Forums » Grassroots Motorsports » Roll Bar Padding: SFI vs. non-SFI 1 2

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  June 9, 2011 6:13 p.m. Woody SuperDork

  ...or, High Density vs. Not High Density.

  Which stuff do I want (track days only)?

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  June 9, 2011 6:44 p.m. Keith SuperDork

  High density. Softer than a steel pipe, but stiff enough that it won't simply collapse and let you whack the pipe.

  Square left in 50 caution ocean!

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  June 9, 2011 7:07 p.m. stealthfighter1 Reader

  they sell it on summit and in the description it will say sfi certified or not

  325i /02tl-s

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  June 9, 2011 7:13 p.m. 93EXCivic SuperDork

  I have heard some people double wrap it. They put high density on the bar with the other stuff on top.

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  June 9, 2011 7:15 p.m. friedgreencorrado SuperDork

  With safety equip, don't scrimp. Trust me.
  

  

  Not a scratch that day, but I had a "horse collar" instead of a HANS. Neck makes a little noise 20yrs later..

  How can it be a midlife crisis, when I've driven sportscars my entire life?

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  June 9, 2011 7:21 p.m. Keith SuperDork

  93EXCivic wrote: I have heard some people double wrap it. They put high density on the bar with the other stuff on top.

  You can get dual density padding. It's bulky, but nice in a dual-purpose car. I use it on the rally car, and I'll often pull off the soft outer layer when I'm running a stage with my helmet on.

  Square left in 50 caution ocean!

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  June 9, 2011 7:21 p.m. Woody SuperDork

  Keith wrote: High density. Softer than a steel pipe, but stiff enough that it won't simply collapse and let you whack the pipe.

  That's the thing; it's not a whole lot softer than the pipe!

  I lift things up and put them down.

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  June 9, 2011 7:48 p.m. friedgreencorrado SuperDork

  Woody wrote:

  Keith wrote: High density. Softer than a steel pipe, but stiff enough that it won't simply collapse and let you whack the pipe.

  That's the thing; it's not a whole lot softer than the pipe!

  Not to your hand maybe..but to your helmet it will be. It's tough to express just how strange & violent impacts can be (especially in a rollover, where there's more than one impact). Stuff stretches (the belts, your body) like crazy. You can hit stuff that you can't even reach when you're belted in.

  I like what Keith said about the dual-density stuff, that sounds like a great thing for a dual-purpose car.

  How can it be a midlife crisis, when I've driven sportscars my entire life?

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  June 9, 2011 7:50 p.m. Javelin SuperDork

  Dual-density is absolutely the way to go. Hard-density SFI inner with a noggin-friendly softer on the outside. NHRA is really liking it, and they are pretty on top of safety/cage stuff. More so than the SCCA for sure...

  Michael Pinto - 73 AMC Javelin 360 / GoKart / 86 944 Sport / 01 Grand Prix GT / 06 Mazda5 M5

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  June 9, 2011 8:40 p.m. Woody SuperDork

  Never heard of the dual density stuff, but that sounds like the way I'll go.

  EDIT: Yikes! A buck an inch?!

  I lift things up and put them down.

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  June 9, 2011 9:37 p.m. BoneYard_Racing Reader

  What stops one from getting longacre non-sfi high density ($17/3ft) and wrapping it in local speed shop soft foam ($5/3ft)

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  June 9, 2011 11:13 p.m. friedgreencorrado SuperDork

  Javelin wrote: Dual-density is absolutely the way to go. Hard-density SFI inner with a noggin-friendly softer on the outside. NHRA is really liking it, and they are pretty on top of safety/cage stuff. More so than the SCCA for sure...

  I'm an SCCA member, and I support this message.

  How can it be a midlife crisis, when I've driven sportscars my entire life?

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  June 9, 2011 11:45 p.m. Javelin SuperDork

  Woody wrote: Never heard of the dual density stuff, but that sounds like the way I'll go. EDIT: Yikes! A buck an inch?!

  How much do you like your head?

  Safety on the track is the one think I won't scrimp on. I'll gladly put a $1500 cage in a $500 POS when I'm going to be hurtling around a racetrack at a 100MPH surrounded by 3000# battering rams and concrete walls.

  Michael Pinto - 73 AMC Javelin 360 / GoKart / 86 944 Sport / 01 Grand Prix GT / 06 Mazda5 M5

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  June 9, 2011 11:59 p.m. friedgreencorrado SuperDork

  Javelin wrote:

  Woody wrote: Never heard of the dual density stuff, but that sounds like the way I'll go. EDIT: Yikes! A buck an inch?!

  How much do you like your head?

  x50,393,685,704,397.
  

  Old school joke, remember? Something about $10 helmets and $10 heads? Same applies to the cockpit. Prepare for the worst.

  How can it be a midlife crisis, when I've driven sportscars my entire life?

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  June 10, 2011 7:00 a.m. Rob_Mopar Dork

  friedgreencorrado wrote: With safety equip, don't scrimp. Trust me. Not a scratch that day, but I had a "horse collar" instead of a HANS. Neck makes a little noise 20yrs later..

  You know, there probably was an easier way of testing your safety gear.

  Well, everybody knows that the bird is the word!

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  June 10, 2011 7:02 a.m. Giant Purple Snorklewacker SuperDork

  Racer Wholesale has the regular and mini HD stuff for $12 a stick.

