Tillett Seats too narrow. >sigh<

[magnusfeuer]

After a lovely ride yesterday with Doug, I realised that my new Caterham race (Tillett) seats are too narrow. Amazingly enough it is not my supersized ass that is in a tight spot (so to say), but my rib cage, which is one of the few parts of my body not embedded in fat. My ribs are sore today, and I have to do something about the seat.

I guess there is no way in hell to widen the it, which means I have to get a new one. The seat bay is 18 inches wide.

Any recommendations?

/Magnus F.

[slomove]

I would guess that you are out of luck here. If the laminate is not too thick you *may* be able to soften the epoxy resin matrix with heat sufficiently to bend it out. But I would not give this more than a 20% success probability and if it does not work the seat is ruined.

You may be better off selling it and do a bag seat.

[Doug Liedblad]

Michael Murphy has an aluminium seat that he used for racing.

I think it's from http://www.kirkeyracing.com/

[Mondo]

That's what I have in mine... though I have 2 different widths. I actually fit better in the narrower passenger seat.

They can use some lumbar support for longer rides. I just bought some pads from sparco for the lumbar area and sides.

[GWise]

You can try a rib protector - which are commonly used in karting.

http://www.ribtect.com/

You probably want to try to go as thin as possible. They really do help in a kart - I can't imagine why they wouldn't work.

[Sean]

You can try a rib protector - which are commonly used in karting.

http://www.ribtect.com/

You probably want to try to go as thin as possible. They really do help in a kart - I can't imagine why they wouldn't work.

...and if nothing else, their Galleries page showing their products in "action" are worth a look. ;)

[moosetestbestanden]

Keep using them. You'll toughen up over time, like a cyclist's butt. :-O

[magnusfeuer]

I have a Kirkey seat which fits me ok. It is just that it looks like crap. I'll try to fit it again this weekend to see how it interacts with the roll cage.

That's the other problem. With my current setup, my helmet bangs into the padding of the halo hoop of the roll cage. I'll get a thinner padding and see if I can tilt the new seat backward a bit.

Endless trouble.

/Magnus F.

[Michael Murphy]

Magnus, I have a utrashield aluminum seat, 15" wide. My butt fits nicely and it is very comfortable when driving in anger, but my kidneys feel the pinch after a long day. One advantage of aluminum is that you can (within limits)bend or cut down the side supports if they are causing you discomfort.

The BIG problem with mounting ali seats is getting the angle right (mounting bracket fabrication required) and also sorting the seat belts. With mine, it is difficult to adjust the lap belts sitting in the car because there is no room. The aluminum seat has cutouts for the belts to pass through and those are a tight fit against the side of the car and the tranny tunnel. My next set of lap belts will be configured to be adjustable at the center buckle (i.e. pulling away from the buckle to tighten, not up from the floor mounts). i would also buy lap belts with the mounting hardware sown in, not attached with an adjustable/removable buckle, to save space around the mounting points. So -- you can make the ali seat work but you need to think through the seatbelt arrangements.

Also, the aluminum seat does not absorb road shock but if you use tillets you should be used to that. I took mine out and use my old bench seat for Sunday drives.

[Michael Murphy]

Also, AFTER you are fully comfortable with the new seating arrangement, be sure to add a seat brace to secure the back of the seat (between your shoulder blades) to the frame cross-member behind the seat. This is required by most sanctioning bodies and is a good safety precaution.

To solve the halo hoop problem, simply attach a hoist strap to the offending halo hoop and lift the car while you are sitting in it. The combined weight of you and the car will bend the hoop to give you ample headroom.

[moosetestbestanden]

Oi Aussie, I've mentioned this before - when you use the term "tranny tunnel" you're clearly identifying yourself as a Sidneysider! :D

Tough it out w/ the Tillets Magnus - give em another few drives before performing more surgery.

[Doug Liedblad]

Gert says the 'pull down' seat belts don't work either.

I can't adjust my 'pull up' type when sitting in the car, so neither work in any convenient way.

[slomove]

Yes, the pull-downs don't work at all because in a Seven there is no space at the side of your hips to pull down into. And if you don't pull very parallel the buckle won't budge.

Don't know what the problem with the pull-ups is, though. They work fine for me and I can tighten them easily when sitting in the seat. For widening I have to get out, but that is not a common operation. I have the G-Force ones (yes I am cheap).

[Michael Murphy]

Gert,the problem with the pull-ups for me is simply that there is no room. I am a "press fit" into the seat and once in, I can't manipulate the belts. My old 3 inch lap belts were never very easy to adjust anyway, so perhaps a different pair would work okay.

[magnusfeuer]

I'm off to http://www.werks2.com/ in Burbank with the Caterham (trailed) on Friday to see if they have a seat that may fit.

John West said that fitting a new halo hoop was a relatively easy operation. I'll fix the seat issue first and then move on to the cage.

Moose: There is no way in hell that the Tillett seats will get better. My spine is not really contacting with the rear of the seat. Two hours in a mild pace made my ribs hurt like a polish man-whore's sphincter after attending Lech Valesa's birthday party. I dare not think what they will feel like after pulling serious g's on Buttonwillow.

/Magnus F.