Several seat questions

[Mongrel]

My K75 seat has been developing a crack for a few years now. Well, it's finally reached the point where it'll be splitting soon. My problems are threefold:

1) I need to figure out for sure what seat I even have.
2) What (if any) temporary repairs would be best.
3) What's the best long-term solution - recover or all-new seat?

Here are some pictures:







For the first problem, I think it may be a factory "custom comfort" seat, but it COULD also be a really old Corbin seat. It's vinyl and not leather and I BELIEVE the seat pan is an original BMW seat pan. If I need to buy a new one or send this away (hopefully neither) then I need to know what I'm trying to match!

For the second, I'm not sure what might work as a temporary fix. Has anyone used those vinyl repair kits? Are they useless crap (like iron-on clothes patches) or should they work okay. Is there a specific brand that isn't terrible? I went down to the local auto place and the only kit they had didn't even have any vinyl in it (a two-part glue kit, probably an epoxy)!

For the third, I could probably take the seat off and have it recovered locally, but I've never done that previously, so I don't know if this is something that people mess up a lot and should be done by a pro or someone familiar with this specific seat... or if any motorbike reupholsterer should be able to handle the job. That might sound a bit much, but it's fairly important to me to get the same shape seat back as I send/give away, because I'm one of those goons that always has a devil of a time finding stuff that fits and this seat fits pretty well. 

Thanks!

[Scott_]

from the underside shot, it looks like a stock bmw seat pan. if it were me id check with a local upholstry shop about having it recovered.

[Mongrel]

A little further research seems to confirm that it is indeed a factory-upgrade "Comfort seat", as suspected.

Now I just need to figure what the best fix is here.

[K75RT Keith]

Vinyl repair kits will work but, it won't be long before your crack reappears.  A local upholstery should be able to hook you up with a reasonable repair or recover.  The question is, how comfortable do you find that seat and how far do you ride in a year.   If you're covering a lot of ground and find your behind can't wait to get off the seat, think about a custom seat.  If you're happy with it, the go for a recover. 

Seats are subjective.  I swear at Corbin seats,  others swear by them.  I'm a fan of Russell and Mayer.  Others on this board will tell you they're the worst seats ever made.  Frankly the best seat is the one your bum likes.  Doesn't matter what the price, if you're sitting on it and you're bum screams after an hour Let Me Off!!! it's the wrong seat for you.   Everyone and anyone else's opinion is irrelevant to your comfort.

[Mongrel]

Ah, but the problem there is trying various seats without paying $700 (or more!) for the privilege of doing so.

This seat's a little hard, but it's not too bad and is the right shape. It only gets bad after about 5 hours of driving or so and even then it's not really horrible (the seat's hard enough that the ole' underwear has started to bite into my butt by then).

[Scott_]

There is more to the 'long distance' riding equation than just the seat.
Your riding posture on the bike, the gear you wear, clothing under the gear, your physical body structure, your muscular fitness, just to name a few.
I started with a stock comfort seat, then I got a Corbin and really liked it till I picked up a Russell. Now the Russell is my preference for long distances. I've since sold 2 of my 3 Corbins and planning on having one of my Russells recovered.
Like what was posted above, opinions are just that and everyone has one......

[BobZ(IL)]

I have a couple of splits similar to yours and cover them with a couple of strips of black electrical tape. If mine were to totally bust open, I would have to get it recovered. But until then, I choose to keep riding.

[Mongrel]

There is more to the 'long distance' riding equation than just the seat.
Your riding posture on the bike, the gear you wear, clothing under the gear, your physical body structure, your muscular fitness, just to name a few.
I started with a stock comfort seat, then I got a Corbin and really liked it till I picked up a Russell. Now the Russell is my preference for long distances. I've since sold 2 of my 3 Corbins and planning on having one of my Russells recovered.
Like what was posted above, opinions are just that and everyone has one......

I may have not explained myself well here.

Corbins and Russells are nice seats, but as mentioned they are only a part of the equation and it is ultimately a matter of personal comfort/opinion.

