Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with belt

Why are airplane seatbelts different from car seatbelts?

gleuschk — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 08:20:39 -0800

Why are airplane seatbelts different from car seatbelts? It seems odd that we would have these two totally different designs for seatbelts. If the airplane one is better (safer, easier to unlatch in a hurry, whatever), why don't we use them in cars? If not, why do we use a design that has to be explained to people? Is there something about the two designs that makes one better in a plane and the other better in a car?

help me locate this belt

raphael19 — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 23:28:44 -0800

Can you help me find online a belt (for jeans) i saw on a magazine cover? Hi,

I supply an uploaded photo. On the buckle, the script reads as either "tough" or "rough". (If you know something similar it is all right too...)

Thanks in advance...

http://img258.imageshack.us/my.php?image=27122008669aw1.jpg

buckle, buckle, toil and trouble

thinkingwoman — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 17:00:54 -0800

help me find a belt for my buckle! i bought my boyfriend a groovy belt buckle a while back, but never got around to finding a belt for it. where would i find a buckle-less belt strap? i don't even know where to begin. thanks.

It looks like either a king-sized beverage spill or small pools of dried blood, and neither are upholstery colors.

fujiko — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 11:24:34 -0800

The rear seat belts on a 1997 Honda Accord bleed onto the upholstery. Is there any way to stop this? I have a 1997 Honda Accord that I use to transport animals sometimes. The upholstery has to be cleaned every couple of months, but I just now figured out that the rear seat belts bleed a chestnut brown dye anytime they get moist (dog drool) or wet (upholstery cleaner). Unfortunately, the upholstery itself is a pale beige color and so it often looks like someone has spilled a king sized, dark-colored beverage in my car. Right now, I have the seat belts covered by plastic umbrella bags so that the upholstery can dry.

Is there any way to seal the dye into the seatbelt? Scotch Guard? Other fabric protectors? Any ideas?

Please help me replace and adjust the belt on my front load washing machine.

dirtdirt — Tue, 20 May 2008 16:56:48 -0800

Please help me replace and adjust the belt on my front load washing machine. The machine is maybe 3 years old. It's a Kenmore but I understand it was manufactured by Frigidaire. A few months ago it stopped working, we got a repair guy out here who diagnosed a slipped belt, put it back on, charged us $175 and went away. The whole thing took 15 minutes

A month ago it exhibited the same symptoms. I opened up the back and, indeed, the belt had slipped again. I found it interesting that the spindle on the motor had grooves that matched the belt, but the other part, the wheel that spins the drum, was smooth. A bit of maneuvering and I had the belt back on. Everything seemed OK.

Then it slipped again. I re-seated it again. I repeated this process a few more times until finally, the belt slipped and somehow got caught in the works, melted some of the plastic on the drum housing, and tore. Bummer.

So, bottom line: I have a replacement belt that I am buying tomorrow, but what can I do to help keep it seated? The thing held on for 3+ years - is it just a part that wears out? Also: I'd have thought there would be a way to adjust the tension between the motor and the drum but it doesn't seem like it. The motor is bolted directly to the same plastic drum that the wheel is on, and there just doesn't seem to be any way to adjust it. Any thoughts or advice?

Safety restraints - no zip

Acari — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 16:44:17 -0800

Sluggish seatbelt retracting thingers: How to fix them? It's annoying, and too many older cars suffer from this for somebody to not know how to fix it.

The seatbelt doesn't go back into the mysterious seatbelt-dispensing portion of the car like it used to. And then you slam the buckle in the door, and look like a dweeb while you jiggle it up and down to try and feed it back in there.

I removed the mechanism, jiggled it around, poked at the pokable parts, and came to the conclusion that in this particular car [an 88 K-car], the issue is not friction/lubrication in the unit itself, but a spring weakened by age and overuse. Everything zips/spins/clicks like it should when it's just the belt and the retractor, but when it gets re-mounted and encased in plastic panelling, there's no poop/zip/vim.

I can't get at the spring so far as I can see; the retractor doesn't appear to be serviceable. But maybe it is and I just don't get it. Anybody have any clues?
Is this one of those times when I should just go to a junkyard and tug on all of the seatbelts I find?

[you know. like all those other times where that's the answer]

Out of State Seatbelt Ticket

crashlanding — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 21:58:06 -0800

I just received an out of state seat belt ticket, how will this affect my insurance? I go to graduate school in Evanston, Illinois and I was pulled over three blocks from my apartment for not wearing a seatbelt and was given a ticket. I have no big problem with this, I was guilty but I'm trying to determine the best course of action.

In Illinois, not wearing a seatbelt is considered a moving violation, something which I was not aware of since it isn't in NJ. Now my license is from NJ since I still list my parents' address as my permanent address, but my car is registered in Illinois and has Illinois plates. To be honest, I've been meaning to get an Illinois license but I've been putting it off.

I have three options, plead guilty and pay a fine, plead guilty and take traffic school online, or go to court. Now this is where things become cloudy. The first and, most likely, third options will result in a conviction on my record which will be reported to NJ. However, NJ does not assign points for this type of ticket so will it affect my record or my insurance (which is also Illinois insurance)?

