'68, '69 & '70 Seat Belts - All the Same?

[Shakey]

I am ready to start sorting out my seat belts and I was wondering if '68, '69 & '70 Charger seat belts are all the same.

Thanks in advance.

[Charger-Bodie]

there are lots of diff in those years shoulder harness or not buckets console or buddy seat , and in 70 the outer rear one fastens diff than 8 and 9 and im sure there are other diffs i missed too

[tan top]

68 -69  are the same but i have found  70 charger belts look the same but in stead of a buckle on the shoulder belt from the roof they have the bayonet fitting instead & two buckles on the trans tunnel side piece , but i also have seen a few  early build 70's with the the 68/69 type ,  so not really sure if previous owners swapped these or they were built with them 

[bull]

Shakey,

From what I've found you kind of have to go by quarter years to get an exact match. In your case the tag will read 1969-1, -2, -3 or -4 (1969-1 = Jan., Feb. and March of '69 and so on) depending on which quarter of the year your car left the factory. That said, there are probably few if any differences between quarters during each year as far as the seatbelt configurations and styles are concerned but there were subtle, ongoing changes so in order to have the tag correspond with your build date (and get the right belts) you need to keep and eye out for the correct tags to be sure. But, to confuse the issue more, I believe some early '69s got seatbelt tags with 1968-3 and/or 1968-4 so nothing is set in stone. If you're not too worried about correctness you could probably get a set from late '68 through all of '69 and still be in the ballpark.

Also, I believe your build sheet will tell you if you had the shoulder belt feature and if you do that can create more challenges in getting the right belts because the visor clips evolved too IIRC.

[dads_69]

Not to high jack the thread, but I found a '69 Cuda w/seat belts, complete. They look the same as a b-body, I haven't compared them side by side though, are they the same, anyone?
Mark

[Shakey]

Thanks fellas!

Not too worried about date coded tags, just something to hold me an the family in, should I end up in the ditch!

No build sheet to go by, just a bucket seat car that I'd like to look correct and be safe.

[resq302]

Not too worried about date coded tags, just something to hold me an the family in, should I end up in the ditch!

Arrggghhh.  Don't even think or say something like that with that beautiful car.  Horror the thought!

[Chatt69chgr]

Some of the seat belts out of A-bodies and C-bodies will be the same too.  Kind of hit or miss.  And don't worry about them not being the right color.  You can dye the seat belt webbing with RIT dye.  In fact, thats how the seat belts are originally colored.  RIT is an aniline dye that sets at about 175 degrees F.  Check out the RIT website and they will tell you exactly how it's done including what colors of dye to mix together to get the best results.  I needed black belts for my project.  I dyed some faded black ones I found as well as some blue ones and they came out looking new.  The process will mess up the paint on the buckles so you will need to repaint them but mine needed to be cleaned up and repainted anyway.  By scrounging junkyards and always keeping my eye out for useable belts, over time I was able to put together a nice set for my project and save a bundle.  New webbing is also available from Crusin Moons if you need it.   You would have to get someone to do the sewing and I have no idea where to get the proper thread.  Might be careful here as you don't want the part separating in a crash.  Forgot to mention that the labels pretty well get trashed in the process but mine were no good anyway.  If that's a big deal, you can get reproduction labels or carefully remove yours and reattach them after the dyeing process.  I'am sorry but I don't recall where I saw the labels offered.  Good luck with your project.

[rrob]

Some of the seat belts out of A-bodies and C-bodies will be the same too.  Kind of hit or miss.  And don't worry about them not being the right color.  You can dye the seat belt webbing with RIT dye.  In fact, thats how the seat belts are originally colored.  RIT is an aniline dye that sets at about 175 degrees F.  Check out the RIT website and they will tell you exactly how it's done including what colors of dye to mix together to get the best results.  I needed black belts for my project.  I dyed some faded black ones I found as well as some blue ones and they came out looking new.  The process will mess up the paint on the buckles so you will need to repaint them but mine needed to be cleaned up and repainted anyway.  By scrounging junkyards and always keeping my eye out for useable belts, over time I was able to put together a nice set for my project and save a bundle.  New webbing is also available from Crusin Moons if you need it.   You would have to get someone to do the sewing and I have no idea where to get the proper thread.  Might be careful here as you don't want the part separating in a crash.  Forgot to mention that the labels pretty well get trashed in the process but mine were no good anyway.  If that's a big deal, you can get reproduction labels or carefully remove yours and reattach them after the dyeing process.  I'am sorry but I don't recall where I saw the labels offered.  Good luck with your project.

I was reading this old post and was wondering if I need to boil my belts with dye in a pot on the stove or maybe microwave them? I just want to freshen up my faded black belts. Any advice would be helpful.  Thanks.  Rob

[Chatt69chgr]

I freshened up the black color on some of mine.  It's been a while but as I recall, you heat water up in a stainless steel container on the stove to 170 or so degrees.  I used an immersion thermometer.  I cleaned the belts first outside with some dishwashing liquid and a pail of warm water and a soft bristle brush.  Lots of dirt came off them.  I don't remember but seems like it was one pack of the RIT black dye.  I then put the belts in the pot.  I believe it was a 20 qt stock pot about 1/3 to 1/2 full of water.  I stirred them with a wooden dowl rod and kept them stirred around for a while.  Seems like it was twenty or so mintues.  Then lifted the belts out and rinsed off in lukewarm water and then cold water.  Then blew them dry with compressed air and let air dry for a day or so.  Had to repaint the buckles.  Also used a mototool and some sandpaper on a popsicle stick to clean some rust places off.  Then used some silver and some clear paint for some of the metal parts, black paint for the buckle levers, and put a light coat of machine oil on the knurled rod that the belt operates against.  I experimented on some old belts to determine the right black paint to use.  Seems like it was a semigloss.

[rrob]

I freshened up the black color on some of mine.  It's been a while but as I recall, you heat water up in a stainless steel container on the stove to 170 or so degrees.  I used an immersion thermometer.  I cleaned the belts first outside with some dishwashing liquid and a pail of warm water and a soft bristle brush.  Lots of dirt came off them.  I don't remember but seems like it was one pack of the RIT black dye.  I then put the belts in the pot.  I believe it was a 20 qt stock pot about 1/3 to 1/2 full of water.  I stirred them with a wooden dowl rod and kept them stirred around for a while.  Seems like it was twenty or so mintues.  Then lifted the belts out and rinsed off in lukewarm water and then cold water.  Then blew them dry with compressed air and let air dry for a day or so.  Had to repaint the buckles.  Also used a mototool and some sandpaper on a popsicle stick to clean some rust places off.  Then used some silver and some clear paint for some of the metal parts, black paint for the buckle levers, and put a light coat of machine oil on the knurled rod that the belt operates against.  I experimented on some old belts to determine the right black paint to use.  Seems like it was a semigloss.

Thanks for the info, I'll try that.

[68pplcharger]

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