Since purchasing several Russell and/or Corbin solely to try and see what I like best would be too costly for me, I am looking to best preserve or repair what I do have now and which I know works reasonably well.

[atarifan2600]

What seat options were there across the Ks, and how different were they from model to model?

I'm guessing there's stock, comfort, and low in the BMW line. 

Then there's an OEM Corbin option, which sseems to be a seat that doesn't quite line up with anything that Corbin currently offers-
The seat I have lacks any color coordinated piping, and it's got a map pocket on the back of the backrest.
My seat has mounting hardware for a back rest for both the rider and passenger. (each is an option if you order a new Corbin)
My bike is missing "corbin tags" where the backrest would insert- I'm not sure if those exist on newer models, and act as 'rain deflectors' over an uncovered back-rest hardware hole.
It seems to have a "unique" seat-cover material, per corbin- not the leather they trumpet as the best saddle material available.
I _think_ this seat is a Canyon Sport, but obviously not one you can order from Corbin directly.
It appears that there's also a Canyon Dual Sport, but an option also exists for a Dual-Tour, also with the same non-corbin-leather variety.

I guess my question is, how many stock variations are there within the Corbin Line-  Mine's got a tear in it that I'm willing to live with, but wouldn't mind fixing.

I'd spring the ridiculous $$$ money for a recover, as I think the seat is really comfortable for a day trip- my 'sit bones' don't get anguished at all.
What ends up causing me pain after a full day is that it feels like I'm sitting on rails- my inner-mid thigh is in pain from the contact point where the edge of the seat tapers off.

I'm not convinced that gel, sheepskin, or whatever would be the fix-  or if I'd want to live with their appearance on the bike.
Do other riders experience that same issue, oand is there a different seat to 'fix' that?  It is hard to justify sprinign for a new seat, given the costs involved, and the fact that the issues only surface after a really hard day of riding in a saddle-  a quick test sit (if it was even available!) doesn't begin to do the ride justice.

[johnny]

greetings mongrel...

i would keep an eye on http://rickmayercycle.com/

right now his $500 dual motobrick saddle is $400... when i scored my rick mayer it was 50% off... ordered it in november and got it in february... he generally runs a 50% off sale around the usa holiday season...

if you go this way you will have a new custom to you seat for about $300 with shipping...

if i wasnt gonna go that what i would score one of some of that thin moto seat memory foam... take the seat and the memory foam to a local boat / rv seat upholster... have them glue and trim there memory foam to the existing foam...  and have them make a seat cover...

thats also gonna cost you about $300...

j o

[johnny]

greetings atarifan2600...

there is nothing you can do to fix that corbin... i would sell it and get a custom russell or mayer... they will get it right... that thigh pinch can cause all kinds of problems with legs knees feet...

j o

[roninvt]

I agree with Johnny regarding the Rick Mayer seat.  Mine arrived in early July. I have put 10000 miles on it and my butt and inner thighs have no complaints.  It did raise me up a bit which took some getting used to. 

[atarifan2600]

The Rick Mayer seat intrigues me, but I've got a 'problem'- I need to buy a new seat in order to provide a seat pan that Rick can work with.
"• I won't build on aftermarket seats - so no Corbin™ or Sargeant™ saddles. "

For the Mayer to be an option, I'd have to find a DIRT CHEAP stock seat that I could send off- - and that the base foam on that seat has to meet his requirements:
"We do need the stock foam even though we do not use most of it. The portion of the stock foam that contacts the pan is intricately molded and very time consuming to duplicate. The stock cover, on the other hand, is of no value and if you wish to keep it you may remove it and do so."


That makes the math on the project a lot sketchier.  I'd have to be able to swap my Corbin (with tear) out for a stock seat without taking too much of a bath- and then pay to get the stock seat converted to a custom seat.

Vs paying $$$ to get the corbin recovered-  but still have the inner thigh issue.  That only comes into play a few times a year, unfortunately-  working stiff with a family means I don't get to spend as much time out on the multi-day trips as I'd like!

(Sorry for hijacking this thread!)

