An age-old problem; How can I reach the ground, Mama?

[scooter78666]

I am interested in anyone's first-hand experience in getting a stock motorcycle seat modified for a lower seat height! NOT for comfort, nor for style....just for a LOWER SEAT HEIGHT!

I have posted about this need in other cycle forums which I belong to, specifically in the Yamaha FJR forums and the Honda ST1300 forums. I am not one-whit interested in other people's experience in style or comfort....only in seat height.

I am 5' 8" tall, with a 29-inch inseam. My Harley seat is fine! Noooo problem. But my new Yamaha FJR1300 IS TOO TALL for this little man. I have already bought myself some thick-soled boots. They do help, but not enough to completely avoid me 'tippy-toeing' around with my 600-odd lb Baby! It is no fun contemplating trying to pick up my Baby from a low-speed drop in a service station driveway, for example.

With that long foreword, would ANYONE 'out there' who has had a seat modified, rebuilt, or customized FOR SEAT HEIGHT REDUCTION, be so generous as to post here your information. Mainly, who did the seat mods for you? Did they achieve a lower seat height? and any other observations you might wish to share.

Thank you for helping me,
scooter78666
San Marcos, Texas http://i25.tinypic.com/fmihg.jpg

[h2000fb]

First, you will never get to a Harley's seat height. If that is what you are trying to do, don't waste your time. I hear of people all the time leaving cruisers and complaining they can't "flat foot it" on other bikes.

You can have your seat lowered by several after market rebuilders, but more than likely you can get the same done locally for much less $$$. Expect a more firm foam due to less space between the seat surface and seat pan. However, don't expect more that approx 1 to 1 1/2 inches at most. After that, learn to live with the height. If you can get the balls of your feet on the ground, its all you can hope for.

[pkiser]

JackinTexas is having his ZZR1200 seat reworked by these folks...

http://www.roberticustoms.com/

I rode down to Houston this weekend with Jack and met the owner. Nice guy! You might talk to Jack once his seat is finished.

pk

[Hemibee]

We used to have a man here in Conroe that was real good at it until he was murdered so I guess that won't help but you might look to one of his counterparts. Several of us noticed that some of the area shoe repair shops had some really good craftsmen (sorry at that time the ones I knew about were all male) doing shoe and boot repair. As we talked to one of them (the one mentioned above) he said look for a good shoe repair shop with a worker that saddle making experience. So that's what we did for a couple of custom bikes, carried the old seat to the shoe/boot repair shop, told him what we wanted and asked what he could do. What we got was some truely custom work cheap and the lowered seat height we were looking for.

May not work with the seat you are looking at shaving/lowering but it's worth a try.

[scooter78666]

JackinTexas is having his ZZR1200 seat reworked by these folks...

http://www.roberticustoms.com/

I rode down to Houston this weekend with Jack and met the owner. Nice guy! You might talk to Jack once his seat is finished.

pk

Thanks, pk, for this lead. I will contact JacknTexas for his info about this Houston seat customizer!

Thanks for the other posts here too.

scooter78666

[ed29]

See about narrowing the foam at the front as well. As a fellow short legged FJR pilot I know the tippy toe of which you speak. Backing uphill after I choose an unwise parking spot is a challenge. The width of the seat compounds matters since it splays your legs. Not sure how much can be gained by my suggestion though.

Good luck fitting the bike, and adapting to its nature.

[scooter78666]

See about narrowing the foam at the front as well. As a fellow short legged FJR pilot I know the tippy toe of which you speak. Backing uphill after I choose an unwise parking spot is a challenge. The width of the seat compounds matters since it splays your legs. Not sure how much can be gained by my suggestion though.

Good luck fitting the bike, and adapting to its nature.

Ed, thanks for this post. OH FOR SURE, width of the seat IS very important!

But looking at my FJR seat construction, how can I or anyone really do much to narrow the seat? It still must occupy the width of the seat base, does it not?

The cross-section profile of the seat CAN be altered, granted. It needs to be a lower total height, and have a more rounded off-profile; not so "square-shouldered"; I agree that would reduce the 'splaying of the legs'.

Ed, what have you done, or are doing, to get around your tippy-toeing of your FJR?

scooter78666

[Cruzintexas]

I am interested in anyone's first-hand experience in getting a stock motorcycle seat modified for a lower seat height! NOT for comfort, nor for style....just for a LOWER SEAT HEIGHT!

I have posted about this need in other cycle forums which I belong to, specifically in the Yamaha FJR forums and the Honda ST1300 forums. I am not one-whit interested in other people's experience in style or comfort....only in seat height.

