Goldwing Seat on an ST

MillCreekMadman · Aug 23, 2016

Hello All,
I wanted to get some feedback on a thought i had after looking at seat prices. I have a 91 ST with a corbin seat that i can ride 180-200 mile before needing to stop. I understand that the last 100 miles to get to a 300 mile range may be all metal grit but has anyone ever attempted to put a gold wing seat onto an ST? I see heated gold wing 1800 seats on ebay in good condition for less than $200. I have the stock alternator so the heated aspect is not a selling point but given the cost of a russell I wonder if its doable?

vinny · Aug 23, 2016

Totally different mounting system. I suppose if you are willing, there could be a way. The seat is also much wider. ...
Good luck.
.

MillCreekMadman · Aug 23, 2016

I understand it would require a lot on modification. How does a goldwing seat compare to a Russell in width and comfort?

motomac · Aug 23, 2016

I ride a Gold Wing and had a Russell on my ST and the Gold Wing seat is much wider. If you can get it done, it will be comfortable, but it will be a big undertaking.

Uncle Phil · Aug 23, 2016

You might check the cost of having Russell just do the front section of your ST1100 seat in vinyl. It may not cost as much as you think. ;-)

jspringator · Aug 23, 2016

I think it is close to $400 for front only in vinyl.

Uncle Phil · Aug 24, 2016

jspringator said:
I think it is close to $400 for front only in vinyl.

That smells about right. If you figure it's $200 or so for the GW Seat, add the cost of the hardware and time it takes to figure out how to mount it, I would guess you would be within $150 of the RDL. I got 14 years and 200,000+ miles out of mine before I did a rebuild (it was still comfortable but the cover started to give at the seams). That figures out to be way less than a half a penny a mile or around $35 a year.

roginoz · Aug 24, 2016

MillCreekMadman said:
I understand it would require a lot on modification. How does a goldwing seat compare to a Russell in width and comfort?

Nothing compares to a Russell in comfort.

Listen to your Uncle Phil: have Russell do a Day-Long build on your stock seat pan.

MillCreekMadman · Aug 24, 2016

Gotta respect a mans word on the seat when hes got 200k miles in it. Ill pony up and get the RDL this winter. Thanks for the comments guys.

Uncle Phil · Aug 24, 2016

MillCreekMadman said:
Gotta respect a mans word on the seat when hes got 200k miles in it. Ill pony up and get the RDL this winter. Thanks for the comments guys.

Just a note - Their lead times to get one built can be long. I scheduled my 'ride in' rebuild on January 7th and my build date was June 21st. Ride ins are better if you can schedule the time, but they still do a great job with pictures.

http://www.unclephil.us/California2016Home.htm

MillCreekMadman · Aug 25, 2016

UP. That was a great read. Couple of questions. Are you riding with the stock wind screen? What does your riding gear consist of? What was the temperature delta from the high country to valley basin in cali? The RDL has a back rest, what handle bar riser are you running to be able to lean back?

jspringator · Aug 25, 2016

The only problem with the RDL is that the height of the seat combined with the long pull of the Helibars causes you to sit much higher that the designers if the bike intended. That means even the tallest Clearview has terrible buffeting, and I'm short. I look through a MRA X-creen for relief, but it might be easier to get a Russell Sport, that is supposedly stock height. It is not entirely the seats fault; the Helibars contribute significantly, so keep that in mind.

Uncle Phil · Aug 25, 2016

I'm reasonably tall (6'2") and I run the Clearview Gen III XL with the 'flipclip' handlebar mod (up and back about 1" or so) and don't notice buffeting at all - and I look over the windshield and I have the 'cutouts' in the windshields. The RDL backrest has a height adjustment for the pad and a 'lean forward' adjustment which you can really tilt the backrest forward (it's sort of a wedge design). With the original Highway Wings, it is a very comfortable setup. (I have all three bikes set up the same way.) My usually riding gear is First Gear HT air (mesh with liners) and Frogg Togg rainsuits. I also have Gerbing heated gear and various other gloves. The temps up on the mountain were cold enough for the lakes to freeze and the temps in the valley were about 110+ F. Sort of like when we left Coarsegold a few years ago when it was 40F and by lunchtime we were in Death Valley at 120F at BadWater. ;-) When you go from one temp extreme to the other, your body does begin to question your sanity ...

