Another Seat Mod, $20 and an hour or two, for comfort.

[mr. softie]

Well, it has been a while since I modded my saddle the latest time but I wanted to test it well before I posted this how-to.

After suffering on any ride of more than 20 miles or so I decided to try fixing the saddle. The fix had to be cheap and easy. I tried a couple of things with fair success but felt I could improve my results by making a few changes. I am now comfortable on all day rides (6-10 hrs in saddle). I still have to take a break now and again but can easily go 175-200 miles at a stretch before stopping for fuel, with no real discomfort.

The mod is really simple but you do need a few tools:



http://www.postimage.org/aV1yA6Jr.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1yA6Jr)



Here are the materials I used: A $7 camping mat from K Mart and some marine vinyl and chair foam from Jo Anne fabrics. Total spent about $20.

http://www.postimage.org/aV1yAgI0.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1yAgI0)
The hardest part is starting. First remove all the staples from the underside of the saddle. I started them out with a knife and finished with the screwdriver and a needle nose plier.

Take off the stock vinyl and save in case you want to go stock at some point in the future. Also lift the stock foam off and save it. I cut some of the "bumps" off the bottom of the foam.

I then cut the blue foam camping mat into a series of shapes and used them to level out the seat pan. I felt a lot of my discomfort was due to the shape of the pan. Try sitting on just the pan and you will understand why the stock saddle is uncomfortable when the foam compresses.

These pics show the process, I used a staple or two to hold each piece of mat in place:


http://www.postimage.org/gx1lUOe9.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=gx1lUOe9)
The bare seat pan
http://www.postimage.org/gx1lUTdr.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=gx1lUTdr)
first pad
http://www.postimage.org/aV1yBq29.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1yBq29)
second pad
http://www.postimage.org/gx1lU_HS.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=gx1lU_HS)
third pad- see a trend?
http://www.postimage.org/Pq1zdHdi.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1zdHdi)
fourth pad
http://www.postimage.org/gx1lV2c0.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=gx1lV2c0)
Top pad to even things out and pad that damn "hump" a little.


I cut away some "bumps" off the bottom of the stock foam:

http://www.postimage.org/aV1yBOZA.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1yBOZA)
Here are some pics of the stacked mat. Front:
http://www.postimage.org/aV1yBYY9.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1yBYY9)
And side:
http://www.postimage.org/Pq1zek7A.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1zek7A)

Then I placed the stock foam on top of the padded seat pan, and placed the whole thing upside down on the new vinyl. I cut some 2"x2"x12" strips from the chair pad to help even the seat out mainly for looks.

http://www.postimage.org/aV1yD7ii.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1yD7ii)
It helps to start the staples at the front and back first, the sides next, and to kneel on the seat pan while stapling. Trim the vinyl as you go.

http://www.postimage.org/Pq1zg1nJ.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1zg1nJ)

Here are some pics of the finished seat mod. It adds about an inch to the height of the saddle, a bit to the width, and a ton to the comfort. I think it works very well on the straights and is better than stock while cornering. It also gets rid of those buttons!

http://www.postimage.org/aV1yEbE9.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1yEbE9)

http://www.postimage.org/gx1lXfT0.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=gx1lXfT0)

http://www.postimage.org/gx1lXin9.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=gx1lXin9)

http://www.postimage.org/Pq1zgRLJ.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1zgRLJ)

http://www.postimage.org/aV1yEj7A.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1yEj7A)

The whole mod took about an hour once I got started.


http://www.postimage.org/Pq1zhnbA.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=Pq1zhnbA)

http://www.postimage.org/aV1yEX1S.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1yEX1S)

Mr Softies GZ250. Ready for the long haul :2tup:

[jonathan180iq]

Very nice work. A soft, fluffly seat for Mr. Softie.

[mr. softie]

This one feels fairly firm and doesn't bottom out. My previous mod was all poofy and soft but would bottom out after an hour or so. There is just enough rise at the back of the saddle to keep me from sliding back under the awesome acceleration of the GZ!

[theneanderthal]

Nice mod bud! :2tup:

Lord knows the stock seat bites my butt. I also have the pillion seat and sissy bar so
I guess they both need padded out to sorta match each other. The only thing that rides on the pillion is my back pack which double as a passenger back rest when its loaded up and on board.

[mr. softie]

Thanks!

2 weeks ago I rode 420 miles in just over 8 hours and my rear didn't hurt. I have a few other ideas for increasing comfort. I would like to have more foot positions... maybe some long floorboards and a set of highway pegs. I am also pondering a full fairing to reduce drag and increase gas mileage.

Craig Vetter as some cool ideas on his website, using small bikes as touring bikes by adding a fairing and raising the gearing. Very cool. I am not planning on getting anywhere near as radical as him, but I have some ideas

http://www.craigvetter.com/pages/Motorcycle_Designs/Streamliner.html


http://www.postimage.org/aV1FMmRr.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1FMmRr)


He also has a very cool scooter...



http://www.postimage.org/gx1sFRUr.jpg (http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=gx1sFRUr)