Modifying the Front Seat "Seat-Pan"

rambos_ride

For lack of a better word and not knowing if its in the manual...the piece I want to discuss is "Seat-Pan" or sheetmetal framework that the front seats (cushions) mounts too and the seat tracks bolt to, rope handle etc...

I am one of the few rodders that loves the original Commodore style seats that I just cannot get rid of it (but I am going to change it up..he,he) BUT the darn front "Seat-Pan" is freakin' heavy - one of the heaviest pieces I've pulled from the car!

Has anyone modified one of these front seat pans to lighten it without losing strength?

I was thinking of taking a hole saw to it and then reinforcing it at key points with box tubing.

Or maybe cut out areas and replace with expanded metal and recover?

Any other ideas?

[Deleted User]

Hey Dan.....I plan to keep my seat as well and its heavy also! Especially with the tilt backs (since its a coupe) that try to flop around when you're carrying it! I'm going to try to find a way to modify the frame to make fold-out armrests (on the inside center w/ cup holders) which can be folded up and away so you have the original bench seat look. Hadn't thought about trying to lighten it up, but that's something worth looking into. Sorry, I'm better at coming up with more questions, not answering them! lol

[Deleted User]

I'm going to be about as helpful as Jay , in that I don't have any useful experience with making Hudson seats lighter. (just kidding Jay)

That being said, there was a discussion recently about Wasp seats being thinner in the back than Hornet seats. Maybe the entire Wasp seat frame is smaller (and lighter) than the long wheelbase Commodore seats. Unfortunately, this would only be helpful if you had access to a parts car Wasp...

Your idea of a cutting it with hole saw is probably a good idea, you could cut away a good portion of it and still have a seat that's stronger than the one's they put in modern cars.

rambos_ride

Well, the first thing I've lightened up is myself!

With the move I've dropped 45lbs since summer! Stress reduction diet...works wonders!

My plan is to take the rear seat fold-down arm and integrate it into the front seat. The entire rear seat area of this car is going to be a platform for the mutt...and a place to crash on the road if need be!

But something has to be done to lighten that seat-pan up without sacrificing safety...what I need is someone with a water-jet or laser cutter!

[Deleted User]

rambos_ride wrote:

My plan is to take the rear seat fold-down arm and integrate it into the front seat. The entire rear seat area of this car is going to be a platform for the mutt...and a place to crash on the road if need be!

But something has to be done to lighten that seat-pan up without sacrificing safety...what I need is someone with a water-jet or laser cutter!

Cool idea on the armrests Dan! Hey, my neighbor has a water-jet cutter, but a bit far away I suppose. :-(

Unknown

rambos_ride wrote:

Well, the first thing I've lightened up is myself!



With the move I've dropped 45lbs since summer! Stress reduction diet...works wonders!



My plan is to take the rear seat fold-down arm and integrate it into the front seat. The entire rear seat area of this car is going to be a platform for the mutt...and a place to crash on the road if need be!



But something has to be done to lighten that seat-pan up without sacrificing safety...what I need is someone with a water-jet or laser cutter!

I tried that Stress reduction diet a few years ago, I lost more hair than weight! I've gotten off it, most of the weight came back, but not the hair. :rolleyes:



Most people don't realize how important an armrest really is, you just can't cruise properly with out it!



Terry

rambos_ride

52 kahuna wrote:

I tried that Stress reduction diet a few years ago, I lost more hair than weight! I've gotten off it, most of the weight came back, but not the hair. :rolleyes:

Most people don't realize how important an armrest really is, you just can't cruise properly with out it!

Terry

How true that is! Of course that's also why I want to remove my wing window on the front door and go to 1pc glass...the window opening on the 4door front door is too small to comfortably hang my massive "guns"out the opening while crusin' for chicks on the blvd...well...in my Hudson dreams anyway...:)

Unknown

Yea, I've that re-occurring dream too. That is the curse us four door owners have had to live with.

faustmb

You might be able to use a conduit "knockout" to pop clean holes in areas that can afford it. A stardard Greenlee knockout is good for 10 ga mild steel, and will make a clean hole. That being said, knockouts are not too cheap, but you could probably ebay one and sell it when you are done.



That with some well planned trimming and grinding the perimeter frame might do it.



In addition to the cost of water jet cutting ($100-$120 / hour around here), you might have a tough time stablizing the center of the pan when cutting to keep it from distorting.

nick s

faustmb wrote:

In addition to the cost of water jet cutting ($100-$120 / hour around here), you might have a tough time stablizing the center of the pan when cutting to keep it from distorting.

