Triumphrat

bmetz99 · 05-13-2007, 02:05 AM

Okay, I've been riding since 1977, owned dozens of motorcycles, but never have I had a bike that's had a seat worse than the stock Bonneville board.

I really like the looks of the stock seat, and would prefer to have a fix that involves replacing the original seat foam with something that's more comfortable than a wet pine plank. Not interested in any of the cafe racer seats, and especially not interested in that king and queen thing- I'd rather put up with butt burn after 30 minutes of riding.

That being said, who has had any success with aftermarket cures for the battered butt blues?

badrufus · 05-13-2007, 02:44 AM

Several riders have posted that they have had success sending the seat to Sargent Cycle in Florida. They remove a certain amount of foam and replace it with their Super Cell Foam. I tried that approach and it didn't work for me. Cost is between $125 and $150 with shipping. I had it done over Christmas of 05 and got a discount and 10-day turnaround. Now the turnaround is longer because it's the middle of the season. I researched every possible seat I could find and finally decided to go with the Triumph solo seat, as by consensus it sounded like the most comfortable, along with the K&Q. I got it from MADSS for $227 with free shipping since I ordered on Friday. It is much more comfortable than the OEM seat, or OEM refoamed. I've already put on as many miles so far this spring as I did all of 2006.
BTW, I was at first adamant that I wanted a traditional bench seat, but when everything kept pointing to the solo, I started looking at some photos here and decided it was worth a try. IMO it looks good on the bike and fits with a low sleek look.

Bhakti-rider · 05-13-2007, 05:50 AM

I like the traditional look too, but I just couldn't take the discomfort, so I got the Norman Hyde single seat, and it's dramatically more comfortable. I'll be stopping for some other reason than seat discomfort now; I can easily ride a full tankful without the slightest discomfort.

Sergeant does have a very good reputation; you probably can't go wrong with them, I'd suspect, if you decided to consider them anyway...

russerts · 05-13-2007, 12:58 PM

I was desperate because I simply couldn't ride for even 15 minutes without a week worth of 'lower end' consequences. I had switched from the Thruxton seat to a Bonnie seat, which was a slight improvement, but not nearly enough. So I dropped $400 at Rich's custom upholstery in Seattle. This Friday I rode for seven hours and felt better than if I had been in the car, so it was money well spent for me. You might not like the look of mine, but there is quite a bit of design latitude working with Rich.
seat photo

Best of luck - it is really miserable to not have a comfortable seat, and having the right one transforms the bike.

rodburner · 05-13-2007, 01:43 PM

Steve,that seat looks better every time I see it. Now lose the reflectors and black out that dang fender! :-D

bendavanza · 05-13-2007, 01:53 PM

I ended up going with the king/queen which my girlfriend really likes, but I don't care for it's looks. I wonder how the bellacourse retro seats feel?
-Ben

badrufus · 05-13-2007, 03:03 PM

I think that Thrux gel looks great, with or without the cowl.

I should add re Sargents, I would still recommend them, it just didn't work for me on this seat. I sent my Yamaha Seca II seat to them for refoam and recover when the original foam was getting compressed and they did a nice job at a really decent price.

[ This message was edited by: badrufus on 2007-05-13 13:06 ]