Seat Upgrades

[RBurleson]

... been thinking about this for a while, in preparation for a Dodge purchase.



Ready for some stored-up thoughts and questions?



Randii

 

[RBurleson]

Buckets and Benches

What it looks like other people are doing is to drop in tow buckets with a console or jump seat between them. My needs are a bit more unique -- we have a big (did I mention BIG?) dog, and he's definitely staying up in the cab with us. I'm looking to buy a club-cab, and there's enough room behind the seat for Gozar, but he'll inevitably want to stick his head up in the front seat, so I'm looking to swap in a set of buckets pushed about as far outboard as they can be (but still allow the doors to close), with plenty of dog-room in the middle.

Does anyone have a setup different than 40/20/40 -- maybe 40/00/40... better yet, 35/00/35? Custom bracketry is not a problem, there's a picture of my hobby-truck on my [URL=https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=as_li_ss_tl?url=search-alias=automotive&field-keywords=Seat+Upgrades+&linkCode=ll2&tag=|Seat Upgrades]#ad
[/URL] homepage ... . I've done suspension, frame, body, and bumper work, so brackets, no sweat.



I've seen Steelhorse Leather seats and Flexsteel seats. Here's a thread that may remind you...

https://www.turbodieselregister.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=19853&highlight=bucket+seat



Randii

 

[RBurleson]

Pedestals - Beneath the Buckets

I've also been looking at air seat bases... since the boom in the middle-weight cab-over market, there have been more and more low-boy air pedestals available, and for pretty reasonable prices, too.



Here's a few results from a quick google on air suspension seat:

http://www.minesupply.com/airsuspensionseat.htm

http://www.industrialseats.com/replacement-seat-555-bulldog.htm

http://www.buytruckstuff.com/product.asp?selcategory=16&p_gpID=35

http://www.milsco.com/products.htm

There are plenty more out there...



Prices are pretty reasonable:

$330 - http://www.industrialseats.com/economy-tractor-seats.htm#plow

$189 - http://www.industrialseats.com/economy-tractor-seats.htm

... but these are fairly cheap seats.



Some manufactures sell the suspension pillar separate:

http://www.tomcatmachineryinc.com/ultra.html

http://www.milsco.com/products/fa100.htm



With some decent fabrication skills, you could nab a seat suspension system from a heavy truck salvage yard and put a different seat on it. Height is a concern -- sorta depends on how tall you are, I guess. ... if you used a fairly flat-panned seat (more foam, less spring - Mastercraft, Corbeau, and others make 'em) with one of these low-boy pedestals, you could sneak it lower. You're gonna have to do custom work on the cab-mount, anyway, might as well minimize the height at the seat/pedestal interface at the same time.



Of course, if you're made of money, there's always Vision Research: 3402 N. Mattis Ave. , Champaign, IL 61821, (217) 355-4804... (800) 318-5417 Their website isn't clicking through for me right now: http://www.globalautonet.com/visionresearch.html I sat in one of these at the SEMA show a few years back -- The VR seat was absolutely the nicest seat I have ever sat in. Sit one of these for too long, and your butt won't let you sit anywhere else!



Randii

 

[RBurleson]

Random Pearl of Seating Wisdom

... not mine, don't remember who I heard it from...



Bucket seats are fine as long as you can find a seat with a bucket that matches YOUR OWN bucket.



I wonder exactly how appreciative my wife would be if I set her up with a heated seat...



Randii

 

[paccool]

we also have a dog that has to be close to the wife! I put in a set of 40/20/40 aftermarket seats made by VIP. When we go on a trip, I pull the center seat/console out and install a flat, padded bench for the dog so she can be in between the seats. Oh yea, she is only a medium size dog, not a BIG one like it sound you have



The seats have a frame that bolts into the factory holes in the floor. It extend all the way across the cab. The console is bolted to the frame in 4 locations, I bolt the bench in using the same holes. The bench I made goes from the front of the frame all the way back to the raised lip on the floor just in front of the rear cab wall (its an extended cab). I used 1/2" plywood with the insert nuts on the top side. I padded it with 2" of foam, covered it with some material I found at a fabric store that is real close to the seat fabric. It fits right up against the seats and then I widened it about 2" on each side from the rear of the seats to the back wall.



Works good for our dog.

