After Market Seat

[Marooncobra]

Hi

 

Are after market seats like the Sargent and Corbin really worth the $500+ price tag? I have just completed a 200km non stop ride on the highway on my standard 2002 6th gen seat and to be quite honest the last 50 km was painful. Normal local rides are fine but I wasn’t expecting the numb bum feel after 2 hours in the seat noting it’s meant to be a sports tourer. It may be that as there were no real turns to lean into over this time and basically being static in the saddle it is the norm?

 

Are there any cheaper alternatives? Has anyone reworked their own original seat with new foam which has worked for them?

 

cheers

 

 

[Sweeper]

I have had Corbin and currently have Sargent seat on my 6th gens. The Corbin was always like a nicely shaped wooden chair. It felt great when you sat down and thirty minutes later you were ready to get up. It was bad enough that I went back to stock. My current came with the Sargent and so far I have stayed with it. For what they cost, I would find a good upholstery shop and have the stock reshaped to suit you.  There are some aftermarket cover kits for 6th gens but I can't remember names.  Good luck with your search.

[Cogswell]

I bought a Sargent and found it for me to be no better than stock and in some ways worse.  I had it modded by a local shop and it's maybe better for me, but still not really what I wanted.  The "bottom" line is that no 2 bottoms are the same - so you can't really tell until you spend significant hours on it. Also, a truly comfortable seat may look like it came off a recliner, so there might be a compromise between comfort and the lines of the bike if that's important. 

 

I have seen some use this service, but have no direct experience with it.

 

http://www.greatdaytoride.com/gallery.html

 

If I had it to do over, I'd have the stock seat modded - but I'd want to do some "on site" research to completely understand what they intend to do before laying out cash.  At that, there's still no telling what the outcome will be before you ride it. 

[Marvelicious]

4 hours ago, Cogswell said:

I bought a Sargent and found it for me to be no better than stock and in some ways worse.  I had it modded by a local shop and it's maybe better for me, but still not really what I wanted.  The "bottom" line is that no 2 bottoms are the same - so you can't really tell until you spend significant hours on it. Also, a truly comfortable seat may look like it came off a recliner, so there might be a compromise between comfort and the lines of the bike if that's important. 

 

I have seen some use this service, but have no direct experience with it.

 

http://www.greatdaytoride.com/gallery.html

 

If I had it to do over, I'd have the stock seat modded - but I'd want to do some "on site" research to completely understand what they intend to do before laying out cash.  At that, there's still no telling what the outcome will be before you ride it. 

My bike came with a Sargent and an unused stock seat. I did find the Sargent to be better in the same way that a 2nd degree burn is better than a 3rd degree burn... neither one is comfortable. I did my own re-shape of the stock seat and overall I'm quite happy. There are a couple of adjustments I'll probably make at some point, but my seat isn't usually the limiting factor on travel time these days. 

[Sweeper]

Being of the 60+ age group, my ass is the limiting factor in my rides. I’ve lost so much meat that I can’t sit long on anything.
After consulting my Doc, the current method to a good days ride is two Alieve before I ride. Works great!


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[Marvelicious]

57 minutes ago, Sweeper said:

Being of the 60+ age group, my ass is the limiting factor in my rides. I’ve lost so much meat that I can’t sit long on anything.
After consulting my Doc, the current method to a good days ride is two Alieve before I ride. Works great!

Aleive... whew... I'd rather deal with a sore ass! That stuff just turns into napalm in my stomach.

[Sweeper]

Aleive... whew... I'd rather deal with a sore ass! That stuff just turns into napalm in my stomach.

If you don’t eat when you take it, it can be rough. I take two at breakfast and no trouble.


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[Montrealer2005]

Hi  

Are after market seats like the Sargent and Corbin really worth the $500+ price tag? I have just completed a 200km non stop ride on the highway on my standard 2002 6th gen seat and to be quite honest the last 50 km was painful. Normal local rides are fine but I wasn’t expecting the numb bum feel after 2 hours in the seat noting it’s meant to be a sports tourer. It may be that as there were no real turns to lean into over this time and basically being static in the saddle it is the norm?

 

Are there any cheaper alternatives? Has anyone reworked their own original seat with new foam which has worked for them?

 

cheers

 

 

 

Marooncobra, like you I also have a 2002 VFR, and have put up with the stock seat for 17 years.  Short rides, no problem.  But long rides, it can get uncomfortable.   Today I just got a Sargent seat, have not tried it out yet.  First looks:  it looks like a recliner compared to the racy stock seat.  Due my OCD , I’m not too crazy about the seams where dirt can get trapped.  Will let you know in about a week how comfortable it is.  

Cheers!

 

 

[dozyproductions]

I had a Corbin smuggler seat on my last bike. Rode 6 hours at a time and still had a non sore ass. Don't know how the smuggler seat compares to their regular offering though. I have also been looking into replacing the stock seat for next years riding season. Have you ever thought of doing your own custom thing? 

Watch this video:
 

Yes, the guy in the video does this for a living but you could get away with doing something a bit simpler to improve the cush to your tush. I my not shave the seat down to the plastic but there are others who cut out square/rectangular sections and add a low/high density memory foam combo inside the cutout. You can buy really good seat covers for cheap to finish it off. 


Here is a video for that 'simpler' process.

youtube.com/watch?v=og0raStEtF4