Drill Vanagon Westy Floor and Frame?

[gpbruce lyons]

Where do I drill to drop a pin/bolt through the Westy Floor Seat Rails and then through the Outer Frame Rail down below? I want to secure a pulley and make it removable when not in use. The drilling starts with the seat rail cover, then the attachment rail, then the Westy floor then to the bottom of the frame rail. How would you line up this shot to get it right the first time?

[MarkWard]

I have no idea what you are asking, perhaps you could add some arrows. Those floor rails are through bolted into captive nuts that I can see in your second picture. Perhaps remove one bolt to confirm where you are below and then its just a case of measuring X and Y from that point.

[alaskadan]

Those welded in nuts in your second picture with bolts in them are the bolts holding down the slide in track, right? Use those as a reference or swap one out for your eye bolt.? Yes , no?

[gpbruce lyons]

In the interest of brevity, I sacrificed clarity. Sorry! Those "captive nuts" in picture #2, if they are indeed to secure the seat rails, will give me a reference point. Don't know, haven't looked. What I am asking is how to create a secure anchor point for a pin/bolt to pass through the floor with enough metal contact points to hold it in place while a winch cable passing through a fixed snatch block pulley pulls a load up a ramp and into the camper. By passing through the bottom of the frame rail enough leverage will result in keeping the pin/bolt in place. The pin/bolt passes through the pulley hole. Hope this helps!

[djkeev]

Those seat mount bolt locations are no wimpy fastener.

They are designed to not give way in a forward high speed impact.
They hold the seat in place and two persons sitting on the seat wearing seat belts in place!
No light weight task!
Granted, several are working in harmony sharing the load, but they are plenty strong.

I installed eye bolts in place of hex head seat belt bolts.
The eye holds stuff in place using straps, but I would have no qualms about using one to do as I think I understand your intent. Use two in tandem if you have doubts.

How strong must you be to hold ...... oh..... say 400 + pounds? (Two people and the seat) in place when abruptly stopping from 60 mph to zero?

Dave
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[Steve M.]

Take a look at these.
I have replaced them as the seat belts bolts.
I have used it to cross strap over the top of heavy items using the original bench seat cabinet bolts to keep cargo secure using rachet straps.


Part #: GVW-EYEBOLT-KIT
Works With: 1968-1991

https://www.gowesty.com/product/-accessories/4372/eye-bolt-kit-?v=
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[djkeev]

[Steve M.]

[MarkWard]

Still lost, where in the floor does the removable pulley need to end up? The pictured pulley in that orientation will have a tendency to bend your pin or if the pin is stout enough, the sheetmetal floor.

I would need more information to come up with a solution.

[jimf909]

I'm not 100% certain but I believe this thread will provide insight on the problem the OP is trying to solve.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=743031&highlight=

OP, feel free to correct me if this isn't helpful. Here's hoping you're getting closer to a solution.
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[gpbruce lyons]

Thanks Guys!

Mark! You nailed it (I think?) if the bolts actually secure the seat rails that will give me the X, Y coordinates to locate the pin/bolt hole. I want to drill at the intersection of the Seat Rail and the sub floor Frame Rail. Hope it is right in front of the Westy Cabinets! "The pictured pulley in that orientation will have a tendency to bend your pin or if the pin is stout enough, the sheetmetal floor." Yep! That is the problem I am trying to solve! I am thinking a Marine Stainless Bolt 1/2" X 8" with the tip rounded off to make hole finding easier... All the components can be removed after arrival, so no tripping hazards! Reinstalled for departure.

Steve and Dave! I have installed the Eye Bolts already, that is at the other end of the problem chain, securing the winch... Notice the Trailer Hitch Collar on the winch, it slides over the Eye Bolt and is held in place by the Carabiner D Ring. Each piece is rated for 2,000LBS or higher.

The drag weight up the ramp is calculated at 150 to 200LBS up the ramp slope. This is a straight pull, 20" off the ground, not a weight lift. The pulley and the chair seat are the same height relative to the ground.

Lets keep going on this, I am losing my strength and mobility faster than anticipated and camping up here will start soon!

What am I loading you may ask: Me and the Chair!

[gpbruce lyons]

Jim! That is exactly right, the background of the Journey! That thread led me down to the short list of problem solving and got me to where we are now, final problems. The bad news is that I can no longer handle a 40LBS ramp so I will have to split the loading ramp in half... I can still manage 20LBS! Yippee!

[MarkWard]

Could you mount the winch in the cabinet and run the cable straight out when needed? A roller could be fitted to the sliding door sill so the cable could move smoothly over the transition. If you need a pulley to reduce the pulling load, you could have the pulley on the chair end and run the cable back into the van and clip to an eye.

I get that if you are in the chair, you are probably limited in setting up block and tackle.

If the cabinet is a bad idea. Have you looked at E Track? A small section might give you the ability to clip the wench in and out.

Rather than a pin, a square u bolt with two holes would give you the support. A flat plate from below could be tacked into place to reinforce the bolt. Lots of possibilities. Sorry about your loss of mobility. I admire not wanting to retire to the couch. Mark

[gpbruce lyons]

Hi Mark! I opted away from modifying the cabinets out of respect for the Westy and it made secure mounting more difficult due to plywood sandwiches. I'd rather have more metal and no other non-hard materials. Hence dropping the pin/bolt through the seat rails and frame rail. I am praying that when I remove the bolt I see the ground and side of the rail!

The cable clears the floor by 1" all the way through the pull, floor (19") and seat (20") are far enough apart so no interference.

Thanks for the introduction for E Track! Great gear! Having stuff hanging within arms reach is essential to coping with living in a wheelchair... Adding those to my Costco rolling stainless steel shelves would be a big improvement! Right now I have random hooks everywhere.

[MarkWard]

A hole followed up with a robust sleeve might be a better design installed from above. Weld the pin to the pulley. Use a small spacer to shim it off the floor and drop it in to your sleeved hole. Have a plastic plug to cap the hole when not in use.

[gpbruce lyons]

Hi Mark! I though about sleeving it... Have not decided, I was put off by bigger holes and finding the right components. I am thinking bed liner for rust prevention and a flat plastic cap. The pin/rail contact area during the pull would not be significantly different would it? I would be using this a couple of times a month rather than daily... I could check hole oblongation every time I set the pin. Your thoughts?

My theory is that the bolt threads would help hold the pin in place against the rails metal edges. At the end of the pull there will be some upward forces on the pulley which I can control, rolling in the last two feet on the flat of the floor.

[MarkWard]

It's not going to see a lot of load. Often you design something and see how it does. I'd say do what you have in mind and see how it works.

We do something similar for pulling the race cars into the trailer. The winch is mounted in the front corner and the pulley is in the middle forward of the trailer. The problem with less expensive winches is the cable bird nests too easily. Making it next to impossible to deal with. Its not uncommon to completely unwind the cable and rewind it.

[gpbruce lyons]

Hi Mark! Sounds good to me! If I shorten the cable to what I need about 10 feet (half the supplied length) will that help avoid bird nests?

[MarkWard]

The problem is when tension is released the cable wants to “float” on the reel. Plus when it’s winched in, there’s no guide to ensure it winds neatly. A web strap does a better job, but won’t work well in a pulley.

[alaskadan]

Swap out the steel cable with amsteel grey rope. We all do that with our atv winches. Its soft and supple. IF it were to fray a little it doesn't bite you.