Backcountry Pilot

[Zzz]

My dad was sniffing around the BAS website today and sent me this page of testimonials from pilots who had wadded their planes with BAS shoulder harnesses installed. I'm not pluggin for BAS, but these are some interesting photos and stories:

http://basinc-aeromod.com/testimonials.php

Kinda turns your stomach to see some many nice planes on their backs.

Zane

[Superdave offline]

I installed BAS harnesses and folding rear seats and tailhandles a couple years ago. My only gripe is the shoulder harnesses chaff my neck, which I can live with but not MLB. So I got some sheepskin wrap around things and velcroed them to the harness. The cool thing is they're inertial reel so when I lean forward to grab some flaps or turn on the XM they let out.
The tailhandles retract into the fuse and are real handy for moving the plane on the ground. The rear seats fold up into the sidewalls in about ten seconds and make a huge area to haul just about anything. The right door comes off with hitch pins and the front seats come out for cargo that won't fit through the baggage door. With the extended baggage it's easy to exceed the gross weight of 2650. She'll hold 600 lbs of gas which cuts into the useful load quite a bit. With 2 people and a little gas the CG is way forward and it's docile on the ground but you can run out of elevator for the flare it you get too slow. With an aft CG you really have to be on top of it cuz she wants to swap ends real bad. All that weight behind the main gear wants to be in front.

[punkin170b offline]

I love the BAS harnesses and the tailpull handles. The jumpseats are on my "someday list".

I personally know one of the guys who balled up one of the 182s on the website testimonials. He is very lucky to be alive.

I haven't had the neck chaffing issue and I love the ability to grab the flap handle without being restrained. Before the BAS inertial reels, I used to have to loosen the harness to reach the handle in the Flap 0 position... That is, loosen the harness right about the time you're in the most need of it!

When we reskinned our horizontal stab we found something interesting. After drillling rivets and removing all the skins from the ribs and spars, the main spar went "BOIOIOIOING" and sat upon the bench with each tip about an inch above the flat surface. The only thing we can figure is that guys had been picking up the airplane by the horizontal stab to move it around out in the bush. Tail down force certainly wouldn't stress the spar and make it bend upwards. If they'd had something to grab, i.e. tailpull handles, we wouldn't have had to buy a new main spar!

I think BAS should send me a rebate after all that.

M

[Zzz]

I wish I had those inertial reel shoulder harnesses. My old Aero Fabricators harnesses are like Punkin said: You have to keep em pretty loose if you want to be able to grab flaps from the 0 degrees position. That, or bring along your haybale hook.

[dontlookdown offline]

We put some B.A.S. tail pull handles in our 185 when we were doing it up; a great mod. Found out this morning, that they can freeze inside the fuselage, there's a trick! It's the only thing that I've seen to look out for, not a complaint. Otherwise, a convienient and worthwhile mod.

[1954C180 offline]

I used to rent (believe it or not) the 1953 C-170B pictured on
the index page of that site:

http://www.basinc-aeromod.com/

N4590C went on it's back and/or ground-looped (3) times (not by me!)
while on the line as a rental. After it was rebuilt for the 3rd time, the
airplane finally got sold on down to California where (guess what), it
was wrecked again.... (poor thing....).

I'd like to replace the fixed shoulder harnesses in my '54 C-170B
with inertial reel harnesses. Any harness is better than just a lap-
belt, but without the inertial reels, one obviously has to remember to
cinch up the belts just prior to hitting something....

[Quail offline]

I installed Bud's Aero Service (BAS) inertial reel shoulder and seat belt belts on my plane. I figured I would never need them, so in that respect it is like, when you take an umbellra along, it never rains. I thought about putting in a fixed harness, but they are not practical with manual flaps. BTW, the FAA has ruled you can install about any (automotive) shoulder harness if you retain the factory seat belts. I considered that, but Bud's setup is very neat and also includes a waist belt. He is located at the Eatonville airport, near Mt St Helens. A fellow I met on Kodiak Is bear hunting told me about crashing a 180 on Afognak and the BAS harness saved his face at the least... and his life most likely. I urge and recommend this safety upgrade to all.