I am 5' 8" tall, with a 29-inch inseam. My Harley seat is fine! Noooo problem. But my new Yamaha FJR1300 IS TOO TALL for this little man. I have already bought myself some thick-soled boots. They do help, but not enough to completely avoid me 'tippy-toeing' around with my 600-odd lb Baby! It is no fun contemplating trying to pick up my Baby from a low-speed drop in a service station driveway, for example.

With that long foreword, would ANYONE 'out there' who has had a seat modified, rebuilt, or customized FOR SEAT HEIGHT REDUCTION, be so generous as to post here your information. Mainly, who did the seat mods for you? Did they achieve a lower seat height? and any other observations you might wish to share.

Thank you for helping me,
scooter78666
San Marcos, Texas http://i25.tinypic.com/fmihg.jpg

Corbin close did the trick for me on my FJR. I am also 5'8".

[ed29]

Ed, what have you done, or are doing, to get around your tippy-toeing of your FJR?

scooter78666

To be honest, I have just adapted to the bike. I actually have the seat in the high position for a more comfortable seat to foot peg geometry and I have become accustomed to only being able to get the balls of both feet on the ground. I have to tip and slide myself off to one side to get a single flat foot down.

My choice to deal with the high seat position was driven by comfort. I spend much more time with the feet on the pegs than on the ground, so I just live with the TTS (Tippy Toe Syndrome)
:rider:

[scooter78666]

Corbin close did the trick for me on my FJR. I am also 5'8".

Thanks, Cruzintexas! Can you tell me more?

DID the reworked seat result in a lower seat height and a better 'grip on the ground'?

Did you send your existing seat to Corbin for mods? to California?

How much input did they get from you as to the seat mods they were gonna do? Did you give them your input by phone, e-mail, or how?

How long did they take to get your new seat delivered to you?

I am interested in all of this.

Thank you VERY MUCH,

scooter78666
David Allen

[DFW_Warrior]

I modified a seat on an SV650 for a 5' rider. It was really quite simple, you just take the seat cover off, pull out the angle grinder and shape it to your liking. I do agree with the people that have said narrow the front of it. I narrowed the SV seat over an inch and that made the biggest difference of all.

[scooter78666]

To be honest, I have just adapted to the bike. I actually have the seat in the high position for a more comfortable seat to foot peg geometry and I have become accustomed to only being able to get the balls of both feet on the ground. I have to tip and slide myself off to one side to get a single flat foot down.

My choice to deal with the high seat position was driven by comfort. I spend much more time with the feet on the pegs than on the ground, so I just live with the TTS (Tippy Toe Syndrome)
:rider:

Ed, I admire your spunk and your guts, but disagree with your solution.

I have been riding motorcycles since 1947. Yes, that IS 61 years ago, and yes I AM an old fart. Ask me how many times in that 61 years of riding I have 'dropped' a bike. My answer is, virtually NEVER. I have fallen, yes, and low-sided yes, but the kind of 'drop' I am talking about here. NONE, ZERO, NADA!

So why am I concerned NOW about dropping my new FJR? Because, I know when anyone gets 'out of shape' with their cycle, it is usually because of some unantipicated development...such as, the path they planned to take becomes blocked, or the incline they were planning to climb had more slope than they recognized; or the service station driveway where they are gassing up has more slippery goo than they first saw....etc etc etc.

In almost any kind of situation where the rider must suddenly regain his lost 'shape', it requires some grip on the ground to perform the miraculous recovery.

I know when I feel comfortable with the low-speed handling of any of my motorcycles. With my FJR, it isn't there! With my MUCH HEAVIER but lower-seat height Harley, no problem.

I hope I can continue my streak of never dropping a motorcycle. I hope you do too, of course.

scooter78666

[DFW_Warrior]

[B][I][COLOR="Green"]In almost any kind of situation where the rider must suddenly regain his lost 'shape', it requires some grip on the ground to perform the miraculous recovery.

After watching Ed, and also similar sized riders in the dirt I can fully understand where he's coming from. Most of these dirt/offroad riders are very VERY used to putting a foot down in places where traction just isn't going to happen, yet the seat heights just don't allow for it. They all have one thing in common I've found out. The ability to sneak a cheek is a well practiced skill in the dirt world.

I learned this a long time ago, a motorcycle will either fall to the left, or to the right, but never both ways at the same time.:eek2: If it does, then you've got bigger problems than you think... LOL So at any rate, a very good skill to learn for height challenged riders is just scooting your butt off the seat a few inches towards the direction you want to lean to. The real question is, does anyone really "need" to have both feet solidly on the ground? If it's going to fall, I could care less about my highside foot having any traction. It's not going to do anything anywho.

