Looking for seat belts for a '56 Fairlane

[Herman Munster]

Is there anyone that makes reproduction seat belts with the correct style mounting brackets for a '56 Fairlane? I've found originals but the price seems outrageous just for the brackets. I just bought a really nice '56 Town Sedan and I'd like to add belts so there is a little more safety for my family to ride in it. The car is mostly original which is why the generic ones out there just won't do. The generic ones also don't seem to have any reinforcements that the OEM brackets come with.

[Herman Munster]

Still looking so btt

[rick55]

These don't seem to have the ring style (which to me never look strong enough) but they do supply everything you need at a reasonable price. Nowadays all seatbelts use a 7/16" bolt which suggests that the modern engineers concur with my impression of the early brackets.
http://www.seatbeltstore.com/
Hope this gives you some ideas. There is even instruction on how to fit 3 point belts.
Regards

[paul2748]

What were the originals like? The TBirds had a U shaped bracket with a plate underneath. Did the originals have a ring that the belt snapped into?

[Herman Munster]

This is the style I'm looking for and these are the brackets they use. Since this is a very nice original car I don't want to drill holes for some sloppy looking generic brackets.
The seller that has these on fleecebay want's an astronomical amount of money for these items and doesn't have a full set anyway.

[paul2748]

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seatbeltsplus.com has hardware (anchors) similar to the ones you have on the right, although they are round. Nothing like the ones on the left. The TBird original brackets are similar to the ones on the left, but they form a elongated U.

Sometimes you have to bite the bullet as far as cost goes if you are looking for a specific item that is relatively rare.

[zoegrant]

Try julianos.com or call them in CT 800-300-1932
Good people to do business with.........John in CT

[Herman Munster]

I checked Julianos catalog a didn't see what I needed. I'll give them a call to see if they have what I need.
Thanks Zoe.

[smtichy]

Hi Herman,
I came across this thread in searching for seat belts for a '56 too. Any success with this? If so where did you find them, and how did the installation go? Also any tips on the placement of the anchors would be appreciated, as I can't seem to find any good reference documentation on how these were positioned.
Tnx, ST

[Herman Munster]

Originally Posted by smtichy

Hi Herman,
I came across this thread in searching for seat belts for a '56 too. Any success with this? If so where did you find them, and how did the installation go? Also any tips on the placement of the anchors would be appreciated, as I can't seem to find any good reference documentation on how these were positioned.
Tnx, ST

I ended up going OEM on the belts. I found a few sets on ebay but I need to get them dyed to the right color I need. I also bought a set of NOS anchors for the front seats and I have found good reproductions of the anchors for the rear seats at Tee-bird.com.
I have scans of the diagrams for installation of the front anchors.
There is a page on the net that had the rear installation.
http://classiccarradiodoctor.com/fordseatbelts.htm

[smtichy]

Hi Herman,
Excellent info! Many thanks for your post.
ST

[alt63bird]

Herman, the belts you pictured are of the Rotunda/FoMoCo metal-to-fabric type, and judging from the date code of 1-64 on them, what you're looking for in part is a 5-sided plate - the square end has three slots to loop one end of the belt through, and the other end has a hook and a spring-loaded latch -the hook went through a forged eye bolt with a shoulder that passed through the floor. The Rotunda belt you pictured was sold in '63-'63 with with a slightly different plate than the OEM/factory-installed one described above in that the hooked end pivoted (I used a set of NOS ones with hardware in my '63 T-bird), and it also used a forged eye bolt that screwed through the floor board into a fastener and reinforcing plate under the floor. '58-'63 T-birds and other Ford products used these, so I wouldn't think finding a used set for the hardware would be difficult, but then again I deal primarily with '58-'66 T-birds and associated used/new parts vendors. '56 and '57 do differ as noted above with a U-bolt instead of the eye bolt, but I don't recall how the belt is wrapped around the U-bolt and held in place - threading the belt through a slotted plate or sewn together like more-modern belts.

[Herman Munster]

These are the brackets I got for the front seats.


The belts loop through them along with a special buckle that tie them to the brackets.
These year specific brackets seem to have been very hard to find in any condition. I was lucky to find them NOS and for a price I seen a few used ones going for lately.

[Daves55Sedan]

Seat belts? What are seat belts???????

[Motorhead6]

In 1956, Ford started pushing safety in motoring by introducing seat belts, dished steering wheels, padded dashes and I don't know what else. Padded dashes and seat belts were optional. This effort back fired on Ford by raising public awareness about the dangers associated with driving and pointed the finger at themselves. I don't know the specific numbers, but few buyers opted for the seat belts; more went for the padded dash for it's beauty and it may have been part of a "package"(i.e. Fairlane trim level). This will explain the rarity of finding original seat belt hardware and why the price would be high.

[Y-Blockhead]

I would be concerned about the integrity of OEM belts after all these years. Something to think about.

[Herman Munster]

I would certainly be concerned about the integrity. I trust the OEM more than any of the chinese stuff that's available.

[Motorhead6]

you can always have them re-webbed by an upholstery shop. I have seen the webbing available. Just Google "replacement seat belt webbing" and a bunch of providers come up. Take the color of your choice to your local upholstery shop and there you go. I highly recommend replacing all seat belt webbing that is over about 10 years old or shows signs of fraying or holes or deterioration.

[miker98038]

Some years ago I bought the OEM style from your 12-9 post from Ssnake-oyl.com. They even had the matching light green for my 55bird. They weren't cheap, but they were all new, and the fabric to metal buckle style. I don't know what they carry now, but they also do restoration.

[Herman Munster]

I checked Ssnake-oyl.com. some time back but didn't look too much since I didn't have any original hardware to restore. I'll check them out again and see what they can do with the OEM items I have now. I like the idea of new webbing but I question the origin of the material used these days. I currently have two daily driver vehicles that are over 10 years and their belts still appear in good condition. I've even had a few vehicles in the past that were well over twenty years old with good original seat belts.

[Motorhead6]

Originally Posted by Herman Munster

I like the idea of new webbing but I question the origin of the material used these days. I currently have two daily driver vehicles that are over 10 years and their belts still appear in good condition. I've even had a few vehicles in the past that were well over twenty years old with good original seat belts.

Problem is that you cannot tell by the way the webbing looks if it is weakened. This is not racing, but in that endeavor, sanctioning bodies look at dates on seat belts and helmets; anything over about 3 years old(depending on the sanctioning body and extent of extreme use to which it will be subjected) is disallowed in competition due to unseen weaknesses. I don't think one needs to go to this extreme for a street car, but at what point does one stick the stake in the ground? Nothing lasts forever except flatheads and Y-blocks. :-)