[Quail offline]

BTW, Just a note.... N4590C is now back in WA. It is also just 30 planes away in production from another Backcountry pilots's 170.

[Berk offline]

...I love the ability to grab the flap handle without being restrained. Before the BAS inertial reels, I used to have to loosen the harness to reach the handle in the Flap 0 position... That is, loosen the harness right about the time you're in the most need of it!...M

The inertia reel harness is a must for birds with manual flaps. (Unless you have arms as long as a gorilla). The BAS inertia reel belt maximizes your flap options & your safety.
The fold-up seats are nearly a must if you camp with your plane, too. I only wish I would've known about the ones with the eye-bolt cargo tie-down options for the seat track.
Enjoy, Berk

[mtv offline]

The floatplane in their testimonials was me.

The BAS harness system works. I wouldn't own a Cessna without one. Or any other airplane they're approved in.

One thing folks have failed to note here is that Bud puts the inertial reel for the harnesses up inside the headliner, where they don't get all goobered up with dust, crud and such. Therefore, they continue to work for a LONG time with no service.

Simply the BEST investment you can make in your airplane, except maybe gas to go practice landings.

The tailpull handles should also be mandatory for all Cessna tailwheel airplanes.

The back seats are nice as well, but too spendy for me at this point. I have a sling seat in back in any case, so it's quickly removable.

Look carefully at some of those pictures in their testimonials. Those are some seriously damaged airplanes. The pilots are all still with us.

That is testimony as well.

After my accident, our aircraft division put BAS harnesses in EVERY Cessna aircraft. They were convinced.

MTV

[mtv offline]

Oh, yeah, I almost forgot: Today is the tenth anniversary!

I'll have to tip a glass to N185CA tonight.

She is flying again, by the way.

MTV

[steve offline]

Happy anniversary Mike. I put the BASS belts in my 185 right after purchase. If it is not too painful to talk about, would you mind going into detail on how you managed a survivable landing. It appears you probably stalled it in. I know this is always a big debate and probably something to keep fresh in our minds now that we are in the heat of flying season again. Probably deserves it's own thread. Thanks. Steve

[Zzz]

I split this thread. See mtv's answer here.

[freestone offline]

What is so annoying is I can't get these put into a Beaver I am rebuilding. And further, we can't anchor the front seatbelts to the floor, only to the seats, and the seat attachments are notoriously weak - even the military floors which have one more attachment point. the atlee dodge stc only covers the middle row attaching to the floor.

You would think the FAA would want us to be as safe as possible, and I can't get a 4 or 5pt harness appproved, only the stc'd over the shoulder strap.

They would be happier if I stayed with lap belts, attached only to the detachable under impact seat.

Frustrating frustrating frustrating.

[hotrod180 offline]

As I understand it, Bud Blancher owned N4590C back before he got his 180. That's why it's got all his STC'd mod's on it. I looked at it when it was on leaseback at a Thun Field FBO and for sale back in 1997. It flew OK but I decided that it was a bad luck airplane when I saw all the recent damage history. The post-Bud owner had wrecked it (that's the pic in the BAS ad), then after it was on leaseback several renters had ground-loop issues with it also.
BTW, it was listed as for sale a month ago in GA News, $34.9K , with an eastern WA phone number.


Eric

[mtv offline]

Freestone,

The original Beaver seats had a four point harness system, with a lockable shoulder harness mounted on the seat back.

MTV

[freestone offline]

Mike, that was only on the military straight back seats, and I am thinking of going with the folding front seats to make moving around easier.

[Matt 7GCBC offline]

Hey,
Does anyone who switched out to the BAS harness, still have their Cessna original cross-over shoulder and lap belt available for sale, if in good serviceable condition? Thanks very much.
Matt

[48RagwingPilot offline]

Got my tailwheel endorsement in in 4590C. Nice to see it's still alive and kicking.

[wannabe offline]

I also support the BAS shoulder harnesses.
That was the FIRST STC I put in after I bought my 53-170B, 4650c
( that's 60 planes later, I think ? )