2005 F250-XL bench Long drive update. Warning Pictures!

[red403]

nice job

[austin]

dang $65 is a steal i thought i got a great deal on mine ($100) mine came from a 72 and is slightly faded and has one small burn

good job with the mounting to it looks almost stock

[Caseys71]

, You've done a great job on the swap , it almost looks like a factory job, and I'm willing to bet that the comfort it provides you over the original seat will make you want to spend even more time in your bump , Can't wait to hear how the "Sunday-Drive" went .

[fordman]

so you only had to move the mounting location about an inch or so? thats pretty good.

[AlleyCat]

Very nice.

[BobbyFord]

Looks real nice

[Wes]

what are those seat belts out of, I'm tired of mine falling into the door jam. The belts you have look more user friendly.

[Happy_Camper]

Thanks guys!

Sunday morning drive report:
Super-Mutt and I grabbed a cup of coffee and went for a 30 minute drive out through the "back 40". Country roads through farm area. Great opportunity for Super-Mutt to enjoy his favorite pass-time (i.e. checking out the cattle and horses ).

The short story: It feels excellent, but I may try off setting it to the left 1".

Pro's on the seat:
*The lumbar support is AWESOME!
* The seat is very firm, so I sit a little higher (probably between 1" and 2"), had to adjust the rear view mirror just a bit.
* Because I sat a bit higher, the leg positioning was nicer (probably what an original seat in good shape would feel like).
* Sitting a bit higher, makes it seem like there is a better view out the windshield too. Kind of like cranking up the air pressure in a Bostrom, when you get to the terminal, in order to position the rig in the yard easier (I'm a bit short in body, and long in legs).
* I "thought" that I would miss the softness of the stock seat springs, especially going over big bumps, but this seat makes the old seat feel like it needed new shocks. The new seat feels much more comfortable and stable on rough roads.
* The "firmness" felt really good. This seat came from an XL cab-and-chassis model, so it *may* be a bit firmer than a passenger truck seat. Man, it feels good .
* The built in head rests are very nice. Without a hooded jacket it feels great.
* Super Mutt is much more comfortable. He can move around easier, and the seat is vinyl so it will clean up easier, and hold up much better.

Cons of new seat:
* The new seat has more of a "bucket seat" shape, and positioned me slightly to the right of center from the steering wheel. I think off-setting the seat 1" to the left would be helpful. With the stock bench seat, I sat right on the left edge of the seat to stay centered behind the wheel. That's not really possible with this seat.
* My work jacket has a hood, and I needed to take the jacket off, so that it didn't feel like my head was pushed foward.
* Because the seat is so firm, driving with a wallet is uncomfortable.

Seat mounting info:
My apologies for not taking more pictures (a picture is worth a thousand words)
The factory track mounting holes on this seat are 51-7/8" across, and 13-5/8" front to back (measured on center of the holes)
The original seat track mounting holes on the old seat in the truck are 42" across, and 15-1/4" front to back (measured on center of the holes).
The frame on the new seat is made up of 2 pieces of sheet steel stamped to form a box. There is an edge on both the front and rear coss bars that is more than 1" wide. So, I drilled 4 new holes 42" apart side to side, and 13-5/8" apart front to rear (which centered the holes on the 1" flat).
The adapter plates are just some scrap pieces of 1/4" flat plate I had left over from another job.
I bought 4 each 5/16"-18 counter sunk allen bolts 1/2" long, 4 each 5/16"-18 counter sunk allen bolts 3/4" long, and 4 each 5/16"-18 lock nuts. I re-used the four original lock nuts that hold the rails to the seat frame on the old seat.

The holes in the plates are drilled 13/16" apart, and counter sunk on opposite sides. Each plate gets one half inch, and one three quarter inch bolt. The 3/4" allen bolts have the heads welded to the plate, and the welds are ground flush. To make it easier, three of the four 1/2" allen bolts can also be welded. But one has to be left unwelded as there is not enough room to turn the nut inside the seat track.

The 1/2" Allen bolts mount the adapter plates to the seat tracks with the 4 original lock nuts, after punching out the staked in bolts. As per the above picture the plates are oriented towards the center of the seat tracks.

After mounting the brackets to the seat tracks, I took the seat tracks out to the new seat, and made some marks for mounting the new brackets so the seat would sit in the same position as the old seat, side to side. Basically I measured 1/2 the difference between 51-7/8" and 42", or 4-15/16" from the center of the stock mounting holes. I drew a line for each hole, then held the seat rails up to mark where to drill the holes. I drilled 3/8" mounting holes right through the plastic seat cover grips, after drilling a pilot hole. I only trimmed the inside of the plastic seat cover grips, so the nuts would sit correctly.
Then I bolted up the seat brackets, and mounted the seat in the truck.
It was easier for me to put the seat belts through the seat before installing, and bolting them in first, then I bolted the seat in place.
The seat adjusts all the way back to where the seat back is pushed up against the tank, and slides foward past the point of usefullness.

Sounds more complicated than it was. Most of the detail was in getting the measurements.
Hope this helps someone else who may want to install a newer than 97 seat.

[Happy_Camper]

what are those seat belts out of, I'm tired of mine falling into the door jam. The belts you have look more user friendly.

I *think" they are stock. The passenger side retracts, but the driver's side does not, so I have the same issue with it falling into the door jamb.

[Joe Kriston]

Happy Camper, thanks for the photos and all the detailed input...Nice Job!...Years ago, somebody, I don't remember who, told me that one of the worst things you could do to your back is to drive around with a thick wallet in your back pocket...maybe your new seat is talking to you...

[flyboy2610]

Years ago, somebody, I don't remember who, told me that one of the worst things you could do to your back is to drive around with a thick wallet in your back pocket

Well, that's one I don't have to worry about!

[Caseys71]

Seems like a pretty worthwhile upgrade overall then, especially if the dog likes it . I'm on the fence between getting a newer seat and restoring mine, I really like the look of my seat, just not the feel of the missing foam and rough steel frame of it . Hopefully you can off-set the seat and solve your problems with not being centered at the wheel ,and thanks for the detailed write-up .

[AlleyCat]

Years ago, somebody, I don't remember who, told me that one of the worst things you could do to your back is to drive around with a thick wallet in your back pocket

Well, that's one I don't have to worry about!

I have the same problem but the thick isn't from cash. It's all the licenses and crap I have to carry. I usually stick my wallet on the seat beside me or jamb it into the visor if I'm driving a big truck.

[mrsnicks]

Wow you got a better deal than I did.. I have a seat that looks exactly like that except for the color that I picked up for $100.00 on craigslist. I'm really good with pictures but bad with directions. Any chance you can "dummy down" your instructions and provide lots of pictures? I know it would involve taking things apart again but it could be made into a "how to" technical article write up and you would have the gratitude of many.

Thanks,
Patrick

[Happy_Camper]

Hey Patrick,
If I end up moving the seat over an inch, when I pull it out I'll get some better pictures.
When you look at the two seats sitting next to each other, what needs to be done will be very clear.
You may even find a better/easier way.

Scott