[rmak]

I have been looking at seats lately that would be good on my Bonneville Black. I like the Thruxton single seat and cowl look that show up on regular Bonnevilles from time to time on this site.
While I'm no fan of the Sixty 8 line because most of it looks goofy (think flowered gas tank cover), it appears that the cowl they offer fits over a full seat and is removable, allowing you to take passengers if you wish. I'd like to know from anyone who is familiar with the combination of 'contemporary' seat and cowl how it looks and works in real life. How easy is it to pop off the cowl and take my wife to breakfast on Sunday morning? Is it worth the $500 it takes to buy both pieces?
Are there other better, and/or cheaper ways to get a single seat/dual seat combination? Thanks.

 

[ggRAT]

Here's my Bonneville fitted with the two-tone black and gray Sixty8 Comtemporary Seat ($295) and Sixty8 Cowl ($130). Removal is simple with an Allen wrench. Fits the bike perfectly and is very comfortable for me.

(Larger, more detailed pictures are in my Photo Album)

[ This message was edited by: ggRAT on 2006-12-15 21:02 ]

 

[Bonefide]

On 2006-12-15 14:08, rmak wrote:
Is it worth the $500 it takes to buy both pieces?

$500?? The sixty8 seats are the same as a Thruxton seat - no difference what so every except the COLORED ones. The cowl is no different than a Thruxton cowl - except the colors offered.

You can get a Thruxton gel seat for $225 (I've seen them as low as $199 online) and I think I paid $140 for my sixty8 cowl in silver - and the paint matched my silver Bonnie perfectly.

 

[caspianthruxton]

If i were you i'd just watch ebay and the forums and try and pick up a stock thruxton seat and cowl. I just carry an allen wrench in my wallet and it takes around 30 seconds to pop the cowl off.
TJ

 

[flashmc]

I have both pieces you are asking about. The seat is significantly more comfortable than the stock seat in my opinion. The cowl should take no longer than a minute to take off. I have not stowed the cowl in the Triumph saddlebags, but it looks like it should fit easily. I carry the correct size allen wrench in my saddlebags so if I am ever in the position where I need to give someone a ride, I can. My wife is not a fan of motorcycles so she has never been on my bike, so I can't tell you if the back half of the seat is as comfortable as the front half.

with cowl:

without cowl:

 

[caspianthruxton]

the back half is really small and seems like it would be easy to take a tumble off of. I'm going to pick up a sissy bar for the long rides next year so i don't lose my girl.
TJ

 

[Big_Rick]

If you're looking, check out Coweta Custom Cycles.
They're offering 20% off until Christmas so you can pick up a Thruxton Gel Seat for $180 and a cowl for $104.
I just ordered an item from them and they were really good to deal with.

 

[Skud]

G'day flashmc....I'm in ter market for an upgrade seat on my 2006 T100..

.....just to clarify..so is that seat of yours a Thruxton Jel the same as sold by cowetacustomcycles ?..and does it fit straight on?

...thanks

 

[Bonefide]

On 2006-12-18 21:46, Skud wrote:
.....just to clarify..so is that seat of yours a Thruxton Jel the same as sold by cowetacustomcycles ?..and does it fit straight on?

...thanks

I'm not flashmc - but he has a Thruxton seat in those pictures (I have the exact same seat on my Bonnie as well) and YES ... the Thrux seat is a straight swap with the stock Bonnie seat. Coweta has a dang good price too - $180.00 !!! wow.

 

[flashmc]

It is not the gel seat though, it is the sixty8 series contemporary seat, which looks identical to the normal Thruxton seat.

 

[Skud]

G'day Bonafide and flashmc.thanks for the info..

...I'm looking to change seats basically to gain a little more comfort for my 65 year old butt..

....so is the Thruxton gel a Triumph thing or an after market?

..Bonafide..I gather yours ain't the gel..did you find yours significantly more comfortable than the standard Bonne seat?

...flashmc....why did you choose the 68 series rather than the standard Thrux...and did you test out the comfort of the gel c/f with the standard foam or whatever it is?

..thanks

 

[Bonefide]

Skud - mine is a stock Thrux seat (aka Thrux Gel seat). It's night and day feeling when I compare it to my stock seat. When I ride with the local twin RATs (Thrux-ton-up and Scott03Bonnie), we usually end up putting 300-350+ miles on the bikes in a day. The sock seat would start feeling like a 4X4 beam of wood between my legs as the afternoon wore on - hurting the inside of my thighs. The Thrux seat narrows as it approaches the base of the tank - and it has a better feeling seat to the Bonnie stocker. I haven't had any issues with it what so ever and highly recommend it as an alternative seat to a stocker. BUT - you can ask Thrux-ton-up for his preference - he went from a stock Thrux seat to a Corbin Gunfighter - but there's a difference in their price too. Here's a better pic of mine.

