Arm restraint

[John Levy]

Arm restraints are required in SCCA open wheel racing.

[BrooksHall]

That's good question who does make good ones? I have Worth and I hate the way they interface with my belts. I have though about having the system intergrated into my suit, any suggestions?

[matt]

If you have not noticed i am new to all of this.I was wondering are arm restraints required? If so who makes the good ones or are they all the same?
Thanks.

[matt]

Someone before told me before that you did not need them.So when i bought my suit i did not get them put in the suit.As always i should have asked you guys insteed.
How does the are restraits work,where is it that they connect on the car? As i sad i am new to this,so forgive the dumb ?s.

[Aiken Racing]

At evry race I have participated in, an official checks to see that every racer has arm restraints on. I connect my lap belt and crotch strap first. Then, before I hook in the shoulder straps, I feed the left shoulder strap through my left arm restraint loop and then the right. That way, your arms are sucure while belted in the car, but when you release the main buckle, your arms are free.

[Rick]

And...yes the arm restraints are looked at as the precaution against your arms flopping around if your convertible rolls...i use them, pull up to just below the elbow, and hook the metal ring to the shoulder belts also. i use the camlock and it is much easier to use the restraints with the camlock as opposed to the gooseneck. have the camlock attached to the submarine belt and you can actually buckle your own belts...my..my...also, having the restraints sewn to the drivers suit is 100% better. at our last race in buttonwillow a couple of weeks ago, i was a bit late and jumped, well..got in the car only to have left the darn restraints in the truck...rats!! after you wiggle down in that mutha its a pisser! pegasus or racers wholesale or almost anyone has the restraints, but please use them. you never know....use them with your full face helmet huh?

[Scott Gesford]

I probably shouldn't say this but I hate wearing arm restraints in these cars. I never wear them on test days and on SCCA days I wear them but they are still set to the length I had them from my sprint car days. I am pretty safety conscious but I don't think they are necessary for these cars. IRL and CART drivers don't wear them. Just last week I had problems with them in a qualifying session when they were getting caught on something inside the cockpit when cornering.

[Matt M.]

Has anyone sewn them onto the suit?? Mine always loosen during driving.... Next thing I know they are both at my wrists...

[Purple Frog]

I have Simpsons. They are a no-brainer. Many suit manufacturers will sew the hook-up rings into your suit sleeves.

A key is to fit them correctly. Then check all the hardware, cut off excess pieces, tape up flapping ends, etc., etc.

Velcro sewn on your suit, where you want the arm band to stay, will keep it from slipping down to your wrists.

I also one day had a piece of adjustment hardware that would catch in my chassis on hard left turns. A memorable momment.

If you ever see the results of not using them... you'll always use them from that point on.

[Steve Demeter]

Amen to what the frog says.
The velcro works great and costs like nothing.

Just ask a sprint car guy named Mack McClellan why you need arm restraints. He flipped the entire length of the IRP oval front straight in a midget about 6 years ago. He was wearing arm restraints, about 5 years old, and they broke. He darn near lost both arms and he had a new pair sitting in the trailer. So even though SCCA doesn't make you replace them periodically, think about it.

As far as Indy cars go, they don't have the forward facing roll bar bracing we do and there is not as much opportunity to get hands or arms pinched.

[matt]

As far as sewing them into the suit.I was told that it had to be done when the suit was being made.That you would make holes that would make the suit not as fire retardent.Sticky velcro on the other hand would be ok so i am told by Simpsons.

[Alan R Guibord]

I tape mine to my suit when I put them on. It keeps them in place.

[ckracing]

OK. I don't know if I can put the belt-in sequence into words. Buckle my lap belt. Pull L and R anti-submarine straps through eyelets on lap belt. Slide eyelets from arm restraints over ends of anti-submarine straps. Pull shoulder belt ends through ends of anti-submarine straps and push in to appropriate spots in lap belt. Make sure arm restraints are fully extended before attempting all this. Pull shoulder belts tight. Pull arm restraints tight. I have my arm restraints sewn into my suit. The only thing anyone ever has given me a hard time about (and I don't know if it is a rule or not) is do the arm restrains need an dated sticker? My arm restraints do not because it is just heavy webbing with the appropriate rings. Just my 2 cents.

[Steve Demeter]

If I recall correctly, the GCR specifically states that a date is NOT required on arm restraints. This means that in theory, you could use the same set forever. But the wisdom of that is questionable at best. There is a reason that belts must be replaced every 5 years and arm restraionts are nothing more than another belt.