I'm also with Reichy and would be keen to know if there have ever been mods for rear seat harnesses (seat 3 & 4) It's like telling your passengers they're not worth as much so they just get the little lap belts while front pax get the full harness.

Anybody got any advice for a BAS shoulder harness that is all the way out and refuses to retract? Just gave it a cursory glance under the headliner, but hoping there is some slick trick to resetting it without a major undertaking. Thanks.

Henny wrote:Anybody got any advice for a BAS shoulder harness that is all the way out and refuses to retract? Just gave it a cursory glance under the headliner, but hoping there is some slick trick to resetting it without a major undertaking. Thanks.

Try a little spray lube (LPS-2) on the spindle and give it a wiggle. Little locking pawl is prolly stuck.

175 magnum wrote:I checked out Hooker harnesses and they have some nice options with regards to lockable inertia reels......

I just did a quick google for "Hooker Harness inertia reel".
While they do mention their "quickie" harnesses as an alternative to inertia reels,
I didn't see where they offer any inertia reel aviation set-up.

I'm wondering what benefits a "Hooker Harness" has vs a standard fixed harness from Spruce like this one
for a side-by-side two seater like a C140 or 150?

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/a ... ness3a.php

THat's assuming there's a nutplate in the spar carry-through (like there was in my 1964 C150TD),
or other suitable attach point,
so that the harness can be installed as a minor alteration per FAA policy statement ACE-00-23.561-01.

https://www.faa.gov/aircraft/gen_av/har ... policy.pdf

NZMaule wrote:I'm also with Reichy and would be keen to know if there have ever been mods for rear seat harnesses (seat 3 & 4) It's like telling your passengers they're not worth as much so they just get the little lap belts while front pax get the full harness.

Just point out to the backseaters all the little poky things on the panel that those shoulder harnesses will keep the front seaters from impaling into their foreheads.

Cary

When I talked to Hooker Harness last year they had 3 options for inertia reels
- standard , mechanical lock and electric lock.
The electric lock are listed in their price list. The mechanical and electric units still worked as normal inertia reels even when not locked. I believe the electric units could be ordered as power to lock or power to unlock.

The Hooker harness (At least in the 170) doesn't use the nutplate but makes a significant modification to the rear spar (big hole and doubler plate)

Bagarre wrote:The Hooker harness (At least in the 170) doesn't use the nutplate but makes a significant modification to the rear spar (big hole and doubler plate)

Sounds like it would not be eligible for installation as a minor alteration per the FAA's policy statement--
so STC or field approval required.

hotrod180 wrote:

Bagarre wrote:The Hooker harness (At least in the 170) doesn't use the nutplate but makes a significant modification to the rear spar (big hole and doubler plate)

Sounds like it would not be eligible for installation as a minor alteration per the FAA's policy statement--
so STC or field approval required.

They have an STC to go with it for the spar mod. It's a big (5/8ths?) reamed hole with a bushing and doubler plate so they can thru bolt the harness with an AN5 or something bolt. It was installed in my last 170 and precluded me from installing BAS harnesses. The STC does not specifically call out the harness, only the spar mod so I ended up making an inertia reel solution using the big ass bolt from the STC.

Buy the best and you will never be disappointed, think long term, what does a $500 saving will represent in a plane you might use 10 or 20 years.

BAS inertia reel with utility system.

Super comfortable,easy to use, safe and well designed, you will get so used to them, that when you fly in another airplane with standard shoulder seatbelts you are not going to like them , you are not able to move around with the freedom the inertia reel from BAS gives you.

Definitely go I would go with BAS, that was the very first mod I did to my plane just when I bought it 8 years ago, and like you was thinking of cheaper options, Im so glad I went for the BAS, no regrets at all.

I'm going to be blunt here. Whats you're life worth? Countless people have walked away from BAS equipped aircraft where the plane was demolished. They just work when you need them. All the mind games about getting by with anything less is just plain nonsense. If you can't afford the one time expense, maybe you really shouldn't own and operate an aircraft. MTV and several other people here on this site are still here with us because of these shoulder harnesses. So many people have unneedlessly died from impacting their head on the panel during the deceleration.

The BAS reel setup will most probably be my next purchase for my 182 at annual. A setup just like motoadve (José).

Cheers,

Tom

BAS harnesses are great, I have them in my C180.
But they're not the only harness out there,
and being the most expensive doesn't necessarily mean that they're "the best".
I've never seen a Hooker inertia-reel harness,
they might be just as good as BAS but maybe less expensive.
IMHO inertia reel harnesses are a must for the C180, for me anyway,
but maybe not so much in something like my old C150TD.
I could reach the flaps & trim just fine without leaning down.
Nice to have the freedom to lean forward to scan for traffic etc
without fighting the harness.