 

[Max_NYC]

[/quote]

The sixty8 seats are the same as a Thruxton seat - no difference what so every except the COLORED ones. [/quote]

No difference therefore between the contemporary black seat and the Thruxton gel seat? That's weird. Oh wait, isn't there an additional (and rather useless) belt on the contemporary seat? So the comfort and design otherwise are the same?

[ This message was edited by: Max_NYC on 2006-12-19 21:48 ]

 

[Max_NYC]

On 2006-12-15 23:17, Big_Rick wrote:
If you're looking, check out Coweta Custom Cycles.
They're offering 20% off until Christmas so you can pick up a Thruxton Gel Seat for $180 and a cowl for $104.
I just ordered an item from them and they were really good to deal with.

And the contemporary black seat is only $216... Nice! I wonder about the shipping costs though...

[ This message was edited by: Max_NYC on 2006-12-19 21:49 ]

 

[Bonefide]

On 2006-12-19 21:44, Max_NYC wrote:
Oh wait, isn't there an additional (and rather useless) belt on the contemporary seat? So the comfort and design otherwise are the same?

Both seats have the "belt". You guys really can't believe that Triumph is selling the same seat with two different prices, can you? Ok - I walked downstairs, took off my cowl, and snapped a pic. If flashmc's seat is a comtemporary - compare it to mine.

[ This message was edited by: Bonafide on 2006-12-19 22:33 ]

 

[flashmc]

...flashmc....why did you choose the 68 series rather than the standard Thrux...and did you test out the comfort of the gel c/f with the standard foam or whatever it is?

Skud,

To be honest, I didn't do much research to know that I could have just purchased a Thruxton seat. I saw the sixty8 seat, liked the looks and bought one. I didn't test the comfort level, as I had no place to test it. I can say that it is way more comfortable than the stock seat.

Robert

 

[Skud]

Ok, thanks gents, that just about sorts it for me..Bonefide, you sure are right about that "plank butt" syndrome after a couple of hundred Kms....youch..!!!

 

[Big_Rick]

I had been looking into this switch over the summer. I had the K/Q seat and was looking for a comfortable alternative that would look slicker. This is what I have found out:

The thruxton Gel seat is an accessory upgrade from the stock seat much as the K/Q or solo seat is for the Bonnies. Then the Sixty8 stuff came out and the contemporary seats are the same as the thruxton stock seats except the coloured ones have a little 'Sixty8' tag sewn into the seam (notice the black ones don't)
I was at a dealer that had a couple of 'sixty8' bikes on the floor as well as a couple of thruxtons and feel wise, they were about the same. If i recall, they were a little narrower at the front than a stock Bonnie seat so I thought they were a little better than the stock Bonnie seat. They didn't have a Thruxton gel seat in stock to compare to however.
Since then, a friend of mine has had the chance to try out a thruxton gel seat and bought it. He swears that it is very comfortable. He too was coming from a Bonneville King/Queen seat and said it was very comparable comfort wise to that.

The thruxton Stock seat is $270
The sixty8 Contemporary is $295 (270 for black)
Thruxton Gel seat $225
Knock off 20% for the Coweta pricing till Christmas.

All three essentially look the same except for the colours of the Sixty8

In the end I wound up getting a good deal on a Corbin Gunfighter so that's what I went with.

Hope this helps,
Rick

 

[Max_NYC]

The contemporary seat doesn't have any gel inside though. That's what a sales rep at Coweta Custom Cycles just told me over the phone.
If so the Thruxton gel seat is the right way to go if you (I) want a black seat.

But... On their website Coweta Custom Cycles claims that "Seat Cowl Kits are for use with Sixty8 Contemporary seats only " (!!!)

So if you (I) want to add a seat cowl kit - Silver (me), you're supposed to buy a contemporary seat. But I'm pretty sure the seat cowl kit would go on a Thruxton gel seat. I'm waiting for a clear answer from Coweta Custom Cycles before I order anything.

Max

 

[Big_Rick]

That's right, the contemporary seat is the same as the STOCK thruxton seat, not the thruxton gel seat.
As far as the cowl goes, I think that disclaimer is just so you don't try and put it on the stock bonnie seat, or any other bonnie seat other than the 'Sixty8' contemporary seat. (but don't quote me on that)

If you have any doubt whatsoever, just order an OEM Thruxton cowl to go with the thruxton seat. They're all about the same price.

Rick