scannon Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 Having two severed rotator cuffs, each with a couple of detached muscles makes getting out of a Se7en a difficult and painful ordeal. I decided to see if I could come up with something to help me raise my butt enough to get out of the car without using my shoulders. The first iteration used a hand winch with the crank handle removed and a cut down Makita drill motor to drive it. The first tests showed that the Makita didn't have enough power even when driving it with 12 volts rather than the 9.6 it was designed for. I replaced the Makita and hand winch with a small 12v winch designed for ATVs. Now there was enough power but between the grippiness of the cloth Caterham seats and the angle of lift with the pulleys attached to the roll bar it was uncomfortable being pulled up and back into the seat. I found that if I had my heels on the frame cross bar and leaned forward a bit I could ride up to the level of the door opening and step out from there. The sling type seat is made of denim with steel bar inserts in each end to spread the load. The rope is mountain climbing rope. There are still a few things to tidy up but I think this is going to make driving the Se7en much more tolerable.
Boxologist Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 You won the awesome post of the day, Skip. Glad this keeps you driving your 7!
snookwheel Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 Love it! That is dedication to living the Se7en way of life! Brilliant!
scannon Posted November 7, 2011 Author Posted November 7, 2011 How much does it weigh? The winch had a shipping weight of 17 lb. I removed 25' of steel cable and the hook. The rope, pulleys and seat probably add 3 - 5 lb. I don't think it has much effect on the car's power to weight ratio but it certainly affects my fun to non-fun ratio.
MHKflyer52 Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 That is very COOL and creative. :cooldude:
Alaskossie Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 Skip, Very neat, and creative! With a few more lines in strategic places, you could also rig an electric retractable top for your Seven! :
pi7ot Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 You get my vote for hardcore Se7ener Of 2011 Hope your shoulders DO get better though. m
Croc Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 Hi Skip - Very ingenious! Here is to seeing your shoulders heal.
Z3 Stalker Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 Skip, Where there's a will there's a way, good on ya! Stewart
WestTexasS2K Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 Necessity is the mother of invention. Great job on clever solution.
lancylad Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 I am in Awe....Skip you Rock! Way to go Skip, I knew you could do it.. Never Give UP!!!
BMW RACER Posted November 7, 2011 Posted November 7, 2011 It shows how much fun a 7 is to drive! The fact that you went to that much trouble to be able to drive your car. Great job. Hopefully it's just a temporary solution and you continue to get better so that you can jump in and out by yourself.
Mondo Posted November 8, 2011 Posted November 8, 2011 Awesome! And if you scare yourself the seat doesn't get soiled;)
XR4Bill Posted November 8, 2011 Posted November 8, 2011 12 out of 10 skip, brilliant. :cheers: cheers Bill.
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