Hello. I Need your help URGENTLY !!!

I was offered a 56 Bench Seat (bare frame with springs, etc..) and will go buy it tomorrow. I was told it came off a 56 F100 and therefore should be a bolt-in for my 54 F100. In order to be 100% sure before paying and loading it into my trunk I would like to do some basic measurements. The only thing I can check myself is the distances between the various mounting holes in the floor of my cab. There are one hole each side in the front and two holes each side in the rear. I measured as follows (in driving direction):

The pattern looks like this:

Left Right
o ---Front--- o




o o ---Rear--- o o



Front Left to Front Right Hole: 43 3/4 Inch
Outer Rear Left to Outer Rear Right Hole: 43 1/2 Inch
Front Left to Outer Rear Right: 20 1/4 Inch
Outer Rear to Inner Rear Hole (both sides): 1 1/2 Inch

I'll take these dimensions to measure the mounting pattern on that frame. However, ...

... how wide and how deep is the seat ?
... how tall is the backrest ?

Need answers urgently today !!!

Thanx in advance !

 

Hi kai I went and measured my 53 M350 and the bolt holes are exactly as you state. I was told 53 to 56 were all the same seats. I have a 52 and it is differant. I don't have the actual seat handy to answer your other question.

 

Hello Paul. Thanx for taking the time. I guess taking the inside measurements of the cab (door to door minus a few inches) and the measurements on the mounting holes with me should help to make sure the bench would fit my cab. Thanx again.

 

Okay I went to where my seat was and measured the following.
floor to top of back rest 30"
across the middle of the back rest 56" (widest location)
floor to top of seat cushion 13.5"
from back rest (rear)to front of cushion at cushion height 24"
hope that helps.

 

Hello again Paul,

... thanx a lot for taking the time. I was taking a look at that bare frame which was offered to me and I decided not to take it. The mounting pattern was wrong. I measured just 41.9 Inch from left to right holes (instead of 43 ...) and just 15 3/4 Inch from fron to rear (instead of 20 1/4). I was also unsure if the frame was high enough. It measured 10 Inches from the floor to the highest section of the seat. However, it was just the bare frame with the springs, but no foam or seatcover. Would the foam and the cover take care of getting to correct height ??? Can't believe it. Now with the wrong mounting hole dimension I was wondering if there's a sub-frame under the actual benchseat frame and this will then give me the right hole pattern. I could also build me such a sub frame in order to get the height. As for the dimensions of the seat (forgot to take the dimensions of the back rest) it was 55 1/2 Inch wide and 21 1/4 Inch deep. Guess that would fit.

Again, I did not take it because I was unsure about all this. Guess I will also get LOL when telling you that I was ready to give $180 for a rusty frame. I heard that you can buy a complete old bench over there at $25. But remember, this is Germany and there's no one selling old bench seats here. Shipping from the US also makes little sense. To big, will cost a fortune.

I am lost !!!

 

wow kai Have I got a deal for you I did not realize you were from Germany I am also restoring a 67 Karmann Ghia. I will look for parts for you if you look for me over there. My personal Email is pcollyer_paso@qlo.com

 

Kai

I think your best bet is to add 70's and newer Ford and Chevy truck to your search list. They fit pretty well and you can get ready made covers for them reasonable. Or modify the upper frame a bit and use 53-56 cover style. I think you might have some luck near a US military base if you expand your acceptable years. You are running a SB Ford and orange paint right? I don't think I would get wrapped around the axle on a correct seat.

Dewayne

 

Paul, Dewayne,

... thanx for your messages. Sometimes it is good to read the books you have. After I looked at that bench frame which was for sale over here I was sure it was not the right one. Then (just yesterday) I flipped thru the pages of my shop manual and saw that it probably was just lacking the seat track assy and by that the mounting bolt pattern appeared wrong as did the height. I will now ask that guy to check if he can find that stuff and then I would probably get it.

Dewayne, you are right. I would certainly go for any bench seat that would fit. I'll do some research. Since I bought my 75 F100 (which I had many years ago) from the Airforce I will now check if that source still exists.

Paul, yeah, I guess there are sources here for the flat beetle. What is it that you search for ?

All the best from Germany !!!

 

Kai

If you go take another look, the seat without the tracks should have 2 holes in each side for the mounting of tracks. Front to rear spacing on bolt holes (seat frame to track) is 15 5/8 on my seat which I removed from a 55 F100. The tracks adds about another 3 7/8 to total height.

Dewayne

 

Thanx Dewayne. Yes, I measured the bench that I thought was wrong and yes, I measured approx. 15 3/4 (which is pretty close to what you mentioned). I just sent an e-mail to that guy to go and search for the missing parts.

Thanx again for your help !!!

 

Kai

The long rod with the little gear on it is the piece he hopefully has. It makes the two tracks move together. The 2 tracks will fit in a suitcase on one of your US trips if you have to later. In any case I recommend you buy the big piece while you can. The rest won't be too hard to locate in US at some point. You can fab some stationary tracks for now in a pinch.

Dewayne