If you’re ever annoyed by those highly irritating audible seat belt alarms in your vehicle this little piece of hardware is your ticket to some blessed relief. It’s literally saving this bird photographers ass (explanation to follow). And if you ever haul groceries or pets in your pressure-sensitive passenger seat it may be the perfect solution to a huge annoyance.
I despise seat belt alarms that can’t be turned completely, and I do mean completely, off. Typically I photograph birds on country roads with little or no traffic and I’m usually driving not much faster than walking speed while looking for them. It goes without saying that I can’t have my seat belt on when twisting in my seat to aim my lens out the window. When I have to micro-maneuver my pickup for a better shooting angle or better light that damn alarm going off has scared off countless birds in the past.
With my previous pickups I’ve partially solved the problem by fastening the seat belt behind me which bypasses the alarm. It was inconvenient but it worked. But it doesn’t work with my new pickup because the buckles of the fastened seat belt poke me sharply in the butt to the point of great discomfort and even significant pain over the course of the morning.
That red seat belt indicator on the left means I’m hearing the alarm or I’m about to hear it. That alarm is so incredibly loud and annoying I did some research and found a convoluted strategy that was supposed to turn the alarm off but it only did so partially – the alarm would still go off four times when I first started my engine although it wouldn’t come on again after that.
So that didn’t solve my problem because it scared birds off when I started the engine for a micro-maneuver. The engine is surprisingly quiet but that damn alarm sure isn’t. It’s meant to be annoying to the point of distraction and it is..
This little piece of stamped steel was my salvation. It’s called a Tikit and it’s available online for $5.99. It’s universal for any car or truck and in a pinch it even doubles as a bottle opener (no, I don’t have a connection to the company – none at all).
Here it is installed on my driver’s side seat belt receptacle next to my lens caddy which is secured in place by my middle seat belt. It bypasses the alarm so the only sound to be heard is yours truly blessing the quiet. And it never pokes me in the ass.
Most of the time I keep it in a storage depression on my dash but I can grab it and click it into place in less than three seconds. It works perfectly and I don’t have to be a contortionist to fasten the real seat belt behind me.
I’m prone to losing things so when I saw that these little miracles were available I ordered four of them. They’re so light they were mailed as a letter requiring only 95 cents postage – no shipping costs and they arrived four days after I ordered them.
So whether you’re a bird photographer, a dog owner, someone who regularly hauls groceries or a rancher checking fences maybe the Tikit is just the ticket for you. Thousands have also been sold to hunters, off-roaders, police officers and EMT’s.
Ron
Notes:
- I realize this post is esoteric to the point that many of my readers may have little interest in it. After all you rightfully expect bird photos rather than hardware promotions on Feathered Photography. But I’m so pleased with this little gadget I just had to write about it. If doing so is as helpful to someone else as my Tikit has been for me my purposes will have been served.
- Please do NOT drive at speed on the open road without using your seat belt. Not ever. Doing so is dangerous, irresponsible, illegal and just plain stupid.
There may be an easier way.
Check Youtube for your make and model car or truck to disable the chime.
I’ve done this on both my Murano and Outback.
No need for anything like this.
Before knowing how to disable the chime, a seat belt end from a junkyard worked.
Dave,
I’d rather not disable the chime completely if there’s a way that works better for me. After about 2 weeks of using the Tikit it works perfectly for my purposes.
Brilliant life hack. Thanks!
A useful little invention. Glad it’s helping.
Perhaps the birds also wanted you to enjoy the quiet. 😉 No? Too soon? 😉
Marty, I think all the birds cared about was that confounded dinging noise.
Very interesting and informative!! Thanks for all the info.
Thanks, Joanne.
Glad you found a silencer. Now you can use the money you saved on a more expensive device to get the inside of you cab cleaned. Just look at that display panel.😉
That’s clean for me, Lyle. The way I do it dust comes with bird photography.
How wonderful that such a cheap and easy solution to at least one problem is available.
EC, wouldn’t it be wonderful if some of our other problems could be solved so easily. And cheaply.
And here I thought Tikit was a bird I’d never heard of. Lol I thought the alarm sound was what their call sounded like. 😀
That’s two strikes… 🙂
I’m going to buy one for my Tacoma. I mostly drive solo in my little truck. If I use the passenger seat for a bag of groceries, it beeps and beeps and beeps about sixty times before shutting up and just flashing a warning light. If I click the belt shut, then I can’t open the access door for the other groceries or a dog or whatever. In the grand scheme of things, it’s a minor annoyance, but who wants annoyances?
