'Bolters helping 'Bolters is a beautiful thing!

          So you reach down next to the seat and push / pull / yank while jerking your body to move the seat in a way that gets you strange looks from passers by. But the seat doesn't move! You're stuck either sucking that gut in so you can turn the wheel, or reaching out with your tippy toes just to push the clutch pedal!

          Now, now ... no need to rip everything out and install cheesy bucket seats seats from an '81 Malibu. Here's Kip with a tip for ...

Finding the seat adjustment

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       The seat adjustment on my 1941 Chevy is a study of absolute simplicity. The seat back has two flat steel hooks that hang from two slots in the cab’s steel interior. At the bottom of the seat back, two steel tabs engage corresponding slots in the seat bottom.

       The seat bottom can slide forward and back along four inverted “U” shaped tracks bolted to the top of the gas tank frame.

       At the front of each of the two outboard tracks is a large round pin which fits into one of four holes in the corresponding “U” tract on the seat bottom frame.

       To adjust the seat, you merrily lift the front of the seat bottom about half an inch and slide it forward or back until the next hole falls in place over the pins. The seat back follows along because it is attached with the tab and slot arrangement.

       The only drawback to this arrangement is that the seat bottom does not move easily in the “U” shaped channels. And if it is slightly out of shape (like mine), it is almost impossible to slide.

The fix

       I cured this problem by installing nylon slide strips on the channels above the gas tank. By adding a nylon strip to both sides of the four channels, the seat slides much easier.

       At the local big box hardware store, I found some 36" long nylon tie-wraps designed for holding insulation to ductwork. The manufacturer’s number was Malco TY34. I cut these to 18-3/4” long and bolted them in three places, each with #10-24 flathead bolts. The bolts can be arranged so the ones at the two ends are beyond the front and back of the gas tank, and the center bolt is above one of the groves in the tank to provide additional clearance.

       I also cut off any of the bolt that protruded beyond the nut, not wanting to have anything sharp pointed at the tank.

       By drilling the two end holes in the channels about 1/16” farther apart than the matching holes in the nylon, the nylon is stretched tight as the bolts are tightened. This keeps the nylon tight against the steel channel.

                                                                                           ~ Kip Bonds

-30-

One thing that rebuilding this truck has taught me is patience. ~ Kip Bonds