Different Seat... Please!

Joined
Mar 21, 2012
Messages
535
Location
Norfolk, VA
Bike
2019 Goldwing Tour
Okay, I did 3,000 miles last week going up to Laconia, NH and into Maine.

I started out with a bead rider on my stock seat and after getting to Laconia from here I took it off. My back side was not happy and it seemed to be right at the point my legs attach if that makes any sense at all.

I guess I tend to sit upright more than rolling my hips back like leaning back in a chair although I would try that also.

On the ride back south I put the bead rider on cuz I like the air flow it gives but ended up taking if off the first fuel stop (traveling with a couple HD's so that was about a half tank).

Needless to say 500 miles later I was not pleased to be sitting on the ST and didn't want to mount back up when we went 10 minutes away for dinner.

I've been reading every seat thread I can find, seems like RDL owners are the ones posting the most but with the amount of seats available and the wait time for some I'm not convinced as to what I should really be looking at.

I commute to work daily, 15-20 miles each way depending on if I go through town or stay on highway and either way can be a parking lot if there are any fender benders.

Bottom line is the stock seat was good until the all day riding for many consecutive days. Now I don't even want to look at it... a few days later and still pain.

I'm 6'2", right around 220lbs and I have the stock seat adjusted front on high setting and back on lowest setting. I am running two riser blocks under the handlebars.

Anyone experience anything similar and what did you do to enjoy the ST again?

Any comments on this or this seat?
 

W0QNX

Blacksheep Tribal Member
Joined
May 30, 2006
Messages
3,311
Location
Pensacola, FL. USA
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06/ST1300 19/R1250RT
2024 Miles
007437
Russell Day Long is the best seat made. I did the Spencer mod first, good for 300 miles. With my RDL I don't stop from butt ache EVER. 1200 mile day just last week, 3200 miles in 5 days of riding.

YMMV and others may disagree slightly.
 

Mellow

Joe
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'21 BMW R1250RT
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I had a sargent on my ST1300s and for me was a great 1,000 mile seat for the money..
 

dduelin

Tune my heart to sing Thy grace
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Feb 11, 2006
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Jacksonville
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GL1800 R1200RT NC700
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Sargent has met all my needs to date including a 1500 mile day in a trip that was 6500 miles total in 8 days. Easy peasy. However I do 200 to 500 mile days most every Saturday and I think that has a lot to do with it.
 
Joined
Sep 4, 2013
Messages
8,109
Location
Cleveland
Bike
2010 ST1300
My bike came with a Sargent seat. I found it hard and flat but surprisingly comfortable. Since my inseam is in the 29" range or less, this seat did not let me flat foot - or even touch down with both feet unless I was on dead flat terrain. The PO of my bike was 6'3" or 4" and he put that seat on. I've since had Spencer work his magic on my OEM seat.

Someone here wrote a review of his RDL back in 2012 that was remarkably honest and insightful. Search for it and read what he has to say. That said, everyone here seems to swear by the RDL and says it is worth every one of the bushels of pennies it costs. I've only read one or two lukewarm reviews of the RDL. That said, everyone's fundament is different - yours just might not be enamored with the RDL and might find a Sargent to be fine. Try to find one of the latter and test drive it.
 

T_C

Joined
Mar 8, 2012
Messages
4,341
Location
St. Louis, MO
Bike
2005 St1300
STOC #
8568
RDL gave me a pain in the thighs, but I don't need the extra extra wide and increased support wings that a Day-Long provides, it just dug into my legs and wasn't working for me. I did a Rick Mayer and couldn't be happier, works for both me and the pillion. Used real leather, rub it with Neat oil once a year.

Now he may be out of the game, haven't seen his web-site in awhile.

Look up the Seth Lamm seats, heard good things.
 
Last edited:

dduelin

Tune my heart to sing Thy grace
Site Supporter
Joined
Feb 11, 2006
Messages
9,640
Location
Jacksonville
Bike
GL1800 R1200RT NC700
2024 Miles
006739
STOC #
6651
My bike came with a Sargent seat. I found it hard and flat but surprisingly comfortable. Since my inseam is in the 29" range or less, this seat did not let me flat foot - or even touch down with both feet unless I was on dead flat terrain. The PO of my bike was 6'3" or 4" and he put that seat on. I've since had Spencer work his magic on my OEM seat......snipped short.

.
I find flat footing impossible except on low slung cruisers and I have to be OK with it or I wouldn't be riding the bikes I like. I have a 29" inseam and my ST is higher than standard with the suspension work I did. On the ST I can just touch toes down.
 
Joined
May 6, 2011
Messages
517
Location
Vancouver, WA
Bike
2007 GL1800
STOC #
8714
When I bought my ST it came with a Corbin. That was fine for the first year. After that, it just gave me a pain after about an hour. I needed something else. For me, I was finished with trying the less expensive seats; they never worked out. After doing the research I decided I only wanted to do this seat change once. I took the gamble on an RDL.