Dan, at those rates you can pay for a plasma cutter pretty quick. if you are serious about doing some more builds, it will be an essential tool. besides they're really cool. as far as the seat goes, is all the effort worth knocking 20lbs out of 4000?

rambos_ride

nick s wrote:

Dan, at those rates you can pay for a plasma cutter pretty quick. if you are serious about doing some more builds, it will be an essential tool. besides they're really cool. as far as the seat goes, is all the effort worth knocking 20lbs out of 4000?

I haven't worked enough with a plasma cutter, I'd probably spend more time cleaning up the edges!

Is saving the weight it worth it? You bet!

Every lb you save improves Performance and mileage...I'm hoping my Commodore tips the scales around 3600 when its running.

I spent hours and hours scraping seal and tar off the body, probably removed 20lbs of the stuff, when I re-seal it I doubt I'll use 1/2 that amount since I was an aircraft sealer at Boeing for 5 years in a previous lifetime and it's the only skill I took with me so I can lay a neat bead-o-seal down and get great results.

faustmb

We have a Miller plasma cutter at work. It seemed like the way to go when we bought it. Most cuts require a lot of grinding and polishing afterwards, so most of the guys have gone back to a jigsaw which requires much less cleanup and prep time.



As far as the weight reduction, it sounds like a decent experiment at the least. I would think that shaving a few hundred pounds would make a significant difference. I have heard of drag racers chemical dipping body panels dipping to thin the metal & save weight. Is that still commonly done?



Matt

rambos_ride

faustmb wrote:

We have a Miller plasma cutter at work. It seemed like the way to go when we bought it. Most cuts require a lot of grinding and polishing afterwards, so most of the guys have gone back to a jigsaw which requires much less cleanup and prep time.

As far as the weight reduction, it sounds like a decent experiment at the least. I would think that shaving a few hundred pounds would make a significant difference. I have heard of drag racers chemical dipping body panels dipping to thin the metal & save weight. Is that still commonly done?

Matt

I've painted many steel bodied race cars that were dipped to lighten the wieght of the metal. This was more than just dipping to remove rust if I remember...

rambos_ride

This type of puch/die can do a 3" hole...It's 130.00 though...It might pay to get a whole set

But with this when you cut the hole the stamping makes it stronger. This would help the overall rigidness stay intact and hopefully lighten up the pan considerably...

As soon as I tear down the front seat all the way I'll have a better idea of what the pan looks like and if this would do it!

faustmb

I haven't seen this type before. It's like an electrical knockout with a flange. Seems like a good option. Be warned, cranking a 3" punch with a rachet isn't the most fun job.

nick s

i do like the punch with the extrusion,
BUT putting an 1.5" hole in 16ga is tough by hand (actually did a few last week) can't imagine putting many 3" holes in without hydraulics. if it 16 gauge you are only removing .12lbs per 3" hole if its 18ga then .10
so 8-10 holes per pound

another good tool to have is a pneumatic nibbler, it makes a quick smooth cut. imho much better than a sabersaw in sheetmetal - clean edge and without the vibration. like a saber saw you do need a pilot hole to make an internal cut. perhaps using a nibbler and a flanger you can gain the reinforcing you desire quicker easier and cheaper. if you do get a nibbler beware of the first few feet of cut, it needs to dull the edges before the cut is a clean shear (less than 5 minutes out of the box to blood everywhere for me:) )

rambos_ride

faustmb wrote:

I haven't seen this type before. It's like an electrical knockout with a flange. Seems like a good option. Be warned, cranking a 3" punch with a rachet isn't the most fun job.

I'd do it with my 1/2 air impact! I'd either break the die or it would cut like butter!

bent metal

rambos_ride wrote:

This type of puch/die can do a 3" hole...It's 130.00 though...It might pay to get a whole set



But with this when you cut the hole the stamping makes it stronger. This would help the overall rigidness stay intact and hopefully lighten up the pan considerably...



As soon as I tear down the front seat all the way I'll have a better idea of what the pan looks like and if this would do it!

can you tell me where I can get one of these things?

rambos_ride

bent metal wrote:

can you tell me where I can get one of these things?

I found this website http://www.mittlerbros.com/punches.htm

They have other cool stuff as well and scrolling down the page more the also have a punch with a bead on it...

[Deleted User]

while i havent used a nibbler personally, i like the idea of them a lot. plasma cutters can get away from you rather fast cutting freehand, they like a straight edge or radius guide and i think they are a little unreliable, tips and nozzles are pretty much consumable items. plus everything needs to be clean of paint and oil before youy start.i have used sockets and pieces of round bar to make my own dimple dies in the press before but they didnt cut the centre out and i think fitting a seat base in the press may be a little difficult!