Jon
Zurell <jazurell@apk.net>is
the main man for storing all the seat makers URL’s:
He says " Take your pick....my money is still on Russell"
Well,
I finally went and got a Corbin for my RT. So far, so good,
and while it did take a while for them to get it just right,
I am happy with their results. I was able to go to the factory,
and followed my seat from start to finish. Click here to
see my day at Corbin.
Rick
Mayer makes custom seats for RT's. For more info visit the
web site at http://mayercycle.homestead.com/MAYERCYCLE.html
or call Rick directly for more information at 866-357-2888.
Bill
Mayer Saddles is still going strong and makes seats as well,
and for more information, you can visit his website at http://www.billmayersaddles.com
or call Rocky Mayer at 1-800-242-7625.
BMW
is now offering a "comfort" Seat as an option
on 2000 "Special Edition" RT's. The seat is available
in limited numbers and will retrofit to older (1996 on)
R1100RT's. Its the front saddle only that is different.
Apparently it is flatter, wider and softer. The BMW Part
number is 7160 7654 460 and BMWSRP is US$177.00.
So
far the new seat has mixed reviews: Jeff Dean <jeff.dean@worldnet.att.net>
seems to love it, "The BMW "Special Edition"
seat is a major improvement over the stock RT seat -- wider
and no forward sliding. Best of all -- it costs only $177
retail from your local BMW dealer! I hope that isn't a typo
on BMW NA's pricing sheet. I will order one and see how
it works. But from just sitting on it in the showroom, I
think it could be THE answer to all our concerns about the
RT's saddle. It would be nice if it is, and if it is only
$177."
On
the other hand Tom <no e-mail> reports "The new
seat is available in limited numbers. I purchased one and
it is 177 dollars. The problem is you sit about 3 or 4 inches
taller in the seat. The seat is flat across. This put the
handle bars at a distance and the riding position I found
uncomfortable. I returned it. Good luck finding one."
Bob
Ranney <ranney@amnix.com>
is not a big fan of Corbin Seats: "Well, if we all
lived close to Corbin and had that face-to-face contact
then maybe we would all be happy campers. How was the food?
when you deal with Corbin via mail-order you will be screwed.
I bought a used stock seat and had Bill Meyer do it in leather.
I still have my stock, I have a Meyer which is more comfortable
than my two Corbins and it was still cheaper with 10 day
turnaround door to door. Corbin is in a quality death spiral
and has been for 5 years."
However,
Bjorn Ramsvik" <bra@bconnex.net>
Says:" I purchased a Corbin seat for my R1100R last
year and must admit that initially I thought that I had
paid too much for it. My wife however could not disagree
more, she says that since we got the new seat riding has
never been better. You can not put a price on a statement
like that. My next mission will be to use this goodwill
in order to acquire other accessories.
Seth
Miller <seth.miller@worldnet.att.net>
offered a lengthy report on his experience with Corbin,
and has some advice for overcoming some of the fitting issues
that we have all heard about:
I’ve
been looking into aftermarket seats for my RT for a couple
of months now, and settled on either Corbin or Russell.
I have never seen a negative comment about the Russell,
and have sat on Russell saddles and they were indeed very
comfortable. But... I just couldn’t deal with their
appearance. I know the form follows function mantra and
all that, but the bat-winged appearance just doesn’t
do it for me. Please do not be insulted if you have &
like the Russell - enjoy it! It is undoubtedly a great product...
But it wasn’t for the one for me...
Since
I live near the Corbin factory in Hollister (and have tried
out their seats and found them also to be a huge improvement
over stock, not that this is a very tough goal to meet)
I thought I would brace myself for the inevitable poor treatment
I would receive and hopefully come out with a decent seat
since I could supply the bike for a fitting.
I
called Corbin, and surprise... I was treated very well on
the phone. Well sure, I thought, we’re still in the
‘pre-sales’ stage... but the answer was, come
on down, we’ll set you up... so I was on my way...