FWIW I see that BAS has added an STC'd harness kit for the Luscombe,
but still doesn't sell anything for the 2-place Cessna models.
The Luscombe kit mounts the inertia reel aft of the spar carry-through,
with a strap going back to the next bulkhead aft to provide bracing.
That oughta also work well for the C120/140 or C150/152.

http://basinc-aeromod.com/luscombe.php

A bit off topic but if you are going to order BAS harness consider the tail pull handle if applicable for your airplane. The tail pull handle is a must have!

Kurt

175 magnum wrote:When I talked to Hooker Harness last year they had 3 options for inertia reels
- standard , mechanical lock and electric lock.
The electric lock are listed in their price list. The mechanical and electric units still worked as normal inertia reels even when not locked. I believe the electric units could be ordered as power to lock or power to unlock.

Can you provide an internet link for Hooker inertia reel set-ups?
Their website doesn't seem to have anything.
Thanks.

hotrod180 wrote:BAS harnesses are great, I have them in my C180.
But they're not the only harness out there,
and being the most expensive doesn't necessarily mean that they're "the best".
I've never seen a Hooker inertia-reel harness,
they might be just as good as BAS but maybe less expensive.
IMHO inertia reel harnesses are a must for the C180, for me anyway,
but maybe not so much in something like my old C150TD.
I could reach the flaps & trim just fine without leaning down.
Nice to have the freedom to lean forward to scan for traffic etc
without fighting the harness.

FWIW I see that BAS has added an STC'd harness kit for the Luscombe,
but still doesn't sell anything for the 2-place Cessna models.
The Luscombe kit mounts the inertia reel aft of the spar carry-through,
with a strap going back to the next bulkhead aft to provide bracing.
That oughta also work well for the C120/140 or C150/152.

http://basinc-aeromod.com/luscombe.php

I agree that the BAS system is best for the freedom of movement it provides. I am quite certain that I could not reach my manual flap handle with a non-inertia reel harness, except by slipping off the shoulder straps, which would be pretty dumb to do. There are many other times when I've found that its helpful that the inertia reel allows movement, such as reaching for a switch on the far right side of the panel, or to pick up something that has been dropped on the floor, or to close the passenger door that has become unlatched.

A funny side story: when I took my friend Paul with me to go see the eclipse at Alliance, he was concerned about "tightening" the shoulder straps, because they move so easily. I told him that it used an inertia reel, like in a car. Of course, being the engineer that he is, he yanked on the shoulder straps, and they immediately locked up.

My IA arranged for a 337 for the installation of BAS harnesses in a friend's old straight back 150. I saw the installation, but I don't recall any additional structure. It looked like they were installed the same way that mine are under the BAS STC.

Cary

Cary wrote:....My IA arranged for a 337 for the installation of BAS harnesses in a friend's old straight back 150. I saw the installation, but I don't recall any additional structure. It looked like they were installed the same way that mine are under the BAS STC.

FWIW neither an STC of field approval is required to install shoulder harnesses (inertia reel or not), provided that the installation complies with the provisions of FAA policy statement ACE-00-23.561-01

https://www.faa.gov/aircraft/gen_av/har ... policy.pdf

I installed an inertia reel harness in my old C150TD as a minor alteration per that policy statement.
The reel mounted below the headliner, and was bolted to the spar carry-through (using the factory-installed nutplate).
Probably possible to whack your head on the reel in certain situations, plus it was borderline on being too far forward.
Don't know if it would alter the effectiveness,
but the straps rubbed on the back of my head & were really annoying.
It would have been even worse for anyone with longer legs than me (I'm 5-5) who needed to slide the seat farther aft.

The BAS installation in the Luscombe looks good because the reel is mounted aft of the spar carry-through,
hence providing a better angle on the strap.
Might be better if the reel was mounted even further aft,

FYI, BAS has a used set of shoulder harness/belts (although the floor belts are not shown in their pix) on eBay for $514; search for:

Cessna T210F BAS Seat Belt Pilot / Co-Pilot W/ STC SA2067NM P/N 4076-1-211-8132

While we all might not have a Cessna T210, these could be used on an experimental.

I didn't know that BAS has an eBay store with lots of aviation stuff. I guess that they are trying to make ends meet...

Blue skies,

Tom

TommyN wrote:FYI, BAS has a used set of shoulder harness/belts (although the floor belts are not shown in their pix) on eBay for $514; search for:

Cessna T210F BAS Seat Belt Pilot / Co-Pilot W/ STC SA2067NM P/N 4076-1-211-8132

While we all might not have a Cessna T210, these could be used on an experimental.

I didn't know that BAS has an eBay store with lots of aviation stuff. I guess that they are trying to make ends meet...

Blue skies,

Tom

Two different companies. The EBAY listing you are looking at is an aircraft salvage company(BAS) in Greeley Colo., that just happens to have some used B.A.S. seatbelts for sale.

Thanks for the clarification on BAS. No offense to all bass fishermen of the world.
Best,
Tom