Ok, here's the issue, I have a four door freightliner truck we use some times for long distance travel, actually been on a few 2000 miles hikes the last few months with it and everyone hates the seats and I mean everyone to the point nobody will go along or even want to drive it. The issue isn't with the drivers seat, its the passengers seat, turns out there are none of the market that can recline. I've tried to buy one, turns out nobody makes one I can even order, a couple local truck shops claim they've never even heard of one that did recline due to either being day cabs or a sleeper behind it the seat would hit. This whole issue came up with the invention of the four door and cab and a half pickups, those seats in fords anyhow, recline and when in the passenger seat that person reclines and takes a nap while the other drives, its the main reason I have owned many minivans over the years, after the first few thousand miles, I personally could care less to see whats out there so I tend to lean back and take a nap, turns out anyone who's ever gone along with me does the same thing. You don't have to lay flat, but enough to have a good nap, seats that don't recline really suck in my opinion, they might be great for driving, but for some shut eye, they are downright unbearable. Anyone know of any air ride seats that recline that I can buy and stick in my freightshaker?
Quite a few trucks seats that have an adjustment for the back will go farther if you remove a couple stop bolts in them. Used to do that to my trucks to get a little more tilt back. Maybe a place that does conversion vans etc would have a source for seats like you want.
I'm going to hunt through some salvage yards today and see what there is I can get to tear them apart and see how they are assembled. All the places that did the conversion vans in the area are no more. The seats I have now are rigid, they are welded pipe basically with only some air in the cushions and for the back support, those would have to be completely started over so I may as well buy something different to start with that at least has a hinge assembly already in the seat. I've done some reading on the internet and there are some articles on this exact subject, but from what I saw, its a custom designed and changed thing. I can't imagine those driving team even a portion of the time someone wouldn't want to lean back and take a nap in the right seat, but when I asked locally, you'd have thought I was asking for something from outer space. All claimed I was the first to ever ask that question.
Full recline went away around the time that SRS airbags came along. A reclined, yet belted, passenger will submarine under the lap belt in a frontal collision.
So how do those asleep in the sleeper fare in a crash according to the experts? Last time I looked, none were required to be strapped in while sleeping or cinched down like a piece of cargo so they won't shift during an accident?
I have drove trucks that had a cargo net that had seat belt latches that went over the sleeper opening. I had some seats that were on a rocker like base so the hole seat tilted i like them. They were in a day cab when they moved they didnt get any closer to the back of the cab.
An old rule for drivers-If your that tired find a bed, don't want to get use to sleeping in a setting position.
Not an expert but most air ride big truck seats recline, never had more than a day cab but ones I bought at least lean back some my problem is they hit back of cab and rub making bothersome noises, I have a minimizer seat now, bit pricey, it leans back about to cut back of cab and add mega cab kit to gain 6 inchs for more knee room,
Old Doug, I've never heard or seen the style of seat that was on rocker base, any idea what the official term is used for them? Truck Shop, I don't want the drivers seat to recline, only the passengers to recline enough to not be in the upright position, as for worrying about falling asleep while driving, that's never been a problem, its like switching from an excavator seat to then hopping into a backhoe, two completely different machines, two completely different modes of operation and somehow you just adjust in seconds, same for switching from the passengers seat to the drivers seat. Scrounged through the salvage yards yesterday, was told before I left they had plenty of the make and model that would fit my truck, turns out they had nothing, same for the second salvage yard, apparently seats that fit that model are in high demand.