Immediately, riding was comfortable again. There was a "getting used to it" period. It has always been comfortable, and, my pillion loves it, too. She will ride all day on it, without complaint.
I'm not tall at 5'8", but I am heavy at 220#. Would I do it again? Absolutely! Getting my head around the price took awhile.
 

STripper

Brian
Joined
Sep 6, 2009
Messages
399
Location
Redmond, WA
Bike
2005 ST1300A
I couldn't tolerate the stock ST1300 seat for more than 90 minutes or 90 miles, whichever came first. I tried several aftermarket seats before biting the bullet on a RDL; it's easily the best money I have spent on this bike. For shorter ~300 mile rides, I use a Corbin. For longer rides, the RDL gets the nod.
 
Joined
Apr 8, 2017
Messages
191
Location
Wisconsin
Bike
2006 Honda st1300
The stock seat on the ST sucks for anything more than about an hour of riding. Russel Day Long seats have wings on the the edges and way more padding that support your hips. The hips are whats supposed to support your rear while sitting. On stock bike's seats your weight is supported on your lower spine and butt. Since there are pressure points and nerves there, your rear will go numb no matter what. The RDL solves the problem by preventing pressure on butt.
 
OP
OP
Rekoob
Joined
Mar 21, 2012
Messages
535
Location
Norfolk, VA
Bike
2019 Goldwing Tour
I've got a Topsellerie (from France).
2000km on a day without saddlepain...
Am I reading that right? isn't that like 1200 miles? Half that mileage without my pressure points killing me would be great. I have to assume I have a boney arse as that's what seems to be the problem. I also think it's from my riding position but even when I try to roll my hips back some and not sit so straight up it's only a short term relief.

I figured out my milage from the trip and 3,550 miles is the numbers. The trip did one thing for sure, made me dislike the stock seat which I didn't have a problem with before, even with some other rides between 1,500 and 2,000 miles. I will say that the longest of the other trips was over three years ago. But I never had an issue with day rides and now just commuting 20 miles to work is not comfortable... I haven't taken any time off of riding so maybe I am still in the recovery stages and after some time the stock seat will become suitable again... I hope.

I like the looks but if I went with that seat (which I wouldn't have to remove mine and send it in) I'm thinking about the raised/long/gel version as linked in my orig post.

Can you tell me which options you have on your seat and how it compares to the stock seat?

As far as I know you are the only one with this seat on the forum, I haven't seen any other posts about it but I could be wrong (and probably am).
 
Joined
Dec 7, 2012
Messages
83
Location
pootugaal, netherlands
Yes.
Indeed like 1200 miles. I drove in one day from home in the Netherlands to Portugal.
It's a standard size with gel.
I bought a complete seat, so didn't sent the original in. The seat costs now € 401,- excluding transport.
The seat is very comfortable.
On the original I couldn't ride more than 20 minutes without saddlepain.
 
Joined
Sep 4, 2013
Messages
8,109
Location
Cleveland
Bike
2010 ST1300
Don't forget that every ahhhh, fundament is different. The seat that works for you might not be what Portupan loves. If you can find someone near you that will swap seats for a day, try a few out. While a custom made seat made for someone else might not be perfect for you, it should give you an idea of what that maker's seats are like. After all, we are talking about a substantial outlay of money for one of these.
 

MajorTom

QuickBlue
Joined
Apr 1, 2010
Messages
646
Location
Devon, Alberta
STOC #
8781
For myself I can't recommend using gel in a seat. I tried a gel insert in my stock seat as a first attempt at fixing the fundamental seat problem. I found the gel didn't solve the soreness issue and also absorbed and retained heat when the bike was parked in the sun. After checking through all the available options and comparing prices I chose to have Seth Laam rebuilt my seats. The only regret I have is that I didn't choose to get a leather cover as I find the carbon fiber look vinyl to be slippery and I slide forward on the seat over rough pavement.

I did a ride-in to Laam's place in Redding, CA and he had both seats rebuilt in about 2.5 hours, so I didn't miss any of our short riding season. Plus I enjoyed a nice ride through eastern Oregon and Washington, then back up the Pacific Coast Highway. Win-win. :) The seat works for both me and my pillion at a lower price than the RDL. YMMV.
 
Joined
Nov 23, 2005
Messages
147
Location
Central South Carolina
Bike
03 ST1300A
STOC #
6000
My first 1100 had a stock seat, and I don't recall hating it. My second 11 had a Corbin Rumble seat. It was hard, but surprisingly comfortable. Never tried the passenger seat. My first 13 came with a Sargent seat, and I didn't have any issues with that one, but didn't own it long enough. My current 13 came with a custom seat that looked like a Russel or some such - big wide wings on it. Didn't like it at all, but I'm guessing it was made for someone of a different size. Traded it for a Sargent, and I'm good again. Still don't have opportunity to ride far, but I like the seat so far.
 
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