helmet/car pad/padding for cockpit

[reisertracing]

I need to find a source for the pad that goes in the cockpit to attach to the car behind the helmet to protect in a incident.
It usually is covered in leather or material to absorb energy in a shunt.
Need a thin profile material.
Any help appreciated.

[Daryl DeArman]

www.mcmastercarr.com

try page 3304

foam rubber in various thicknesses and densities. They have all kinds of stuff...most is for industrial use or farm equipment, not the kind of place you want to buy lots of race car parts...

[R. Pare]

Absolutely DO NOT use a standard foam rubber for helmet padding! Foam rubber will exhibit a rebound characteristic in a crash that will increase the g-loading on your head, and can in many instances be enough to kill you.

You want to use a resiliant material that show little to no rebound forces, such as expanded polystyrene bead (styrofoam).

Your pad needs to be a minimum of 1 inch thick.

[Daryl DeArman]

I should have clarified which of the "foam rubbers" on those pages were better choices than others.

The confor foam takes several seconds to return to it's uncompressed state! The firmest confor takes 1.3 psi to compress it 25% of its' static height. It is available in both 1" and 2" thicknesses. That foam is made to absorb energy.

You can learn more about this foam and it's military aircraft use here:

http://www.aviationdesign.com/confor.html

a 12" x 12" x 1" thick piece of the high density stuff is $12.55 at mcmaster-carr, same page I pointed you to.

[Daryl DeArman]

R. Pare,

Just in case you weren't aware of the Confor foam and its' properties, manufacturers' website:

http://www.earsc.com/pdfs/engineerin...onforbroch.pdf

They are right down the street from you...

[R. Pare]

Known about Confor foam since it was first developed for the Space Shuttle! It is actually the same stuff that the Baker Back pads are made of, as well as now the Tempurpedic mattresses.

Actually, Confor foam is not a really good choice for head rest material as its stiffness changes dramatically with temperature - below 65 degrees it is too stiff for that job (concentrated load high impact) and above 90 degrees it will be too soft. It is fantastic stuff for seats - exactly what it was developed for - but not for this job. I initially also thought that it would make a great headrest material until I saw the F1 tests done about 11 years ago, and the same test conducted by CART and the IRL. Polystyrene bead is now used by all those series.

[Bill Hetzel]

I had some beads and resin left over from my bead seat. Made the headrest mold with some white foam house insulation cut out and lined with saranwrap. Popped it out of the mold and covered it with vinyl. Worked well.

[Mark_Silverberg]

BSCI makes EPS foam sheet which can be used for head rest padding - they were showing it at the PRI show last year.

http://www.rollbarpadding.com

As I recall there is a variety of thicknesses available and the pricing is fair compared to other products