 

[83 crew cab]

I put in a set of 96 dodge 40/20/40 seats just redrilled the oles in the floor#ad

 

[Deezul Fumes]

I have a club cab with captain chairs up front and a console in between the chairs. All you would have to do is take out the console and your BIG dog could stand between the 2 chairs. The thing I like about the captain chairs is they are very comfortable and can be adjusted individually. They tilt back and the one on the passenger side has a little hydraulic on it so it can be tilted forward to let your BIG dog in and out of the back. Mine are cloth so they get nice and warm in the winter, but can be a little hot in the summer.

Rick

 

[RBurleson]

I have a club cab with captain chairs up front and a console in between the chairs. All you would have to do is take out the console and your BIG dog could stand between the 2 chairs.

Well, the Club Cab I just placed a deposit on has the captain's chairs, so I will give this a try first -- and think about adapting Stan's bench idea, based on how comfy Gozar is. I'm still sniffing around the idea of air pedestals, but I'll try to ease out of sticker-shock mode, first... these trucks sure do hold value well!



The next issue is getting Gozar's not-inconsiderable rump up into the cab -- I think I'll be fabricating a lightweight ramp for ingress/egress.



I can always retrofit heatpads into the captain's chairs if they mee the future furry loading requirements...



Thanks,



Randii

 

[paccool]

Randi



Just how big is this dog? I suspect from your comments he must be a Great Dane or some such creature!



Stan

 

[RBurleson]

Gozar the Destructor - 145 pounds, age 8. 5, Newfoundland breed



Here's the best pic I could find on the Q. T.

#ad




Randii

 

[jdurham]

Looks like you need a horse trailer and a saddle... .

 

[BushWakr - RIP]

Hey !!! I thought camels had one or two humps... ..... I gotta get out more.....



Bob.

 

[Paychk]

HEY COOL A NEWF! now that's a dog, how old is he? and do you get him in the water much? and do you do rescue trials with him?

 

[RBurleson]

Jim is into leather, Bob is talking about humps, and Alan is discussing watersports.



We're totally puppy-whipped at my house. We did basic water rescue training with Gozar, but we're lazy... . and sorta trailed off. Hard to say which of us is lazier -- we're a GREAT match! He still swims at every opportunity, 8. 5 years into owning his humans, bu we spend more and more time layin around leaning on each other.



Gozar required a truck that could support a seating arrangement that catered to his unique (H-U-G-E) style... I think the Club-Cab will do NICELY.



Randii

 

[paccool]

OMG!!!



Thats what I suspected about the size. Didn't think of a Newfondland though.



First of all, if you make the "bench", use 3/4" plywood for that guy. Also would make it a little wider behind the seats to give him a little more room to lay down.



Stan

 

[RBurleson]

I think I'm gonna see how Goz likes the floor first, I might not even need a bench. He'd make a good armrest, dontcha think?



As for the seat heaters for the wife, I found some aftermarket seat heaters...

http://www.jpcustoms.com/Productpages/Heated Seats.html

http://www.astecx.com/rostraseatheater.html

http://www.sportsimportsltd.com/afcarseathea.html

http://www.p71interceptor.com/heatedseats/

list of a bunch of different types of heaters: http://www.sportsimportsltd.com/seatheatac.html



The first looks pretty promising, and only $100/seat: http://www.jpcustoms.com/Documents/heatinstall.pdf

#ad




Anyone else done this?



Randii

 

[BushWakr - RIP]

"... . Bob is talking about humps... . " LOLOL what was I thinking...



Actually I know alot about big dogs... we had Great Danes, did the obedience work, basic, advanced, hand only, on/off leash/ and yes, even confirmation work. Then we had 13 puppies..... which one of you guys is man enough to pick up doggy errrrrr... stuff. . from a full grown Dane and 13 puppies??? That should explain why I am like I am... .

Nice lookin critter by the way Randii !



bob.

 

[RBurleson]

Then we had 13 puppies.....

Good golly -- 13 DANE pups? Did you take three months off work?!?! Pups are demanding!



Nice lookin critter by the way Randii !

Thanks -- he's our kid... . all the parenting I imagine I'm capable of!



which one of you guys is man enough to pick up doggy errrrrr... stuff. . from a full grown Dane and 13 puppies???

The nice thin about these mountainous molehills is that they stand WELL above the grass. No trouble seeing them - no surprises! You can almost see them on the horizon... ... as you drive up in your Dodge turbodiesel.



Randii

 

[paccool]

LOL!!



Question - when you guys are on a trip and take the dog, do you have a garbage can and large shovel in the back of the truck? I hadn't thought about the "logistics" of keeping the piles picked up!



Stan

 

[DPKetchum]

Got a close froend with a newf. You want to be able to make room between the seats?What do you all wear to drive in,A raincoat or a poncho