  Make sure you put it everywhere your soft bits might touch. Think about your arms and legs in a violent roll over. You can shatter a knee on a pipe.

  Lord of drivel and harbinger of Floundering

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  June 10, 2011 7:09 a.m. z31maniac SuperDork

  Javelin wrote:

  Woody wrote: Never heard of the dual density stuff, but that sounds like the way I'll go. EDIT: Yikes! A buck an inch?!

  How much do you like your head?

  Safety on the track is the one think I won't scrimp on. I'll gladly put a $1500 cage in a $500 POS when I'm going to be hurtling around a racetrack at a 100MPH surrounded by 3000# battering rams and concrete walls.

  This.

  I was upset when I trashed my $750 Shoei at a track day, but glad it kept it to a concussion vs death.

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  June 10, 2011 7:57 a.m. ppddppdd Reader

  I've got the dual density stuff on my Miata's roll bar. Just be aware it's really REALLY bulky. Makes the car feel a little claustrophobic with the top up, but anything to keep my brain from liquefying if I hit it.

  Even the "soft" part of the dual density padding is much stiffer than the foam I've seen on a lot of roll bars. That stuff is more for when you accidentally clonk your head on the bar while getting groceries out of the back seat rather than however many G's you'd experience getting rear ended by an SUV at 45 mph.

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  June 10, 2011 8:49 a.m. joey48442 SuperDork

  ppddppdd wrote: I've got the dual density stuff on my Miata's roll bar. Just be aware it's really REALLY bulky. Makes the car feel a little claustrophobic with the top up, but anything to keep my brain from liquefying if I hit it. Even the "soft" part of the dual density padding is much stiffer than the foam I've seen on a lot of roll bars. That stuff is more for when you accidentally clonk your head on the bar while getting groceries out of the back seat rather than however many G's you'd experience getting rear ended by an SUV at 45 mph.

  Getting groceries out of the back seat of the Miata?

  Joey

  Oh yes use the longest screwdriver in the toolbox,use my shop voice and wing the rest!

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  June 10, 2011 10:17 p.m. friedgreencorrado SuperDork

  Rob_Mopar wrote: You know, there probably was an easier way of testing your safety gear.

  Yeah, the bitch sheared the LF balljoint while loaded going through T3B on the infield at Charlotte. Didn't realize the car had been a rally car before being converted to ITC, and all the links hadn't been replaced. Wife (ex-wife, for damn near 20yrs now) wanted me to spend less on racing..big mistake that I fell for it. Tried to partner up with somebody that scrimped on that homebuilt POS. Hit the drivers' left rail after the joint sheared under the load, half-endoed, and had about 4 rolls. I'm still glad that the thing didn't let go on the oval..
  

  Anyhoo..just wanted to show Woody that you don't want to take chances with your gear, or your car's gear when you hit the track. If he's thinking about "pushing the envelope" hard enough at a track day to require a rollover structure in the first place, he needs to make sure it doesn't hurt him if something goes wrong.

  How can it be a midlife crisis, when I've driven sportscars my entire life?

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  June 10, 2011 10:22 p.m. friedgreencorrado SuperDork

  Woody wrote: Never heard of the dual density stuff, but that sounds like the way I'll go. EDIT: Yikes! A buck an inch?!

  PAY IT. Do I have to repost pix of my crash again?

  How can it be a midlife crisis, when I've driven sportscars my entire life?

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  June 11, 2011 5:01 a.m. Don49 Reader

  IIRC the SFI is flame retardent. If you have fire you don't want molten plastic dripping on you.

  2010 SCCA EP Sunoco Hard Charger

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  June 11, 2011 7:52 a.m. Woody SuperDork

  I bit the bullet and ordered dual density stuff from Stable Energies. $30 for 3 feet, with free shipping for orders over $100. No affiliation, just a happy customer.

  I lift things up and put them down.

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  June 11, 2011 8:56 a.m. Giant Purple Snorklewacker SuperDork

  Woody wrote: I bit the bullet and ordered dual density stuff from Stable Energies. $30 for 3 feet, with free shipping for orders over $100. No affiliation, just a happy customer.

  Not to ding the folks at Stable... they have great customer service but... $30 + shipping is way high.

  Here it is... $18.50 at RPW... Longacre embossed SFI padding

  I use that stuff in required locations and the Longacre high density non-sfi stuff ($12) everywhere else my tender extremities might wallop in case of barrel roll. There is no difference in fire retardation or density - it's just that the 18.50 ones have the SFI stamp embossed in the foam so the stewards can see it and so no questions at tech time.

  Lord of drivel and harbinger of Floundering

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  June 11, 2011 9:09 a.m. Woody SuperDork

  Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:

  Woody wrote: I bit the bullet and ordered dual density stuff from Stable Energies. $30 for 3 feet, with free shipping for orders over $100. No affiliation, just a happy customer.

  Not to ding the folks at Stable... they have great customer service but... $30 + shipping is way high.

  Here it is... $18.50 at RPW... Longacre embossed SFI padding

  I use that stuff in required locations and the Longacre high density non-sfi stuff ($12) everywhere else my tender extremities might wallop in case of barrel roll. There is no difference in fire retardation or density - it's just that the 18.50 ones have the SFI stamp embossed in the foam so the stewards can see it and so no questions at tech time.

  That's not the same stuff.

  I lift things up and put them down.

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