Part of me thinks that NJ will look at it like IL sent them notice that I got a non-moving violation and throw it out, but that also sounds like wishful thinking to me.

Also, if I do go to court, what do I say? I was alone in the car and not wearing a seatbelt so it seems like it would be open and shut and I don't think the prosecutor would be willing to make a deal like he would for a speeding ticket or other moving violation.

I know you're not my lawyer and any advice is just general advice and not specific legal advice.

Belt for GPS tracking and my tiny laptop

phrontist — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 17:23:04 -0800

I'm currently waiting for my Eee PC and Mologogo phone (a motorola i415) to arrive. These are items I'd like to carry with me very frequently (essentially always), and I call upon the hivemind to help me figure out the best way to do so. The Eee is too big to fit in my pockets comfortably, and for maximum comfort I'd rather not have the phone in my pants all the time either. I have a Timbuk2 bag, but it's too large for when I just want to carry the phone and laptop. The best idea I've come up so far is some sort of... utility belt. I'm envisioning the Eee hanging off my hip and the phone in some sort of holster. I have a hunch military surplus may be a fruitful avenue of inquiry, but I'm not having much luck googling.

Can anyone reccomend such a belt and holsters (bags) that would work with these items? Preferably something modular, in case I have to add some other device down the line.

I'm open to non-belt suggestions as well, but my priorities are fast access and secure stowage (I'm a college student that rides a bike very often). It shouldn't be a vest - this needs to be a general solution that will work in the summer as well.

Asia travel ideas for 18 yr old karate lover?

RoadTripPlanner — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 03:48:39 -0800

Can anyone recommend any martial arts learning opportunities (camps, workshops, lessons, etc) in Asia that an 18 year old would enjoy? My nephew in the US is a karate brown belt and he would like to travel to Asia when he graduates from high school this year. I am trying to help him find some interesting travel opportunities which relate to karate. He loves karate and has been searching for something to do in Japan or India for Summer 2008 but we haven't found anything yet. Thanks for any tips.

de-drooping my drawers

M.C. Lo-Carb! — Mon, 05 Feb 2007 08:25:20 -0800

Is it crass for a man to tighten his belt in public? Help settle an argument - while at the bowling alley last night (Superbowl Sunday is a great day to bowl, might I add) I realized I needed to tighten my belt so my pants wouldn't hang under my shoes and trip me up, so I went to the bathroom to do it. This sparked a discussion of whether or not it is obscene to do so in public. I kind of think its gross. You?

iPod abuse

Kiwi — Thu, 28 Dec 2006 10:35:43 -0800

Stop me hitting my iPod! My 4th gen iPod requires frequent slapping to encourage it to unfreeze (try Googling 'slap+ipod' to see what I mean). What does this particular 'fix' actually do? How do I fix my iPod in a more permanent way? It seems that since this slapping is often successful, there might be single problem that it is fixing? Loose HD connection or something?

I need to take off my belt.

GernBlandston — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 10:00:37 -0800

I need a new belt to hold up my pants. The one I have now is about 20+ years old. I'd like one that does not use animal products, uses natural fibers, is about 3/4 wide, thin, durable, and unobtrusive. Any ideas?

Belts and you

selfnoise — Thu, 11 Aug 2005 11:30:02 -0800

I've got belt issues. (of the clothing variety) Belts are excellent devices for holding pants up. I think we can all agree on that. And a belt seems to be a good thing to wear with a nice shirt and pants. However, I really dislike belts when I'm sitting down. The buckle makes me uncomfortable, and since my office job requires me to be sitting down for most of the day, this can start to wear on a person.

Suspenders seem like they might be an alternative, but I really thing my coworkers would giggle if I started wearing them.

So... what are my options here? What's the best, most comfortable way to hold your pants up all day long?

Stopping Jeep Cherokee Belt Squeal

davey_darling — Sun, 22 May 2005 12:44:12 -0800

My 1989 Jeep Cherokee's serpentine belt is squealing horrifically. Nothing I have done will make it stop for longer than a few minutes. My Jeep, with the 4.0l inline-6 engine, emits a terrible squealing noise whenever the revs get up above an idle, and a steady chirping sound at idle. The squealing increases in pitch and volume as the engine revs go up.
In the last few months I have replaced the water pump, idler pulley and the alternator is new. The serpentine belt was replaced at the same time as the water pump.
Spraying the tiniest amount of lubricant (of any sort - WD-40, silicone lube, white grease) on the belt will stop the noise temporarily, but it usually starts again by the time I get the hood closed and get back in the car.
It is not a belt tension issue as I have checked that the belt tension is correct, and experimented with tighter/looser tensions.
It doesn't seem to be having any detrimental effect on the operation of the engine, but it is simply becoming increasingly embarassing to drive around in with the constant noise.
I have read in places that the harmonic balancer may be the culprit. Before I shell out the cash and scraped knuckles involved with replacing the thing, does anybody have any other insights of suggestions as to what may be causing the squealing noise?