[Cruzintexas]

Thanks, Cruzintexas! Can you tell me more?

DID the reworked seat result in a lower seat height and a better 'grip on the ground'?

Did you send your existing seat to Corbin for mods? to California?

How much input did they get from you as to the seat mods they were gonna do? Did you give them your input by phone, e-mail, or how?

How long did they take to get your new seat delivered to you?

I am interested in all of this.

Thank you VERY MUCH,

scooter78666
David Allen

It is a new corbin seat not a rework. They make one called a close for short legged folks like us. They will make it any color you like and they will adjust it for free in the first year if you need it modified. The seats are reasonable the back rest cost a fortune. Mine is black carbon fibre leather and grey welping.
I ride with a passenger alot and she loves the backrest..

[scooter78666]

It is a new corbin seat not a rework. They make one called a close for short legged folks like us. They will make it any color you like and they will adjust it for free in the first year if you need it modified. The seats are reasonable the back rest cost a fortune. Mine is black carbon fibre leather and grey welping.
I ride with a passenger alot and she loves the backrest..

Cruzin, I am looking at the Corbin web site right now:

I CANNOT find the seat you described as "close". Your Corbin purchased seat IS for an FJR, is it not?...and your purchase was made in recent times, meaning in the last year or two?

Would you mind giving me the Corbin part # or catalog # so I can view it myself. I kinda like the idea of a new separate seat...just in case I for some reason need to or want to revert back to the original seat. Which brings me to ask; Does your new Corbin seat still use the standard Yamaha base mounts, with keyed release?

scooter78666

[Sleepy Weasel]

You might just look at pulling your stock seat off and walking into a local car upholstery shop. Those guys are used to custom cutting/shaping seat foam, but can probably also take a good look at how far your factory seat pan will let you shave the seat before you're sitting on plastic. Turn around time will probably be a lot faster that sending a seat off somewhere.

I'd recommend a place that I've used a couple of times, but Carrollton is probably an excessive commute.
:mrgreen:

[uieng99]

Give Spencer (http://greatdaytoride.com/Home_Page.php)a call. He did my ST1300 in a week or so, for less than $110 front AND rear. He removes some of the stock foam and replaces it with gel. He lowered the seat nearly an inch with no comfort loss, actually enhanced it.

He specializes in STs, but I believe he has branched out and includes nearly all sport-touring bikes. You won't be disappointed.

[dwili]

Also had my seat done by Spencer. Good work and service. Took about 10 days with 4 days shipping each way. He lowered the seat height about an inch on my 07 FJR. My main concern was comfort. Send him an email and see what he can do.



Give Spencer (http://greatdaytoride.com/Home_Page.php)a call. He did my ST1300 in a week or so, for less than $110 front AND rear. He removes some of the stock foam and replaces it with gel. He lowered the seat nearly an inch with no comfort loss, actually enhanced it.

He specializes in STs, but I believe he has branched out and includes nearly all sport-touring bikes. You won't be disappointed.

[TexasShadow]

ISo at any rate, a very good skill to learn for height challenged riders is just scooting your butt off the seat a few inches towards the direction you want to lean to. The real question is, does anyone really "need" to have both feet solidly on the ground? If it's going to fall, I could care less about my highside foot having any traction. It's not going to do anything anywho.
Bill is right in scooting your butt over to one side to support the bike. I do this all the time on the KLR250 which is high-seated. In fact, that is why I can ride now with a recovering broken ankle. I only need one leg.

However, a bigger bike, aka heavier, can be another matter. I do this somewhat with the heavier V-strom, but not much. I need both feet; one tippy toe, the other is flat footed.

The real issue is backing up. Can't do it on the Whee other than level ground.

Because I am vertically challenged I lowered the stock seat in addition to lowering the bike. An upholsterer (specializing in vehicle seats) shaved the foam down and sculpted the nose by shaving off some of the sides. He also scooped the back out some, too, which I like. It allows me to move around the seat which I do a lot when riding long distances. The seat was reupholstered with a black tacky synthetic material which is better than the stock. I also added an Alaskan butt pad (break it in by putting it on a chair that you sit in a lot).

Hope this helps some.

[ed29]

I have read good things about Spencer seats on the FJR forum. He has done enough of them that the science and art of re-shaping over the stock pan is all worked out very nicely.

Scooter, thanks for your admiration of my solution even if it does not work for you. When I head down to your part of the state we should take a ride. Let us know what solution you end up with.