Here's a picture of the stock windshield placed on top of my GenIII XL -

jspringator · Aug 25, 2016

I have these.

https://www.helibars.com/products/HeliBars®-Horizon™-multi%2daxis-adjustable-handlebars-for-Honda-ST1100/621.html

4 to 6" pullback. 2-5" taller. I have shoulder problems. I probably need to re-try my Gen 1 Helibars and make myself lean forward. Hmmm...

MillCreekMadman · Aug 25, 2016

I think my Corbin is about an inch higher than stock. I have risers 2" rake with 3" rise that sit me about a full head above the windscreen. Makes for unbearable ride at 70mph plus. I built a laminar lip that is literally unbelievable good. Slight buffering at highway speed but completely bearable. What is a Russell sport?

MillCreekMadman · Aug 25, 2016

jspringator said:
I have these.

https://www.helibars.com/products/HeliBars®-Horizon™-multi%2daxis-adjustable-handlebars-for-Honda-ST1100/621.html

4 to 6" pullback. 2-5" taller. I have shoulder problems. I probably need to re-try my Gen 1 Helibars and make myself lean forward. Hmmm...

Those are crazy. What did u do with throttle cable. I saw brake and clutch line detentions but nothing else.

MillCreekMadman · Aug 25, 2016

Uncle Phil said:
I'm reasonably tall (6'2") and I run the Clearview Gen III XL with the 'flipclip' handlebar mod (up and back about 1" or so) and don't notice buffeting at all - and I look over the windshield and I have the 'cutouts' in the windshields. The RDL backrest has a height adjustment for the pad and a 'lean forward' adjustment which you can really tilt the backrest forward (it's sort of a wedge design). With the original Highway Wings, it is a very comfortable setup. (I have all three bikes set up the same way.) My usually riding gear is First Gear HT air (mesh with liners) and Frogg Togg rainsuits. I also have Gerbing heated gear and various other gloves. The temps up on the mountain were cold enough for the lakes to freeze and the temps in the valley were about 110+ F. Sort of like when we left Coarsegold a few years ago when it was 40F and by lunchtime we were in Death Valley at 120F at BadWater. ;-) When you go from one temp extreme to the other, your body does begin to question your sanity ... Here's a picture of the stock windshield placed on top of my GenIII XL -

Up. Thanks for the info. I was asking about riding gear as I could not keep my jacket on during a recent trip to iowa. I thought I had relatively cool gear.

Uncle Phil · Aug 26, 2016

IIRC, You should be able to just 'look' over your windshield if it is the correct height with the top edge should be just below your line of sight. I also had a Rifle shield at one time but it got cracked a long time ago in a tip over. I also generally ride with my faceshield up unless it is raining. One of these days (I keep saying it), I will get back on my power windshield project for the ST1100! Madstad built me an adjustable unit that was not powered for free as a trial. It functioned pretty well, but I did not like the look (metal base). He felt that a plastic/fiberglass base would not hold up to the stress of the windshield.

jspringator · Aug 26, 2016

The throttle cables fit.

A Russell Sport seat is a slightly less comfortable seat that is 75% of the cost, but should settle to stock height after 500 miles. My stock windshield with Laminar Lip was perfect with the Corbin. My butt wasn't. I haven't measured them, but my working theory, based on personal experience and extensive research, is that the Corbin is an inch lower than stock, and the RDL is about an inch higher. It is that 2 inch increase in height that caused me problems with the windshield. For now, I'm just going to look through the X-Creen. If I can't stand it in the rain I'll just take it off. It is held on with 4 set screws. I may try my Gen 1 Helibars and see if I can train my body to lean forward some. That would have the byproduct of reducing back pain. I am reluctant to send the seat back to be shortened because some folks report the seat isn't as comfortable. The gold standard would be a Madstad windshield. I'm looking.

jspringator · Aug 31, 2016

I just had a revelation with the clamp-on MRA X-Creen. For normal use, I can just look through it. It gives a really smooth wind free ride. For the rare times I'm caught in the rain, I can pivot the X-Creen up so there is a large gap between the top of the windscreen and the bottom of thee X-Creen, and I can just look through the gap. Simple, cheap and easy. I need to try it out and make sure it doesn't do something weird.

Goldwing Seat on an ST

MillCreekMadman

vinny

MillCreekMadman

motomac

Uncle Phil

jspringator

Uncle Phil

roginoz

MillCreekMadman

Uncle Phil

MillCreekMadman

jspringator

Uncle Phil

Attachments

jspringator

MillCreekMadman

MillCreekMadman

MillCreekMadman

Uncle Phil

Attachments

jspringator

jspringator