Author Topic: Taking A Stock Seat And Transforming It Into Something Else  (Read 4593 times)

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cafeman

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After considering one of the Hitchcocks English dual seats or one of the pillow seats, I decided to see if I could modify the ugly (IMO) stock seat into something that at least resembles a smidge of attractive looks and style but more importantly, allow my wife to enjoy a longer ride. We tried the matching Lepera 5"x10" pillion pad to go with the solo seat already on it but that thing is only for looks and perhaps one butt cheek at best! ;D (and my wife is petite)
So last week I removed the stock seat cover, carefully used a putty knife to remove the foam from the pan. (The foam was glued on the outer perimeter, so it was quite easy) Then after consideration, I determined where to cut, grind, and weld the pan, and used an electric carving knife, and a long handled rasp to reshape the foam to a shape I thought looked right, all the while trying to retain the flow of the lines of the bike. I came to the conclusion that it was going to have a step vs. a flatter seating surface. I wanted the seat to be slim rather than thick or have a big hole below where you sit.  This is what I came up with, just need to decide on what style of piping to go with.
Here's the stock item, along with the seat re-configured prior to covering:
« Last Edit: April 21, 2013, 12:45:09 pm by cafeman »


cafeman

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Reworked
« Last Edit: April 20, 2013, 05:29:57 pm by cafeman »


cafeman

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More


cafeman

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And Some More.....


cafeman

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Can't decide on the piping. Either of these would look good. One follows the rear edge briefly then swoops down, maybe something similar to the Hitchcock's that follows the edge longer, or Goldstar and similar style that runs at the whole top.


ace.cafe

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Kind of a personal styling choice on that piping. I can't decide which one I like best. They both look good.

Cool project!
Home of the Fireball 535 !


cafeman

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I figured why not see if I can reuse the original seat cover just to see how it all looks. I had to trim quite a bit off the nose, but I got it tight all the way around. Then for kicks I masked off the seat and used white plastic paint to spray over the black piping. As I already had the tools and supplies on the shelf, it really didn't cost me anything! BUT, there is a lot of time in it.......I may send it off to Sargent to have a nice leather cover made for it. But for now, I guess it looks decent enough.


mrunderhill1975a

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I really like what you have done.  Perhaps you can make a few more and go into business.


cafeman

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Hmmm.......would have to think about that! I'm sure there are others who have done similar and, most aftermarket seats are based on the stock pan I believe?  There are a lot of stock seats that have been taken off these bikes to be replaced by something else, and either put up in the garage never to be used again or even tossed in the trash. You see a few on Ebay at any given time (and usually well over $100+) They can be fashioned into something usable with a little time and patience though. If we're talking about $300 for that English dual seat, re-working the stock one for next to nothing seems a viable option. Will have to see how it feels though, but for basically free my butt will learn to like it regardless! ;)


ace.cafe

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Reply #9 on: April 21, 2013, 12:54:09 pm
Big improvement!
Home of the Fireball 535 !


mrunderhill1975a

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Reply #10 on: April 21, 2013, 05:40:39 pm
I hear you, a cheap source of raw materials is always the biggest obstacle. 

One observation, if you could find a way to shorten the forward bolt brackets, it would help the line of the seat match the curve of the fuel tank.  I suppose it would require some fairly close tolerance of cutting and welding.  Just an observation.


cafeman

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Reply #11 on: April 21, 2013, 07:41:06 pm
 I've been looking at that from various angles. From some angles it looks fine, but from a parallel side view I agree. I actually thought of cutting and making the front mounts shorter, but there is about a quarter of an inch clearance between the seat pan and the top of the fender and that would still not be enough to lower it to a good level. The other option I considered, and may still do is make a small wedge cut on the sides of the pan just in front of the brackets, gently bend the seat down and then reweld it. That would put it at a perfect angle I think. Just have to tear it apart beforehand.....in time I suppose. Good observation though ;)


single

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Reply #12 on: April 23, 2013, 02:49:06 am
This is really cool.


cafeman

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Reply #13 on: April 28, 2013, 01:35:40 am
So I removed the seat and simply gently bent down the front portion. It didn't take much effort, and I put a thin piece of rubber between the bottom of the seat pan and the front frame mount. It now sits firmly in place front, middle, and rear. The front is as low as it can go. I think I'll leave it as is for now and worry about better foam and leather covering for later.  8)


mrunderhill1975a

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Reply #14 on: April 28, 2013, 04:15:58 am
I like it.