Any Pics of 2020+ RT Daylong or Laam Driver's Seats?

[troop]

Hey all,
This request is for owners of 2020+ RT models that have had their driver seat rebuilt by Day-Long and Seth Laam. I'd like to see some photos of them on the bike and how they look butted up to the passenger seat. I am contemplating having my 2022 RT STS reworked over winter storage time. I have experience with Seth Laam, as he redid my past F3S seat. I actually made a booking thru Day Long in December, just in case. I'd go black vinyl sides/leather seating inserts. Thx

 

[BamaJohn]

My 5th RDL: vinyl all over.
Note that the RDL makes it harder to remove the rear seat due to it being wider.

 

[troop]

My 5th RDL: vinyl all over.
Note that the RDL makes it harder to remove the rear seat due to it being wider.

Hey Bama,
Couple of questions
1.) How wide is the driver seat at widest point?
2.) Did you retain your stock heated seats? if so, do they still work ok? Thanks

 

[BamaJohn]

Hey Bama,
Couple of questions
1.) How wide is the driver seat at widest point?
2.) Did you retain your stock heated seats? if so, do they still work ok? Thanks

18" at widest point;
RDL uses the OEM seat pan to build upon. The heated function works perfectly.
I was using a gel pad originally, so asked them to add 1" to the height of the seat. There was no charge for that request.
RDL is very helpful via phone call conversations.

 

[troop]

18" at widest point;
RDL uses the OEM seat pan to build upon. The heated function works perfectly.
I was using a gel pad originally, so asked them to add 1" to the height of the seat. There was no charge for that request.
RDL is very helpful via phone call conversations.

Nice .. Thank you. I do have a build date scheduled in late December. My riding season in WI will be well over by then That said, I am still also considering a Corbin and Laam. I have had (4) Corbin's on past bikes and liked them all. Just seems like their QC has taken a hit recently. I did like my Seth Laam on my F3S, but the Day Long seems to be calling my name more frequently. I have a few months to decide

 

[BamaJohn]

For what it's worth... the RDL is about 1/3 the weight of a Corbin, and we all know the seat support piston is junk.

 

[troop]

For what it's worth... the RDL is about 1/3 the weight of a Corbin, and we all know the seat support piston is junk.

Yup... I have a stronger seat strut installed. The Corbin is a 1-piece seat and has a built-in fuel door. I did have an Ultimate installed... for one day. It's fit was terrible. I returned it. Another plus for using an OEM seat base.

 

[FROGMAN]

I have a RDL on my 2021 BMW 1600 (38K), all leather. I have a Corbin on my 2004 HD Road King (142K). Hands down the RDL is superior to a Corbin if you tour or have back issues. I did a ride-in for the RDL, Idaho to Ca to get it made. I still have both bikes, but I just bought a 2024 Spyder RTL. Will send the saddles off in Nov to RDL.

 

[Peteoz]

Yes, as John has mentioned, the heat option works well, Troop. The Daylong is a lot heavier than stock (especially in my case as the support foam is heavy duty ). I didn’t bother with the seat shock. I just disconnected it and use a t-handle hex driver to hold it up. (I also disconnected the seat lock, so I have zero worries about being unable to access the fuel cap for whatever reason.)

As John has mentioned, unless Daylong have recently fixed it, the rear seat is difficult to fit over the front seat due to the additional width of the front seat. Daylong told me they were addressing that in 2022, and would contact me, but since they haven’t, they may not have addressed that issue. It simply means you have to pull the prongs at the front of the rear seat right out to seat it. I have found no need to remove the rear seat in several years though.

This is mine with vinyl sides and Sunbrella top……also, a photo of the rear seat over the front seat. Those are the wings that you have to stretch to fit under the front seat.

Pete

 

[FROGMAN]

Peteoz, would you explain a little more about the front and rear seat issue? "It simply means you have to pull the prongs at the front of the rear seat right out to seat it." I want to call them and address the issue before I send mine in to be built. Also, did they provide the backrest or did you? My saddle for my BMW has a horizontal slide and yours has a vertical slide.

 

[troop]

Peteoz, would you explain a little more about the front and rear seat issue? "It simply means you have to pull the prongs at the front of the rear seat right out to seat it." I want to call them and address the issue before I send mine in to be built. Also, did they provide the backrest or did you? My saddle for my BMW has a horizontal slide and yours has a vertical slide.

From the photo, it looks like Peteoz uses an OEM BRP backrest with existing passenger seat slot. At this point, I'm thinking of getting only my driver seat done and leaving the OEM S2S passenger seat as is. I know they won't match, but oh well. Gonna go with black vinyl sides and black leather seating insert. I like the appearance of rectangles, but I will likely go with half-moon for less stitching. I'm right at the edge of heavy-duty suspension. Day Long says for 230# and up. I weigh about 235# geared up. Day Long will make that decision based upon the photos I supply.

