3" vs 2" shoulder harness w/HANS

[Bob Coury]

From what I can see in some pictures, I noticed that some IRL and F1 cars are still using 3" wide shoulder harnesses with a HANS. Does anybody know why?

I am currently using a 3" wide harnesss with my older HANS, which does not have the "channel" or " guide" to help keep the belt from sliding off. I am wondering if I should stay with the 3" for that reason.

My mounting points are such that I can use either belt.

Thanks
Bob

[ApexPerformance]

When we went for initial HANS training years ago, I asked Bob Hubbard (one of the inventors of the hans) if he recommended the 2" shoulder belts with a Hans. At that time, he said Schroth had not consulted with HANS on the development of the belts. HANS did all their testing with 3" shoulder belts. If the 3" belts are installed correctly, the webbing should wrap up around the neck of the hans a little bit. If the belts are falling off, the belts are most likely installed too far apart behind the seat. There should be no more than a 3" gap (if they are wrapped around a harness bar) between the shoulder belts when installed behind the seat.

However, I've also attended Schroth training. Schroth recommends the belts to lay as flat as possible to get the maximum performance/safety from the belts. You don't want them bent around things or folded over corners/sharp edges, etc. So the 2" shoulder belt makes more sense as it lays flat on the Hans instead of wrapping around the neck of the device.

With that said, we use 3" shoulder belts and have had no issues. In my opinion, it boils down to what type of car you are racing, your seat, harness setup, etc. If the 3" belts are working for you, I would stay with them.

Here's a link from the HANSdevice.com website under FAQ section

http://hansdevice.com/s.nl/sc.5/category.22/.f

They basically say you can use 2" or 3" shoulder belts as well.


[SIZE=2]What type of shoulder belts work best with a HANS Device?[/SIZE]Any SFI approved shoulder harness system works fine with the HANS Device.
2" or 3" shoulder belts in nylon or polyester work fine with the HANS Device.
Be sure to mount and replace your belts in accordance with manufacturer guidelines. Only the HANS Device spreads the belts around your neck, preventing chafing and maximizing belt performance.


[SIZE=2]Do some shoulder belts slip off the HANS Device?[/SIZE]No. Properly mounted belts do not slip off the device.
If your shoulder belts will not stay securely on the device chances are that you do not have the belt mounts properly located in your chassis. For more information see the Quick Start Guide section on shoulder belt mounting go here and scroll down to Quick Start Guide.
The HANS Device actually maximizes belt performance by spreading the belts around your neck, allowing the belts to be mounted as close together as possible for best performance. In over 3600 crashes involving HANS Device use as inspected by NASCAR there was not even one concern about belt retention or slippage.
.

[Bob Coury]

Thanks!

[Jerry Kehoe]

Having a very tight cockpit I found the 3" shoulder harness belts sometimes slipping off the HANS (I'm sure there was a reason to put a curled lip on the devices otherwise why do it?) even when the harness was installed very close together. I switched to the 2" harness from Sabelt and found it stayed in place and actually gave me more freedom as the 3" harness belts interfered at times with steering and shifting.

[iamuwere]

I have always used 3" belts and have never, in any of my cars had a belt slip even a little bit off, even in a crash.

JL

[Jerry Kehoe]

It only takes once.

[kea]

If the belts are mounted properly, there is not an issue with either.
One manufacture of belts has hung their marketing around the shoulder belt width issue, to the point where some presume that a HANS should only be used with a 2". Not True !
You may have your favorite, but HANS were designed on a 3" wide shoulder belt. You are allowed to race a 2" belt, if you have a HANS.

I've been trying to get race cars around here to get their shoulder belts properly located, long before the H&N mandate came up. On some vehicles, the type/brand of race seat (GT, IT,Prod cars) could make the difference. So many of them had a shoulder belt opening that was too high, too low or too wide. In many cases, the belts were tensioned hard against this opening before it got to the driver, giving the possibility of the shoulder belts losing tension if/once that opening broke larger.

[Speed Sport Engineering]

I'm revisiting this issue now that I'm looking at buying a Hans. I always have used Willians belts, but noticed their 2" belts don't have adjustable shoulder straps. The catalog only says they are adjustable during installation to keep from having the buckle on top of the Hans. How does this work? I can't get my belts latched unless the shoulder straps are loose, then I pull them down once in and settled. I didn't think anyone could get them latched under full pulled tight tension.

[Speed Sport Engineering]

Oops. Nevermind. Re-read the catalog. They were refering to the lap belts being non adjustable. Makes much more sense.