| Author | Message | ||
     Redscuell |
From time to time I get pm's inquiring about my lowered 'toy' seat; it could also be called a '32 flatfoot' seat, as I have a 32" inseam and can 'flatfoot' the bike around. I'll post a few 'how to' pics here for those who want to 'get lowered':      Tho I'm a leathersmith, nevertheless I'm not an upholsterer and my result isn't of commercial quality. But DAMN it's nice to ride in. The sculpting of the foam, at the rear, 'tells' my bum where I'm positioned along the frame of the bike. It's used on hour-long commutes along twisties and freeways at 100 kph + (won't be saying how much '+'; but I doubt anyone else would be happy with the comfort, despite my having quite a bony bum. (Message edited by redscuell on January 25, 2010) | ||
| Ccryder |
Red: Thanks, this may help a number of people that are vertically challenged. Neil S. | ||
| Tbenson |
Yes, thank you for sharing your ideas! A lower seat serves as a benefit for some for comfort and positioning on their bikes. Troy | ||
| Mtch |
im 5'6" and am almost tiptoe on my CR. i recently bought a new seat, and have cut it down by 1/2" i haven't recovered it yet, but it feels better just sitting on the bike. if i need to take more off i will. the way i did it sounds crazy, but i used a hacksaw blade to cut into the foam at 1/2" intervals using the blade as a depth gauge, then used a belt sander to take the foam off rather than cutting it as i could not get a smooth finish with a knife. its still not perfectly smooth, but when recovered it should look ok. hopefully i can use the original material to recover. | ||
| Redscuell |
". hopefully i can use the original material to recover." If you've taken off such a small amount from the foam, you might be able to. On the other hand, if you can reuse it, then you've not removed enough foam to be worthwhile! Because that huge rise between the legs is what keeps the rider too high in the saddle, and the oem vinyl is moulded to fit it. With my radical surgery it's not possible to use the old cover; too many compound curves in the Buell design. | ||
| Boogiman1981 |
32" inseem and before that you couldnt flat foot it? i guess my legs are longer than i thought. need to go be measured i guess. mine is stock and can be flat'd with sneakers on | ||
| Mtch |
im going to try it anyway and if i want more off will do so. im not bothered about flat footing, as i would have no foam left then at 29" inseam! the Cr does feel very tall compared to my XB12Scg, but not too bad compared to my bmw f800. the shape of the seat is more important for comfort than how much foam there is, but i dont want to just sit on the base, that would be painful. im trying to get the shape similar to my Scg as i find that comfy enough for 600 mile day rides | ||
| Mtch |
well got mine down to a reasonable height without turning it into a plank. about a 2" drop.it feels much more as if i am sat in the bike than before. i know its not a perfect recover, but i want get the shape right before i find someone th recover it.     (Message edited by Mtch on January 28, 2010) | ||
| 1_mike |
As noted in the past..I also had my seat modified. An automotive upholstery shop did the work. I told them what I wanted shape wise...I took a look before it was recovered, had them make some more changes, they called me a coupla days later with a finished seat. I didn't do it to "specifically" lower my butt, I did it to make room for the family jewels. If you've never driven a Japanese sport bike, you can't realize, the Buell seat is terrible for leaning forward on. As the seat just above shows, the front of the seat flows straight down from the air box cover, then to the foam that is somewhat the same thickness from front to back. My seat cover is two sewn together pieces that stay tight to the foam without an adhesive. MUCH more comfortable for the male anatomy. Mike | ||
| Jmr1283 |
im 5'6 also and always hate not being able to flat foot it, but if you think about it how much of your time on the bike are you actually touching the ground with your feet. like a lot people lower there bikes for that reason and i always mention it to them that your affecting the bike as a hole usually in bad way for just 5% of the time in use. but it seems a lot of confidence comes from sitting on the bike with out moving and feeling comfortable. BUT the seat is a different story if i wasnt selling my bike i would probably try that. | ||
| Mtch |
being able to get the feet on the ground without being on tiptoe is not the only reason i cut the seat down, it also makes me feel more sat 'in' the bike rather than on it. that makes riding a better experience. | ||
| Redscuell |
