Just bought my new-to-me ST and discovered that the russell day long 2-piece seat does not stay latched. Removed the seat {just pulled it up, lol} and monkeyed around with the catch. Looks like it does not have nearly enough travel to "latch" the u-bolt successfully. Thinking that it could be the seat itself, I tried the other seat it came with, a heated Corbin. Same result. Can't tell if the slide portion is just worn or broken, but as far as I can tell there is no adjustment. Took it off and checked too see if there was something jammed in the slide or.........found nothing. Ordered a new replacement today. Are these known to be a small annoyance? Not a big deal....until your seat flies off....LOL.
Anyone have a problem with the seat lock mechanism?
- Thread starter Bobb
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Same with mine , I think a 1/8" - 1/4" too short.
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I had that with my Corbin Master Dual Canyon. The 'U' shaped loop wasn't long enough to catch reliably.
I unbolted the baseplate that holds the ends of the 'U' shaped loop and put a couple of washers underneath it on each side. That sorted it out.
Every now and then, I have to take it off as it develops a slight bend in the baseplate, it needs straightening out - presumably due to trying to push the seat down when it isn't located quite correctly.
I unbolted the baseplate that holds the ends of the 'U' shaped loop and put a couple of washers underneath it on each side. That sorted it out.
Every now and then, I have to take it off as it develops a slight bend in the baseplate, it needs straightening out - presumably due to trying to push the seat down when it isn't located quite correctly.
That's worth a shot. I still can't see the slide moving far enough for a solid latch, but I will most assuredly give this a go....thank-you!
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In my case, it didn't catch because the loop wasn't getting under the latch mechanism. There is no adjustment on the cable, but if the cable isn't routed in a nice sweeping arc, then it can effectively change the length of the inner cable, relative to the outer - holding the latch back.
Just make sure that the lever under the left hand pannier lock has enough movement to release it before you do get it to latch properly.
Post some photos if there's no joy - we can easily compare.
The cable has a nice sweeping arc, no worries there....I did wonder if the release tab did not have enough reverse travel, since it contacts the grab rail. Maybe i'll look at tweaking that somewhat.
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One more thought.
The cable has a 'cable stop' at each end to prevent the outer cable from sliding backward and forward. At each end of the outer cable is a plastic moulding which contains a deep groove around its circumference. This is easy to see under the seat where the cable passes through the base of the grab rail cross member. If you can see the groove in the plastic, then it is fitted wrongly. In effect this would be pulling the outer cable back, tightening the inner cable and perhaps preventing the latch from returning. The same would apply at the end where the release lever is - but this is much harder to get at.
The one under the seat is the easier mistake to make for reasons that become obvious if you end up trying to put it back together again and you are trying to juggle the relocation of the cross member, the bolt holding the latch and the location of the cable.
The cable has a 'cable stop' at each end to prevent the outer cable from sliding backward and forward. At each end of the outer cable is a plastic moulding which contains a deep groove around its circumference. This is easy to see under the seat where the cable passes through the base of the grab rail cross member. If you can see the groove in the plastic, then it is fitted wrongly. In effect this would be pulling the outer cable back, tightening the inner cable and perhaps preventing the latch from returning. The same would apply at the end where the release lever is - but this is much harder to get at.
The one under the seat is the easier mistake to make for reasons that become obvious if you end up trying to put it back together again and you are trying to juggle the relocation of the cross member, the bolt holding the latch and the location of the cable.
I shimmed the bracket so it sits a bit lower and viola......catches MUCH better than before. You're right, the depth of the hook was not deep enough for proper engagement. Thanks for the tip......!!! 
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Shim what bracket ? My seat's steel loop that goes into the lock is all molded-in to the entire seat pan ..........
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See my post #3. My Corbin seat has a loop that is fixed to a baseplate which is bolted onto the seat. It turned out not to be long enough for the loop to get under the latch. A couple of washers did the trick.
It happens sometimes ! Wish I could work out how.
Glad it was the easy fix and you got it sorted.
jfheath said:
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Oh , mine is the original seat pan , no separate plate with the loop.
I too have an RDL on my ST. I do not have the issue you're describing, however, I do recall early on with the seat that getting the pillion seat to lock into the back of the front seat was difficult. When I thought I had correctly placed the pillion seat against the driver seat and pushed down on the pillion seat to lock it in it just wouldn't. What my issue turned out to be was, I was not getting the "tab" on the front of the pillion seat to fully seat into the drivers seat bracket. Once I figured that out I haven't had any issues. It can be a challenge to get that tab to fully seat into the drivers bracket, but once you "see" it, it makes sense.
Thanks for all the help guys! I've discovered what the problem is.......my new replacement part proves that the slide bar on my bike is not travelling NEARLY far enough for proper engagement. The new piece slides almost 100% over the "cradle" it resides in. My current piece is maybe 25%. Will be changing it out tonight. With the Corbin, (since it is a one-piece seat) I wasn't worried too much about "losing" it for obvious reasons. The other seat however being two-piece...could have gone missing.
Where can I purchase the latch mechanism for the rear of the front seat? Any help would be great!
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As far as I know there isn't one. The rear of the front seat rests on the frame. The front of the rear seat keeps the rear of the front seat down. The front of the rear seat also has two lugs which slide under those two hoops on the frame, which keep it firmly in position. Then the rear of the rear seat is secured with the locking mechanism.
I assume the the rear cowl on the police bike has some substitute arrangement. But never having seen ine, that is a very big assumption in my part and is probably wrong. I could look at the fiches, but I'll leave that up to you, as you know more about which bike you have !
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If you have the front PA seat, it has the bracket with a hole to accept a bolt. For whatever reason the civilian bracket is not available to order separately.