Quote:
Originally Posted by Scoe
Maybe the LEO was saying that they are illegal if you clip it so as to have more than 4 inches of slack? Which, BTW, I always do.
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I believe this is exactly what he was saying. Obviously, they are not illegal since they are installed by the OEM. I've never heard of the 4" rule/ordinance... but it makes sense to me.
As geeshock said:
Quote:
I could see if there is too much slack that even if it tightens up it throws you through the window or against the steering wheel but 4 inches?
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I never gave much thought to this until now, but I'll see if I can add my opinion without sounding like I'm yelling.
I don't like "shoulder belts" at all... but, the powers that be have mandated them. "Real science" has proven that they save lives. The gov't has endorsed all measures to make them mandatory. Some cars won't start unless you are "strapped in." Some cars strap you in "automatically" when you open the door and shut it!
They USED to have these clips in passenger cars. Gov't mandates removed them and made it necessary to wear this BELT across your chest and/or neck (if you're a shorter guy like me) without any restriction to the free flowing mechanism... somehow linked to hard braking or impact.
Point is... (some/most) truckers still have that option. But, like everything else... it is regulated. There used to be a rule of thumb that you put your FIST against your sternum, and pulled the belt across it into the belt clip. Then you set the yellow clip to secure the belt at that balanced position of security and comfort.
This is loose enough for even the chubbiest of drivers and keeps us shorter guys from being strangled. But, it is proven to be about 4 inches... the safe limit for comfort without compromising the benefits of a shoulder belt. We all know that, if you pull the shoulder belt all the way out to the steering wheel, then clip the yellow thingie.... we can tuck it under our left arm and fogettaboutit! But, that defeats the purpose of it.
And that is exactly what I think "this driver" you ran across last week had done. Did he tell you
WHY the nice officer was talking to him and inspecting that particular "equipment" in his truck?
I don't even wear my seatbelt about 90% of my day. I go thru 3 or 4 weigh-stations every day, and I put on my belt before I cruise thru. 'Bout the only other time I use it is when it rains. I slow down and give the frightened 4wheelers plenty of room, and strap in just in case the worst happens. But, when I do...
I make sure it is "about" 4 inches or less from my chest. Just enough to be comfortable, and unnoticed. Anything more is useless, dangerous, and easily detected by "the man" when I get pulled over and forget to "reset" it before he gets to my door! Think about it...
You get pulled over for passing in the third lane (as I have been) and you release your seatbelt before climbing out the passenger side of the cab. If you didn't "reset" it by releasing the CLIP... you may have just "hung" yourself! The cop walks around to the driver side door, opens it and immediately grabs the seatbelt hanging limp at the side of the seat...
because the CLIP kept it from retracting into the coil. It doesn't take too much training for them to distinguish between a 4" deviation from a near perfect triangle of the belt system.... and someone who just yanked the shoulder strap out and "clipped" it off!
Keep ur mind on ur business... and don't feed the bears! [wink]
Hobo