Thanks for the hint.
Catherine, sometimes I think vehicle designers do some of that stuff just to be annoying.
Cool! Ordered.
Good. I predict you’ll get your order in 4-5 days, April. And that you’ll love it.
Well, what do you know, YOU have finally solved my problem other than buckling my seat belt behind me. Many Thanks!!
That’s great, Dick.
I’m familiar. I used those for a while and then I found what has turned out for me to be an even more convenient solution because they can stay in all the time and I can still use my seat belt normally and never have to think about it. It’s called a seat belt extender…
https://smile.amazon.com/BROADREAM-Car-Buckles-Automotive-Extender-2/dp/B083FVCYKG/
Significantly more expensive and bulkier but that looks like an excellent and even more convenient solution. Thanks for the link, David.
You’re welcome, Ron. We still use the others like you posted when we fly on airlines and use rental vehicles. We have the seat belt extenders in both front seats of my GMC pickup and both front seats of her Toyota 4Runner and they just stay there all the time. I added little stick on pieces of rubber gasket tape to keep them from rattling against our consoles when there’s no one buckled in the seat.
Your readers should be aware that they don’t fit all vehicles, though. Because the size of the metal insert and the rectangular hole have to be correct. But I guess that’s true of all of them. Toyota and GM evidently use the same size, but I can’t vouch for others.
Man, it is so nice to be rid of that annoying ding, ding, isn’t it?
David, I found it strange that the Tikits are at least claimed to be universal for all makes and models of vehicles and the ones they sent me fit perfectly on the driver and passenger seatbelts even though I didn’t tell them what vehicle I drive. But they don’t fit the middle seat belt. For some reason the interior fastening mechanism is different on the middle seat than on the others – at least in my Ford F-150.
David, I’m curious. Since the extender attached to the receptacle is longer and heavier does it flop over on the seat so that you sit on it when you get in the vehicle? Maybe it depends on which vehicle you’re using it with…
No it doesn’t flop, Ron. It stands straight up out of your existing receptacle. Actually it makes it more convenient because you don’t have to reach down as far between the seat an console to click in the seatbelt. If you go to the 5th product photo of the link I posted and look at the bottom left, you can get a pretty clear idea of what it’s like. You quickly get used to the new buckle/unbuckle location and don’t think about it.
Love it Ron. Don’t have the problem when birding because I walk, but I have to drive just up the street to our mail box and I like to do that short distance without the seat belt, but of course that damn ding ding ding drives me nuts. Will definitely get one of these. Thanks for the tip.
Yesterday had a close encounter for the first time in my outdoor life with a very handsome porcupine. Got some great close up shots and no quills 🙂
“that damn ding ding ding drives me nuts”
Well said, Everett. You get it.
And congrats on the porkie.
Excellent! 😀 Like sticky notes I hope they make a BUNCH of $$ off them tho I’m sure there will be gnashing of teeth in some quarters as they will be used by those who just don’t want to wear them period…..😉
That’s why the warning in my notes, Judy. Not using seat belts at speed is a brainless habit.
Yeh, and some end up “brainless” as a result……😞 Like the looks of the seat belt extender – pricier BUT less dinking around too…….😉
I disabled the alarm in my 4runner, but I’m buying four of those things for rental cars. Fantastic; thanks.
I think you’ll love them Brad.
I had my mechanic disable mine but when I took it in to Toyota for warranty work they fixed it. They said “Did you know your seat belt warning sensor failed? I haven’t seen that before, we fixed it for you.” Thanks……..
Yeah, thanks a lot…
Certainly know the annoyance your are talking about. I have frightened many a bird away because of that noise. I finally found I can keep the lap belt portion on but slide the shoulder part behind me so it doesn’t interfere with positioning myself for photos. For the most part the lap belt doesn’t offer too many problems positioning but this little gadget really looks worthwhile.
Kathy, having the lap belt fastened doesn’t work at all for me because I have to twist my hips in the seat to shoot out the window.
Thanks for that tip! Proves auto maker programmers are not bird photographers ;-o
It sure does.
Thank you! I’ve had the problem, and now I have the solution. I suspect you’ll have many readers who bless you for this one.
Good!
Yesterday I was pretty much bird-skunked so the highlight of my day was not having to listen to that damned alarm.