I just finished a 2800+ mile ride with the average about 400 miles a day, in my new 2017 F3 Limited.
The seat was a real pain in the rear.
I have the stock 2 piece seat.
Does anyone have a suggestion for comfort on long rides???
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I just finished a 2800+ mile ride with the average about 400 miles a day, in my new 2017 F3 Limited.
The seat was a real pain in the rear.
I have the stock 2 piece seat.
Does anyone have a suggestion for comfort on long rides???
Have you considered adding a gel pad - either one you can attach on top of yours or the one that goes in the seat .... an in-expensive start ...spending $1000.00 plus on a new seat , only to discover it didn't help is pretty tuff to take ....jmho ...... Mike :thumbup:
Check out AirHawk cushions. Last summer traveled 9100 miles in 28 days and my butt never once hurt. Don't leave home without it.
Here is a link to Day Long https://day-long.com/. I have one on my F3T and I love it, they are expensive though. A less expensive option is Laam Custom Seats, Seth Laam used to work for Day Long. http://laamseats.com/. Both are in the Redding, CA area and they offer ride in appointments or you can ship your stock seat to them.
I had my 2 wheeler seat modified by Mean City Cycles, years ago. Anybody who sat on it said it was soft, comfy and fluffy.
meancitycycles.com
If I didn't find my Spyder seat comfy, I'd send it there.
~Sandee~
Honestly I don’t know jack about seats except when I went to the dealer and sat on a stock 2017 RTL seat I hated it and it was uncomfortable immediately. Bought a used 2015 with a day long on it and love it.
Cant find a better testimonial than that.
Russell day long.....you can get spyder stiching on it. sunbrella insert on top, vinyl on sides
I had the same issue with my 2015 F3-S. I bought an Egg Sitter gel pad. Works great.
I also recommend Diamond Custom Seats, especially for anybody in the South Eastern US, Florida specifically.
Their price and quality is similar to Russell but they don't usually require you to supply a seat (pan) and shipping costs would be less than to California.
Their turn around time often is way shorter.
I got an Ultimate seat >CLICK ME< and they give you a 2 week trial period - if you din't like it, ship it back. I added a BBP back rest to it. Ride for hours without pain on my Merino sheep's wool (Wool is not necessary).
Details on other comforts here: >CLICK ME<
http://www.rattlebars.com/spyder/seat1.jpg
You're a better man then I.Before I ever took off on a long ride I knew the Spyder seat wasn't going to make it. I called motorcycledave(a sponsor here)(2098873283) and had him send me one of his gel pads that go under the seat cover. I was able to remove the cover myself cut out a pocket for the pad and put it all back together. Instructions come with it and Dave is very willing to help if you need a little hand holding. Dave gives you everything you need except the power stapler which you will need. I bought one for $25 at the local hardware store. I think I am into the whole project for under $125 including the gel pad. Turned a 2 hour seat into an all day seat. Have been on it for 30,000 miles now and still love it.
I have had 3 Laam seats, great work etc.. Be ready to wait and wait as he is not great on communication and time lines. Once you get it, all is good.
I have wasted money on Corbins, Sergeants, Mustangs and even an upholstery shop.
I might as well have flushed my dough down the toilet.
The "problem" with these seats is the outrageous cost to add $20.00 worth of material only to find the "fit" is off.
The other "problem" is that your original seat is destroyed if you had it altered.
I added a heavy foam pad contoured with an electric knife and my Airhawk MC cushion.
This made the seat of my F3 both flatter and larger.
I can now ride 300+ with no monkey butt.
Thanks to all of you for all your input.
I'm going to start with Rattlebars suggestion and go with the Ultimate seat. It's reasonably priced and they give you two weeks to try it out. If I don't like, I send it back and all it cost me is some UPS costs.
If I don't like it, I'll go down the list of many suggestions you all contributed. Thanks again.
and use an Alaska Leather buttpad sheepskin. I find after 60 to 90 minutes I must stop and stretch. I may get away with 2+ hours at the beginning of the day but as the day wears on, the stretches on the seat get shorter. If it's warm, I need to drink anyway or take a natural break. So the stock seat is ok for me. I had several BMW's before my F3L, always kept the stock seat and found the exact same issue. Once I was coming back from a 6-day trip on my BMW GS and had to take breaks every 45 minutes. I've heard many good things about the Russell but I prefer to take breaks than spend mega bucks on a new seat.
Bruce, looking forward to your followup on the process and results! I'm one of many cyclists that have happily used a Beadrider seat on the stock seat after recommendations from some Iron Butt riders.
This year's late June 4800 mile, 10 day trip was cool and dry, even through our Florida daytime portion and several rain storms in Georgia, Tennesee, and North Carolina.
I agree Mike, but one very salient point comes into play here. I you spend a grand and get a Russell DayLong, they guarantee to modify it if you find it uncomfortable until it IS comfortable. That’s their huge selling point over a seat that you try, have to send back for a refund, get a new seat, try........etc etc etc.
Pete
Nobody has said this, but I will: You said you were riding 400 miles in a day, which is probably at least six or seven hours in the saddle, and if you rode 2800 miles that means you did that every day for seven days of riding. I salute you for your patience and stamina, but under the circumstances you describe I would be greatly surprised if you DIDN'T have a sore butt. Maybe some can do that without getting sore, but I can't and it sounds like maybe you can't, either. The human body isn't designed to remain in the same position for hours on end as it inevitably must be on any motorcycle seat. Even if I sit in my very comfortable car seat for 400 miles in for one day, I end up squirming and sore by the end of the day. Your butt is eventually going to get tired and sore from sitting in the same position for too long, I don't care what seat you use. I don't doubt that there are more comfortable seats available for the Spyder but I don't think any of them would be a total cure under the conditions you describe.
I second that. I had a Russel Daylong on my Nomad. Had to get to black hills SD. In 2 days and back in 2 days 425 miles each day. My butt was sore and my legs were cramping up. Squirming around a lot. I will probably never do that again. I will say this. Without the Rusell I wouldn't have made it half that far.
Rocket, did u get the Large or medium size? I was thinking about ordering one from Amazon ($117), and after reading your post, I definitely want one. I have an ‘18 RTL and the Large seems like it fits perfectly. I know u have F3, but still curious about size...and anything else u can tell me.
‘Thank you.
😎🕷
I have used the AirHawks a lot over the years and liked them.
BUT.....the Spyder tends to "throw" you off to the outside of a tight curve and I fear that an AirHawk or external gel pad might shift and make that problem worse.
I think a couple of owners have commented that they don't like them because of that.