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March 19th/20th - Childseat Rework Since 2015, the B-17 pilot's seat in the back of the Dodge supported my daughter's car seat. It fastened into the pilot's seat using the Isofix fittings and had a four point seat harness attache to the seat frame. By 2021, my daughter was getting a bit big for the seat, but we weren't out in the truck much, so it didn't matter too much. This year, I needed to do something about it. |
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The picture to the left shows the B-17 pilot's seat and the childseat that fastened into it. The pilot's seat was still big enough, but it needed a new seat cushion and backrest. I bought some foam locally and ordered some olive drab linen online. |
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The base was made from two pieces of foam, a 4 inch sheet glued to a 1 inch layer. This was cut into a cushion approximately 20 inches square. The backrest was going to be a 2 inch sheet. The base was the first piece started. | |
| It took lots of test fits, pinning the material onto the foam, marking up stitch lines. Then taking it off, turning it inside out, sewing and trial fitting again until the whole material cover was a good fit. Most of it was machine sewed, with only the rear face hand sewn. |
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The seat base was completed on Saturday 19th. The following morning, the foam backrest was cut on my bandsaw and then handed over to Lynne for the sewing. Since the back was thinner and a less complicated shape, she made a tube of fabric which was then machine sewn across the top and hand sewed on the bottom. A strip of Velcro was used to keep the back rest in place on the cushion. | |
| Since my daughter has grown quite a bit since the pilot's seat was first made, the openings in the backrest for the seat belts were now too low. To fix this, I welded two loops onto the back of the seat at the top for the belts to pass through. I also cut off the Isofix fittings on the inside of the seat bucket, as they would interfere with the new seat cushion. |
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The paint on the seat was touched up and it
was left out in the sun to bake for a while before it was bolted back in the
Dodge, ready for the first show of the year in the middle of next month.
I've also got a new battery on order. Despite being kept on a maintenance charger, the old one is showing signs of not being as healthy as it should be. I can't complain too much, as the current battery is at least 15 years old that I know of! |
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March 23rd - New 6 volt Battery Fitted |
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On Tuesday 22nd, the new battery arrived. I think the pallet was just to make sure it couldn't be tipped over. Once removed, it was taken to my workshop and put on a slow charge, for the rest of the day, ready for fitting the next day. It was fitted on the morning of the 23rd, after a little modification to the battery clamp and then test run. I may take a mould from the lead bars on top of the old battery and cast some resin ones for this battery. I couldn't justify the cost of a rubber cased, period looking battery. |
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