What did you do to your SMB today?

[simplesez]

Oh you know

[bigriver]

Sweet Jesus... did the bolt break because the arm bent or did the arm bend because the bolt broke?

[simplesez]

The bent bolt was on the side of the bent arm. The broken bolt was on the other side where the nut came off. 1996 van it was bound to happen

[simplesez]

Bent the bar back

[NavyNuke]

Finishing up the rear shelf, still work to be done on the front shelf.

[Timerider]

Okay, so my wife and I are "noobs" to the SMB world, but we have gratefully followed the SMB forum for years prior to recently becoming the proud second owners of the "Silver Kitten". So please . . . be gentle. I'd like to pay back some of what I've learned from this forum by contributing when I can, so "here goes" my with first post:

Saying that the S.K.'s previous owner "lacked some mechanical skills" may be more than an understatement, and we're currently fixing/replacing/upgrading the bits and bobs that were inexpertly added/taped/under-bolted/over-screwed/hatcheted onto her.

Exiting the Penthouse in darkness without waking the wife seems fraught with hazards, so after searching this forum for ideas, I resorted to other realms of the internet to find some finishing caps for 1/4" bolts with 7/16" heads, such as the Grade 8 bolts at the center of the "X" frames in the Penthouse. I used part number: HEXCAP-7/16-180 from Screw Caps & Screw Covers Manufacturer to cover up the sharp corners of the bolt heads. They're only $0.25 apiece, and Shipping is fast and cheap ($4 for orders under $20). They simply snap over the head of a bolt. I figure it might save some hide on my backside during "penthouse yoga" or other Twister-like activities such as getting up in the middle of the night to walk the two 75-lb.-plus dogs who are "really supposed to be sleeping" downstairs.

I also found several other products on the Pro-dec website to help cover up leftover unnecessary screw-holes and dress up some of the exposed hardware in other places, purely for cosmetic purposes. (See photos below.)

And no, I'm not a shill for Pro-dec. They're owned by the same big company that makes Rubbermaid stuff, and their plastics seem to be of excellent initial quality. They don't screw you on shipping, and usually ship same-day, which works for me!

I hope this post helps someone else avoid an injury. This might just be the perfect "finishing touch" to the repair work by "simplesez". To me, it always feels better when it's better after the fix, than before it broke!

[Still sleeping in our driveway some nights to comply with COVID-19 lockdown in CA.]

[BrianW]

Added a third seat to our new (2011) van this week. Thankfully there was space in the layout without having to make any change. Adding the seatbelt upper mount was a bit of a challenge, though. I’ll do a separate thread soon with more info and photos.

[BUFFALO]

Would love to see the details on the seat belt addition. I am wanting to do the same and having trouble with the upper belt location point in my cargo van.

[NavyNuke]

Originally Posted by BUFFALO

Would love to see the details on the seat belt addition. I am wanting to do the same and having trouble with the upper belt location point in my cargo van.

Find seats with integral seatbelts.

My van has them, but not sure what PN they are from ford.

[Youngster]

Removed a cabinet, added a 4th seat from a Transit, room left over for a 2kw Chinese diesel heater. Had to add the seat for the 2nd kid otherwise the van would have to be sold, but the heater is the BEST mod by far.