Very nice, mtch; and I agree with your counterpoint of the importance of sitting IN the bike, rather than on it. When my bike was at the dyno shop the other day, a mate of mine rocked up and commented on how 'tall' the bike looked. So we measured up a Ducati 748 that was in the shop: it was 1" LOWER than my R is with the heavily modified seat! So it's certainly no one's imagination that the Buell is tall for a superbike/sportsbike. I've no experience with the XB itself, which is where the seat comes from; but I've had to consider the possibility that, in their effort to use as many existing bits as possible in the production of the R (seat, tail cowl, pillion seat, pillion cowl, much more) they compromised the seating position for the R. "close enough is good enough" is not a worthwhile goal in industrial design. I speak from decades of commercial experience. | ||
| Redscuell |
" I did it to make room for the family jewels." A lot of wisdom in that remark, 1mike. I cut the seat of my very first motorbike, with a pocket JUST for the jewels. Maybe that's the answer: that's why some say the oem seat is just fine the way it is -- no balls!  | ||
| Mtch |
i haven't had the chance to ride since i cut the seat down due to s!77y weather and sh!77y work. but just sitting on the bike feels a lot better. i might even take more foam out after a few rides, maybe to create a 'bum scoop' ala Redscuell. there is at least an 1 1/4" of foam at the back. the right shape is more important than the amount of foam. | ||
| Fresnobuell |
So it's certainly no one's imagination that the Buell is tall for a superbike/sportsbike. Sorry, but that's misinformation plain and simple. Stop trying to justify your massacre of the stock seat with lies please. | ||
| Froggy |
1125r has a stock seat hight of 31.9" (Buell.com, Unladen) 2009 GSXR1000 is 31.9", not listed if unladen or not. (http://www.suzukicycles.com/Product%20Lines/Cycles /Products/GSX-R1000/2009/GSXR1000.aspx) 2010 Yamaha R1 32.8", again not listed if unladen (http://www.yamaha-motor.com/sport/products/modelsp ecs/6/0/specs.aspx) According to this chart The 1125R is the same as: 31.9 2006 BMW R1200 ST 31.9 2006 Honda CBR600F4i 31.9 2006 Suzuki DR200SE 31.9 2006 Suzuki GSX-R1000 31.9 2006 Suzuki GSX-R750 31.9 2006 Suzuki GSX-R600 Some taller sportbikes: 32.3 2006 Honda CBR600RR 32.3 2006 Honda CBR1000RR 32.3 2006 Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R 32.3 2006 Yamaha YZF-R6S 32.5 2006 Honda RC51 But the 1125 does have a higher seat hight than any other non-Uly Buell. I have had co-workers sit on my CR and comment on how tall it feels, it is possible the shape of the seat has something to do with that. | ||
| Westmoorenerd |
I find it hard to believe some of those numbers....my coworker has a ZX-6R, and while I still can't flat foot it, I'm closer than on the Buell... | ||
| Froggy |
Suspension settings are a factor, also the shape of the seat. | ||
| Westmoorenerd |
True, true...the only bike that I find comparable in seat height to the 1125 (in my experience) is an R6, those things are high up too... | ||
| Mikellyjo |
When comparing bike seats we are again comparing apples to oranges. Whether you like Reds bed side manner or not, you have to give him credit for his thoroughness. His engineering background/mindset definitely shines through. Red, Froggy and the others who have mentioned seat shape have hit the nail on the head. How else could reducing the stock foam to 15mm in height reduce the overall height of the bike 3". The only way is to get your wedding tackle closer to the air box and bring your knees in with them. It's a shame that the first thing people say on this forum are that you are wrong in your data, but can't bring any creditable data to the table themselves.   | ||
| Redscuell |
"It's a shame that the first thing people say on this forum are that you are wrong in your data, but can't bring any creditable data to the table themselves. " Mmmm, I admit my bedside manner is non-existent. And I agree that my contributions should outweigh my lack of tact. Thankfully where I work, they do! Thanks for your acknowledgment. | ||
| Fresnobuell |
Well, I'll also call BS on the 3" lowering claim. Please tell us how you can lower the seat using the stock seat pan when there isn't even 3" of foam to eliminate. Magic? Also, to Mickjo--if you referring as scientific the comparison of Red's bike to a Ducati 748, well that's about as scientific as my ass on multitudes of different sportbikes at the IMS. My scientific conclusion is that the 1125r is in line with other bike in its class. If it need to be repeated, sportbikes are tall for a reason...ground clearance for steep lean angles. Besides, didn't this abnormally tall bike feel awkward on the pre-purchase inspection and/or test ride? | ||
| Jotrevza |