Arriving
at the Corbin factory, I noticed that they have built a
50’s-style diner into their building. My cynical alarms
went off... so, a $12 hamburger place to try to get even
more out of my wallet (there are no other eating places
nearby).
Pulling
up, I was waved into a drive-in bay, and was introduced
to the technicians who would be building my saddle. They
were both extremely professional and friendly, and spent
as much time as I wanted going over color options, materials,
etc. They placed the uncovered seat form on my bike and
asked to sit on it and comment on whether I wanted any modifications.
I decided to wait on any mods since they will gladly perform
them for you after you have had some time in the saddle
(no charge for this). They seemed determined not to let
me go until they were sure that I would be happy with the
finished product. I was told that while the seat was being
made I could have a meal in their diner (sure, I thought...).
They then gave me a voucher for a completely free meal (good
also for your passenger, if you bring one). Hmm, I thought,
when are they going to screw up..?
After
a very good meal I spend some time looking at all the bikes
in their showroom and looking at their electric vehicles.
It is a nice facility. Everybody seemed very friendly and
competent. I went outside and took another look at the building
to be sure that I was really at Corbin...
When
my seat was finished, I paid and left and enjoyed the much
more comfortable ride home. The end. No problems, nice people,
good product. I really like the look of the seat on the
bike (I know, that doesn’t matter...). Oh yes, and
the extra charge for all the individual attention I received..?
Zero.
I’m
sure that these people are not perfect, but for whatever
it is worth my experience with them was very good. I think
that some of the fitment problems people seem to have with
the Corbins are due to the fact that Corbin builds their
own reinforced seat pans (which, incidentally, seem much
sturdier than the stock item). Given that even the smallest
variation in dimensions will affect fit, how the seat latch
operates, etc., it seems probable that problems are going
to occur from time to time. In my case, there was a fitment
problem caused by a rubber bumper being about 1/8"
from where it needed to be (on my particular bike, anyway).
This problem was rectified by their tech in about 3 minutes.
But, it is an example of something that would have dissatisfied
me if I had mail-ordered the seat. Other than this problem
the seat fit and latched perfectly, and the construction
quality seemed very good (quality material, good seams,
cover is riveted (not stapled) on, etc.).
The
other manufacturers use the original seat base. This has
its advantages in that you know the finished seat will fit
OK, since the part that interfaces with the bike hasn’t
changed. The downside is that you must destroy your stock
seat in order to get the replacement, which was something
I wanted to avoid if possible. Since most of the aftermarket
seats use additional stitching or other materials besides
vinyl (the stock material for the Corbin BMW seat is leather,
but you can have vinyl if you prefer), they are not as impervious
to water as the stock seat. All the manufacturers recommend
a rain cover, and I didn’t want to deal with this during
commute duty. I now have the option of using my stock seat
on messy wet days when I am only going to do local riding.
Also, I have the option of selling the seat in the future
should I ever wish to do so since I still have the original
seats. These may or may not issues for you, but they are
worth considering.
A
new option is the Air
Rider Seat pads, which are installed on the stock seat
pan. However, Vincent <tatco@compassnet.com>
had the following to say about the Air Rider: "I chose
to go with Air Rider because I like the look of the stock
seat and their concept sounded good. When I got my seat
back from Air Rider, I was immediately unhappy with its
appearance. The rear curve of the seat was gone and the
seat surface looked very bumpy. At first, the seat did feel
a bit more comfortable. Last week, I was a day into a 2000
mile trip and the air bladder quit holding air. It was leaking
air from the valve. I opened the seat on the trip and was
shocked by the workmanship. There were several "chunks"
of foam missing and they had placed this stringy wadding
over the air bladder giving the lumpy appearance. I was
not able to repair the valve and had to spend the rest of
the trip with the bladder deflated. Air Rider has a money
back policy but I am afraid to send it back because I don't
want my seat hacked up any further. I wish I had gone with
Sargent and hope to have them fix my seat. Live and learn!"