[wmax351]

Vinyl repair kits will work but, it won't be long before your crack reappears.  A local upholstery should be able to hook you up with a reasonable repair or recover.  The question is, how comfortable do you find that seat and how far do you ride in a year.   If you're covering a lot of ground and find your behind can't wait to get off the seat, think about a custom seat.  If you're happy with it, the go for a recover. 

Seats are subjective.  I swear at Corbin seats,  others swear by them.  I'm a fan of Russell and Mayer.  Others on this board will tell you they're the worst seats ever made.  Frankly the best seat is the one your bum likes.  Doesn't matter what the price, if you're sitting on it and you're bum screams after an hour Let Me Off!!! it's the wrong seat for you.   Everyone and anyone else's opinion is irrelevant to your comfort.

You could consider reading up and doing the repair yourself. I've considered this as well, and did this with my car seats. A lot of upholstery stuff isn't too hard, and the materials are fairly cheap (especially on a motorcycle seat) so trial and error is okay.


Though if you took this to a good car upholstery place, they could fix it too.

[roninvt]

Hey artarifan 2600,  I just bought a beater seat off eBay for $35 and used that as the pan for my Rick Mayer seat.  That way I could keep riding my bike while Rick made my seat and I had a spare if it needed to be tweaked. 

[Mongrel]

It did raise me up a bit which took some getting used to.

Ooof, that would be bad news for me. I'm not a tall guy by any means and getting used to the bike's current height took a while as it is. Taller would be an absolute no-go as I already can't plant both feet flat on the ground (close, but not quite) with the stock comfort seat. That's one of the reasons those bigger, fatter custom seats are not for me.

Some good ideas otherwise. Got some local repair places I can check out too for a repair or recover. 

[Motorhobo]

You could try Rich's Custom Upholstery in Seattle.

http://richscustomupholstery.com/cart/

He made a custom seat for me using my stock k75 low seat. He might be able to just re-cover the existing foam and put a gel pack in there. He knows BMW seats, has been doing them for Northwest dealer customers for two decades at least. He can also build up the upholstery to give some extra height to the seat, which can make a difference for tall guys on a k75. I've had my leather seat from Rich for close to a decade and despite my being not so good with maintenance it's still hangin' in there.

Van A

[subforry]

I have see a good but ugly fix by sowing lightly to keep it from opening but not creating a ridge, then some shoe goo to seal.  I think the important part of any fix is to prevent water from getting to the foam and rusting out the seat pan.

[roninvt]

My K75's seat pan is rust-proof plastic.  No problems me with rain or pizz :blackcloud:

[pdg]

Nobody else seriously thought about recovering the seat themselves? It's not a hard job, very cheap to do too. Doing mine cost me less than a beer (here anyway) and took about an hour next to the tv... I used glue to attach the vinyl to the pan rather than staples.

Before:



After:



Heating the vinyl a bit can help (hairdryer is plenty of heat) although I didn't need to. I used the cheapest vinyl sheet I could find reasoning if I have to do fairly regularly it's not a cost issue and it's holding up well considering the bike is used and lives outside, uncovered, all year, whatever the weather. Better material would obviously last even longer.

If you wanted to change the shape that shouldn't be an issue either, things like gel pads and foam is pretty easy to source.

[roninvt]

Wow man,  nice job!!

[Mongrel]

Wow, nice job, yeah!

I think I have a line on some good local guys who'll come quite cheap (many thanks to rbm), so we'll see! Thanks for all the suggestions. 

[Grim]

If you look on eBay there is a company out of canada making covers for around $50 shipped.

[rbm]

Are those covers for the OEM comfort seat, or the stock flat seat Grim?  The comfort seat is curvier and would require sewn panelling to make the cover conform.  Installation is slightly trickier on the comfort seat because glue would be required for the seating area.  A pro upholster coming in at a competative price would be worth avoiding the hassle of DIY.  It's another matter if the objective is to gain experience in upholstering.

[Grim]

They have multiple styles. And there are other companies that do the same for about the same price

http://stores.ebay.com/NW-Classic-Motorcycle-Seat-Covers/BMW-K-series-/_i.html?_fsub=5426545015&_sid=48408105&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322