 

[Peteoz]

Peteoz, would you explain a little more about the front and rear seat issue? "It simply means you have to pull the prongs at the front of the rear seat right out to seat it." I want to call them and address the issue before I send mine in to be built. Also, did they provide the backrest or did you? My saddle for my BMW has a horizontal slide and yours has a vertical slide.

Hi Frogman... one of the “prongs” at the front of the rear seat will slip under the front seat, but you have to exert a fair bit of force to pull the other prong out far enough to get it under the front seat. The first time you do it, you are concerned you are going to snap it (you don’t), but subsequent installs aren’t as bad. It will be interesting to know if Daylong have addressed the issue yet. It is NOT a dealbreaker. Unfortunately, if the rear seat latched at the back, you would have no issues slipping both prongs under the front seat and then pressing down to latch, but the '20+RT forces you to seat the rear of the seat in a tab first.

Troop has got the backrest info spot on. :thumbup:

Pete

 

[Peteoz]

From the photo, it looks like Peteoz uses an OEM BRP backrest with existing passenger seat slot. At this point, I'm thinking of getting only my driver seat done and leaving the OEM S2S passenger seat as is. I know they won't match, but oh well. Gonna go with black vinyl sides and black leather seating insert. I like the appearance of rectangles, but I will likely go with half-moon for less stitching. I'm right at the edge of heavy-duty suspension. Day Long says for 230# and up. I weigh about 235# geared up. Day Long will make that decision based upon the photos I supply.

For me, personally, I think the half moon is the best looking of the seat stitching options on the Spyder anyway, Troop. I would have only got my front seat done too, except I bought a complete second hand seat from one of the members here, so I figured I may as well bite the bullet.

Pete

 

[BamaJohn]

Hi Frogman... one of the “prongs” at the front of the rear seat will slip under the front seat, but you have to exert a fair bit of force to pull the other prong out far enough to get it under the front seat. The first time you do it, you are concerned you are going to snap it (you don’t), but subsequent installs aren’t as bad. It will be interesting to know if Daylong have addressed the issue yet. It is NOT a dealbreaker. Unfortunately, if the rear seat latched at the back, you would have no issues slipping both prongs under the front seat and then pressing down to latch, but the '20+RT forces you to seat the rear of the seat in a tab first.

Troop has got the backrest info spot on. :thumbup:

Pete

Well done on explaining the rear seat issue Peteoz. jb

 

[FROGMAN]

Now that RDL does not build a backrest for the 20+ RT's, I'm going to have to buy a standard Spyder backrest and then send it in with my seat to be recovered. I'm thinking a Sunbrella insert that matches my brick red bike. I make 2-3 day-rides a week here in Northern Idaho and they're 200-330 miles long. I ride the BMW and enjoy the comfort of the RDL. An RDL should enhance the new RT with the wife on the back.

 

[troop]

My 5th RDL: vinyl all over.
Note that the RDL makes it harder to remove the rear seat due to it being wider.

Hi BamaJohn,
What color is your seating insert? Lots of gray shades on their website. Looks too light to be a graphite? Thanks

 

[Peteoz]

Now that RDL does not build a backrest for the 20+ RT's, I'm going to have to buy a standard Spyder backrest and then send it in with my seat to be recovered. I'm thinking a Sunbrella insert that matches my brick red bike. I make 2-3 day-rides a week here in Northern Idaho and they're 200-330 miles long. I ride the BMW and enjoy the comfort of the RDL. An RDL should enhance the new RT with the wife on the back.

Frogman, have a good think about having your OEM backrest recovered. It really does fit in OK with the Sunbrella insert as it matches the sides of the RDL.

-

 

[BamaJohn]

Hi BamaJohn,
What color is your seating insert? Lots of gray shades on their website. Looks too light to be a graphite? Thanks

Mine is the Vinyl Light Grey (there are more shades of grey if using leather)

After having 5 day-long seats, I prefer vinyl over leather. With riding gear on, my butt can't tell the difference and leather requires more maintenance. I haven't tried Sunbrella.

 

[troop]

Mine is the Vinyl Light Grey (there are more shades of grey if using leather)

After having 5 day-long seats, I prefer vinyl over leather. With riding gear on, my butt can't tell the difference and leather requires more maintenance. I haven't tried Sunbrella.

Thank you ... Jay has sent me requested samples in black/graphite vinyl, black/graphite leather and black/slate/smoke Sunbrella. I keep flipping samples on my seat to try and decide. Sunbrella is growing on me. Lots of positives, with little negatives. About the only thing I'm sure on is black vinyl sides, but still have six weeks until I send the seat in

 

[troop]

My OEM RTL seat is now in possession of Russell Day Long. The build date is for a couple weeks, but shipped it a bit early to reduce chance of being delayed in busy shipping season. I FINALLY settled on black vinyl sides/graphite vinyl top/half moon stitch pattern/graphite thread color. I'll show some comparison photos with my OEM S2S seat when I get it back in about a month