glendora, CA
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| Posted: Fri May 22, 2020 9:33 pm Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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| TopBud wrote: |
I made a bottom with just stock steel I bought at the local metal shop/welder. It is thick enough that it doesn't flex and it works fine. Another way to do it is just use 2 pieces of metal about 2" wide and weld them to the rails and make sure they line up with the mounting holes. That will still allow the top to spin. I played with the different ways to mount it. Do you have someone in your area that has a swivel seat to look at and see how it works. Once you see it, you will be able to make something work. I am not a professional on these, but have been driving them and working on my own vehicles.
but, the main idea here is to make sure the "base" is thick enough to support the seat and the passenger and also allow it to swivel.
I don't have pictures but can draw something up if you need it |
Anyone here that has modified a swivel to fit without the base in this fashion? I got a set that, for the price, could not pass up, but I've got to figure out how to mount without the bases. |
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vino de vano
Samba Member
Joined: September 10, 2016
Posts: 361
Location: columbia gorge
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| Posted: Fri May 22, 2020 10:44 pm Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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I used 1/4" aluminum drilled and mounted through existing holes in track, nuts captured in track. I also chose teflon furniture feet slides to rotate on. check page 2 of my build thread. search in title only, cost of my 87 Vanagon. Hope that helps.
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what a long strange trip it's been |
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Make America Vanagon
Samba Member
Joined: October 14, 2017
Posts: 66
Location: Glendora, CA
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| Posted: Sat May 23, 2020 7:15 am Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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| vino de vano wrote: |
| I used 1/4" aluminum drilled and mounted through existing holes in track, nuts captured in track. I also chose teflon furniture feet slides to rotate on. check page 2 of my build thread. search in title only, cost of my 87 Vanagon. Hope that helps. |
Went for page 2, and stayed for the whole thing! I've bookmarked your build post, and will be following. Thank you for your solution, that looks to be my best bet. Here's the link for members with the same predicament:
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=...p;start=20 |
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tencentlife
Samba Member
Joined: May 02, 2006
Posts: 10147
Location: Abiquiu, NM, USA
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| Posted: Sat May 23, 2020 8:17 am Post subject: |
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| Gruppe B wrote: |
Seatbelt won't work when rear ended at high speeds. |
Actually, at any speed. Barely needs to be said.
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| The bolts need to be strong enough to hold your weight being pushed against the seat back. |
Yes, they do, so how do you decide what's strong enough? Well, the seat tracks are fastened to the seat bases with only four M6's, two per side, 10.9 grade. We can safely infer that that was sufficient to pass the pertinent USDOT rear-end collision tests, since the vans were sold in the US with this assembly.
I used the same size bolts to fasten the swivel base to the seat pedestals. My pictures showed 8.8 hex screws, I later changed them to 10.9 socket head screws. So in case anyone's wondering, if grade 10.9 or 12.9 M6 bolts are used the bolt-down method is as strong as what was already holding the seat base down. And if you want to overkill it, go to 6 or 8 bolts for the swivel base and you'll be assured the seat base will pop its track bolts well before the swivel base comes up.
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Last edited by tencentlife on Sun May 24, 2020 5:50 am; edited 1 time in total |
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crazyvwvanman
Samba Member
Joined: January 28, 2008
Posts: 10365
Location: Orbiting San Diego
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| Posted: Sat May 23, 2020 9:29 am Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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I suspect that the deeply recessed factory track might play a much larger beneficial role in a crash than is realized.
Mark |
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Zeitgeist 13
Samba Member
Joined: March 05, 2009
Posts: 12161
Location: Port Manteau
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| Posted: Sat May 23, 2020 11:21 am Post subject: Re: Installing swivel seat base. Help! |
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Is it possible to route seat heater wires up through T3 sliders?
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Casey--
'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik? |
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