Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by STEVEN and TARA SMITH on May 12, 2012 at 7:00pm

you are very inovative. What a great plane

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Permalink Reply by Phil Smith on May 13, 2012 at 8:21pm

Folks,

 

Been asked what the cushions are and where I bought them...sooooo.

 

Called '"Genuine Leather Cushion for Office, Auto and Home"  Found them in the Walter Drake catalog as "Leather Lumbar Cushion www.wdrake.com.

 

When I got them didn't think that they were very "thick" so as I stated I glued the sleeping mat to the back. Have flown for an hour now with the set up and it seems to be OK - been thinking about adding another layer under my kester to see how it feels.  You have to realize I"m 6 ft tall and weigh 285 so need all the (operative word) "thiness" I can get in the upholstery...grin. Anyway any questions drop a note off line or on this thread..

 

ttfn

 

Phil.   

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Permalink Reply by Phil Smith on May 15, 2012 at 6:09pm

Attached a couple of more pictures that show what I think is the final setup.  You can see that the front of the cushions are snaped to the bulkhead and no snaps on the sides or top.  Did that for a reason, I put a layer of closed cell foam camper mat, loose, under the original mat and cushion that were glued together thought I needed a little more under my kester so then used velcro in four places, on the pilot's side for now, around the sides and top to hold the cushion. Thought that If the set up wasn't right I wasn't cornered by having the snaps installed.  Found that this set up is really perty good AND if for instance I wanted to add or take away padding such as under the pax seat it would be simple without a lot of hassle.

 

ttfn

Attachments:

• build ch701 018.jpg, 691 KB
• build ch701 019.jpg, 684 KB

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Permalink Reply by Steven Winn on May 15, 2012 at 8:37pm

memory foam

What a great idea! I just ordered mine.

Previously, I bought memory foam cushions from "Heartland America" Linked above. The bottom cushions are rounded and fit very nicely in the 701 seat pans. I have been sitting on them making airplane noises.... They squish down pretty thin, but support all over. I think they will work great with your discovery.

I also like your rear (of the) door latch pin. I am going to try something similiar, but cable operated from the fwd latch.

Steven Winn

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Permalink Reply by Normand Lambert on May 16, 2012 at 1:05pm

HI Phil,

When you say 'light weight "leather" car seat inserts I found in a catalog', can you tell us what catalog ???

Your seats look pretty good and I would bet a lot of 701 builders would just LOVE to get the same...

Regards,

Norm

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Permalink Reply by John Austin on May 16, 2012 at 3:45pm

Phil,

I understand where you're coming from as far as developing a light-weight interior. I used Comfor foam in my seats (which is neither light nor inexpensive! LOL!) because I was concerned about protecting my spine in the event of a high-G vertical crash. From my research, lightweight foams tend to be resilient and simply let you rebound off of whatever structure is below the foam. (I must admit I don't have any idea of how "crushable" the 701's supporting structure is.) The Comfor foam tends to absorb the G forces (i.e., "crush") rather than rebound. The vendor I dealt with recommended three layers of 1" foam in progressive firmness in the seat pan.

Like I said, I realize what you were trying to achieve and have done a great job, but thought perhaps those trying to build as safe a seat as possible might want to consider an alternative - unfortunately, though, neither light or cheap.

Regards,

John

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Permalink Reply by Normand Lambert on May 16, 2012 at 10:43pm

Hi Phil ,

THANKS for the information. I looked those seats up and they really look good. If I hadn't bought the NORAD ones, I would have gone the same way. By the way, I am 6-ft 2-in and 190lbs, so I too need a lot of headroom. Look up the discussion here about getting a curved top to the 701, you could get up to 3 inches more...I'll do this to mine next winter... Enjoy !

Norm

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Permalink Reply by Bob Pustell on May 16, 2012 at 10:50pm

Is any of that stuff certified as fire resistant? How about for what kind of fumes it gives off it it does burn? Will you be poisoned immediately or have time to get on the ground?

 

I know I sound grumpy, but if you get a fire in your car or your office chair, you can get out of it pretty rapidly. In an airplane, you are committed to staying in it for a relatively long period of time while you get on the ground. FAA approved fire retardant interior materials are worth the expense, in my not so humble opinion. I intend to have a minimalist interior, but what there is of it will be approved materials. This is one place where using certified materials is well worth it.

 

What you did looks good, is very clever and is affordable, but I certainly hope you never have to find out how fast fire might spread among all those plastics and foams, and what kind of toxins they might give off.

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