Navigator Seating

bottomacher · October 14, 2011, 03:27:10 PM

Texas is the first state I've heard of that requires a seat belt in an antique or in a bus that were factory built without them. Wonder if they require crash testing of the mounting bolts? I thought it was a federal requirement, if at all, and not up to the states.

usbusin · October 14, 2011, 03:50:56 PM

artvonne asks; Im curious as well, how others feel about a fold down floor panel over the stair well for your feet.

In our 4014 we covered the stair well. I put a piano hinge at floor level on the front dash and fastened a piece of 1" plywood to the piano hinge. The plywood rested on a 1" x 1" angle at the rear of the stair well. A gas strut held the plywood in the upright position when you were parked. Simple, effective and kept the passenger from falling into the step well!

Lin · October 14, 2011, 04:59:45 PM

Similar to USbusin, we have a hinged panel that comes down to cover the stairwell. It is just held up with a hook and eye though. You must remember to lift it when getting out though. Otherwise it is a long way down. Anyway, that puts her seat slightly aft of the driver. No complaints so far.

Ed Hackenbruch · October 14, 2011, 07:36:03 PM

We also have a hinged panel for the stairwell. It stays in the up position with the use of a magnet. One thing we have noticed is that in a cold climate if we have it down it helps keep cold air from coming into the bus.

The co-pilot seat also turns around so we can use it for the desk that is right behind it. I am sitting in it as i type this.

Seayfam · October 14, 2011, 08:44:24 PM

Here are some pics of how our bus is set up. The passanger seat is mounted on a hydraulic ram that is connected to a 12v hydraulic pump. I have a switch mounted on the dash with a up and down position. You just raise the seat up, swing it forward and then let it down right next to the driver seat. When you are done you just return it to the living room furniture.

Tikvah · October 15, 2011, 03:57:55 AM

QuoteThe passenger seat is mounted on a hydraulic ram that is connected to a 12v hydraulic pump. I have a switch mounted on the dash with a up and down position. You just raise the seat up, swing it forward and then let it down right next to the driver seat. When you are done you just return it to the living room furniture.

That sounds so incredibly cool that I just have to see it. Any chance you could shoot a video of that? I'd like to see that in person. That's the kind a gadget magic I could really get into.

Dave

Seayfam · October 15, 2011, 10:02:48 AM

Dave,
I would love to shoot a video of how it works, but I live in Alaska and have the bus wrapped, blocked and the batteries removed for the winter. This is a really simple build if you have any fabrication experience. If you have an old snow plow laying around that you don't use because of global warming. (You have all the parts right there) If you look at the first picture, you will see the ram is mounted right behind the driver seat and in my bus is bolted in the front side of the wheelwell. You have to get that mounted in the right position so the arm will clear everything and set the chair right next to you. You will see in the first picture, the step has a bevel on the right side. That is so the arm doesn't hit the step when you let it down.

My wife really loves this feature. My father in law likes it too. I was driving the bus in northern Idaho (lots of rednecks there) and my father in law wanted to try the chair out. I let him for awhile and got some funny looks. Needless to say I raised that chair in a hurry and put him back in behind me. LOL!

Scott & Heather · October 16, 2011, 06:02:39 AM

in response to jbnewman, here are the photos of my side stairwell mod. It's not complete, so please ignore the unfinished carpet, trim, vinyl, and spray foam. $:-\$ The seat is not locked into it's straight mode, so it looks like it's turned and leaning...ignore that too. This is just proof of concept. Anyway, the seats are mucho comfortable and I now have my cute wife right next to me so we can sail into the sunset holding hands...until the driver next to me cuts me off and I need both hands on the wheel... $:-\$

Auto shifter underneath the center armrests along with Pbrake.

fraser8 · October 17, 2011, 03:29:55 PM

I owned a 1979 Itasca (Winnebago) and it had a double passenger seat with two seat belts, it swiveled so you could have it face backward and I believe it could be laid flat for a small bed. (I could be wrong about the flat part) Anything is possible with a little steel, a welder and a good upholstery guy or you could hunt down an old Itasca motor home...