5th seat mod-M5

[Maulem4]

Has anyone done the "5th seat mod" on an M5?

[TimB]

Didn't think there was one as the M7 that has the 5th seat the baggage floor is pushed back 3" and the upper longerons are pushed up 3 " for the 5th seat and has a larger passenger & baggage door.

[Andy Young]

Hmmm….
I know that was available on a few M-6 serial numbers. As far as I know those would have had the same fuselage dimensions as the M-5.

[Maulem4]

It's on the maule mod index on their website. I think it's #8 on the list for all the M5s. I actually called and talked to Bruce over at Maule about it. I've never heard of anyone doing it, so I wanted to make sure it was a real thing...It sounds like quite the project!

[yanknbank]

I can't imagine the utility of that seat. The only way the cg works is if you have 3 kids under 100lbs and don't need any baggage.

[Kirk]

Hard to picture that small a space being useful for any but the smallest of humans. Then there’s the window issue adding to complexity or misery without.

If the back seat occupants are all going to be kids, I wonder if switching to a single lap belt for 3 occupants would be an option. M4s and maybe early M5s had a single belt in the rear seat. Not the safest without shoulder harnesses but perhaps those could be added also.

The little rascals grow fast though, so they might be too large before you ever get the project completed!

Kirk

[Andy Young]

Some (maybe all?) M-6s originally came with the single seat belt in the rear. There is a kit to change it to two belts.

[Hinterland]

I have pursued the 5th seat STC for my M5 because I have 4 small children. Attached to this are the tech drawings I received from Maule. The seat bottom frame can be purchased from Maule. The rear bulkhead doubles as the seat back. The image below shows the welding points on the M5/M6 frame.

So far I haven't found a welder willing to take on the work without cutting the fabric. Evidently some of the welds are too close the the Razorback fabric without causing overheating or being able to access the backside of the weld joint.