He said "wedding-tackle"......  Hey I was wondering if anyone has tried out the Corbin 1125R seat yet? While I'm not necessarily a big fan of Corbin, I'm wondering if there's much of a difference (if any) between the XB seat, and the dedicated 1125 seat that recently came out? The original seat seems wide and squared-off, which makes reaching the ground even more fun. Thanx for any info. Tracy | ||
| Mikellyjo |
Sigh... I never mentioned scientific. To me science is followed by fiction and engineering is followed by errors. I only know one scientific fact... Before science was invented it was once believed that autumn occurred when Chuck Norris roundhouse kicked every tree in existence. I misspoke in my last post when I said it changed the overall height of the bike. It actually changed just the perceived height of the bike because it appears to bring the legs in closer than stock. Even red admits he only brought the seat down to 15mm. So Fresno, even your ass on magnitudes of different sport bikes at the IMS would feel a perceived difference in seat height. Agreed, in stock form it is in line with most every bike of the same class, no argument there. In response to feeling awkward...I would ask red, but he probably would...wait for it...wait for it...agree with you. When my wife bought her Firebolt this fall she thought is was a bit awkward also, but that feeling can be mitigated with thick socks and KISS boots. But she still bought knowing that we could always make it fit a bit better with a few mods after the fact. Awkward didn't stop her from buying a sexy beast...and she is 5'8". Can we all just get along, or is this forum really just a MMA cage match where the last man standing wins? | ||
| Redscuell |
"In response to feeling awkward...I would ask red, but he probably would...wait for it...wait for it...agree with you. " Mike, you obviously haven't been paying attention over the past year; Fresno and I agree on NOTHING. In fact, more than one of us are agreeing that the seat's quite high; and you can see that's not fresno's 'position' (you should pardon the pun). Don't take fresno's diatribes too seriously; and certainly don't take them personally. Fresno is an equal opportunity offender and attacks everyone -- though never before claiming 'science' as a basis!!! I don't see any science in the comment at all. Anyway, I actually used a (quasi) scientific method of quantifying my gripe with the seat: I measured the frame with no seat (29.5"), with the bare seat shell (30.5"), my V2 seat (31.0") and the oem seat (33.0"). My methodology was to stand the bike vertically, position a marked board vertically to the r/h side of the bike, and position a metal builder's square across the seat and against the marked board. For a reference point, because the bare frame itself doesn't provide a natural choice (it slopes downwards continuously towards the airbox) I chose to use the lowest measured point on the bare seat shell. That turns out to be just ahead of the cowl screws in the frame; so I marked the seats accordingly. How does the Buell seat fare so badly? Have a look at the typical superbike seat, and it tends to be a flat shelf;  but Buell's has a great lump of foam in the crotch area. Measure it, fresno, it's 3"; though I'll admit that my own seat is just 2" lower in that spot; but 2.5" lower a bit further back. PLUS: we have to take the maker's claimed seat height with a grain of salt (like all their specs including rwhp), because that's the way they give it to us: Buell's site said (mine's from 08): footnote 6 - 'laden, wet configuration (design rider, all fluids). MY MEASUREMENTS WERE TAKEN WITHOUT A RIDER, but with all fluids. I suppose that a design organisation such as HFES (I'm a member) may have standards for the 'design rider', but otherwise I don't feel having a measurement with a rider to be very useful. Which is neither here nor there; the exercise is about the DIFFERENCE (the 'delta') among the seat measurements, which were all taken in the same way and under the same conditions and at the same time. Now the references: bike on level ground, disposed vertically, carrying no weight (e.g., rider) but with all fluids including full tank. Oem tyres with 1/3 tread @ 32-34 psi, suspension settings for 77-86 kg rider (09 owners manual pp 101). | ||
| Blackflash |
Looks to be a good mod for shorter people.I'm 5-11 so its not needed for me.But i can see where you could loose 2.5 to 3" with mod.the seat is steeper by taking the side material off which makes it not so wide and lets you legs drop .Fresno leave this guy alone.Ive read your remarks on this guy all the time.Ya he made a bad statement about seat heights on other bikes.Ya he did but I'm sure he don't want people cutting their seats up and ruining them. | ||
| Fresnobuell |
If you want a real ball cruncher, that pic of the 1198 is perfect. It might be flat, but the angle will have the jewels impacting the tank in no time and in much more severity than the horizontal R seat. |
