Crossbones Pictures
#241
thoughts on seats
I made the same trip last year on the stock Xbone seat and had no issues with comfort. I' wont be goin to Florida this year. I think I'm gonna ride down to Chihuahua Mexico.
#243
I am not sure what the stock seat felt like after a 100 miles, I replaced the thing before I took delivery. I did not like the feel of it in the showroom because it felt like I was sitting "on top" as opposed to "in". Someone suggested that I the HD Standard Solo seat which gives a more "in the pocket" type feel. It also has a more vintage look which definetely appealed to me.
Now the important stuff, yes, the ride is more comfortable than you would expect. There is very little padding compared to the stock seat. But, the molded "dish" shape actually distributes the weight evenly and results in a comfortable ride for short and medium distances (1-100 miles).
I rode the other day for a total of 125 miles with a small break during for a quick lunch. By the end of the ride I was starting to feel some slight discomfort near the base of my tail bone. When I say slight I am talking enough to identify a location, not enough to be dwelling on it as I was riding. I think this is due to the fact that as you ride the tendency is to slide back to the furthest aft position in the seat, which facilitates stretching your legs to the greatest extent. When this happens, your butt is pushed up against the back of the "pocket" in the seat, leading to a potential hotspot.
My impression is that I could have rode another 125 miles, with a gas break, and I would have been feeling moderately saddle sore. With that said, I would guess that would be the case with nearly any seat that wasn't designed for touring.
So, in conclusion, I love the look of the seat. For putting around town and half day rides it is quite comfortable. For serious distance, I see potential problems. For me this is acceptable, as my style of riding facilitates the trade off. I have not ridden any serious distances yet, but I am planning an Atlanta to Pensacola run next month. Distance is roughly 350 miles and I will be utilizing back rodes and taking breaks to smell the coffee. My gut feeling is that this will likely be the farthest I would care to push this seat in a single day with breaks. We'll see.
FH
Last edited by Flying Hog; 03-13-2009 at 06:16 PM.
#247
#248
Hi, thanks for all the nice comments ! I'm using the stock fixation on the frame that I had to "dremel" a little bit (because it's a little too large) and I bought a solo seat "concealed" mounting bracket at J&P Cycles that I also had to "dremel" a little bit but everything turned out fine in the end !