R1100S seat alternatives

sfbmwrider · 03-12-2009, 11:23 AM

Does anyone have any suggestions for a seat replacement for a R1100S? I have two problems. Less importantly, I am on the smaller side (5'8", 150lb) and I can't get my feet flat on the ground, but more importantly, I find that the stock seat slides me forward and pushes my boys into the gas tank. Any suggestions much appreciated...

Thank you,
Marc

blutruck1 · 03-12-2009, 12:02 PM

Sargent, Corbin, and the Mayers all build saddles for the 1100s. Mayers (there's two of 'em) will build you a custom saddle on the bike with you sitting on it. I've heard good things from those that have gone that route. Sargents have also had positive comments. I've heard a lot of negatives about Corbins and my one experience with their seat left me unimpressed, but it was a different bike.
I ended up getting my seat recovered since the original covering cracked. I had to redo the foam since the cover is glued to the original foam and worked with the ulphosterer to reshape the seat and stop the slide. I ended up with a flatter seat that you can move around on and is comfortable for $350.

SergioK · 03-12-2009, 12:23 PM

I took care of the sliding issue with an Alaskan Sheepskin buttpad and the side benefit is that it turns the 150 mile/day saddle into a 400+ mile/day saddle. I'm also on the vertically challenged side w/ a 30" inseam. I stopped caring about flatfooting long ago.

D Fredebaugh · 03-12-2009, 02:53 PM

I found the Corbin seat to be a good solution for me. If you order it new ask for a "nose job" they make the front a little narrower and this allows for better reach for those of us with a vertical challenge.

SeabeckS · 03-12-2009, 03:09 PM

FWIW, I've owned Corbin, Sargent, and most recently added a Rick Mayer seat to my (new to me) '04 R11S. Sargent is a very nice seat, but don't believe they do "custom" height adjustments. Corbin was a good seat on my Ducati, but rather firm so they take some getting accomodated. They will do a custom by mail order, but you take the risk of it not working too well. I've heard a few complaints about Corbin, but my experience was just fine. If your not too far away to ride in for a fitting, that might be the best bet.

You don't identify your locale, but if you're in Northern California I'd recommend Rick Mayer (near Redding) for a custom fitting. He did mine in about 2 1/2 hours, it's well made, and fits PERFECTLY. He uses a variety of different foam densities in the seat "sandwich" to he can build/shape it to suit size, weight, and riding position characteristics. FYI, on Rick's website gallery, the R11S seat on the gray/mandarin bike is my seat.

If in SoCal, I've also heard many positive reports about Bill (aka Rocky) Mayers products, and he does ride in custom fittings as well. Can't attest to his final product, but he has had some rave reviews on this and other Beemer sites.

Good Luck!

Bill J

Steve Carlton · 03-12-2009, 03:18 PM

Overall, I've heard the best things about the Sargent seats. Can't recall hearing anything negative about the Rick Mayer seats, either. He's up near Redding and will do the saddle while you wait. He uses some sort of medical memory foam to go underneath your bones. I had one of his saddles for a while and liked it. I just brought up the saddle while my bike was in the shop, which was a mistake. But Rick was very willing to re-do it, which I never got around to. You'll hear mixed reviews on the Corbin. For sure it's heavy, but you can also go to their factory in Hollister to get it done while you wait. The Smuggler is very cool, IMO, but expensive. Corbins can also take a backrest kit.

I'd suggest finding someone nearby that will let you swap seats with them for a long ride, and the longer the better to make sure how comfortable it really is. Are you in the SF bay area?

As Sergio said, I wouldn't worry about not flat-footing it. Not necessary, IMO. I'm wondering which model R1100S you have, as some of them have a taller suspension and seat (2005) and some of them have a shorter paralever arm. We can tell easily on the arm if you post a picture from the side with the driveshaft.

sfbmwrider · 03-12-2009, 04:06 PM

Hi Steve,

Thanks for your excellent suggestions. My R1100S is a 2001 and I am in San Francisco... Know any R1100S riders you ride with that might be willing to let me switch?

Thanks,
Marc

sfbmwrider · 03-12-2009, 04:15 PM

Thanks all for the good suggestions! I think I'll try a sheepskin cover first and then go for the Mayer seat if that doesn't do it for me.

Steve Carlton · 03-12-2009, 05:38 PM

I can't think of anyone local with an aftermarket seat, but I'll let you know if I do. There's two lengths of paralever or torque arm. If you have the longer arm, your ride height will be lower, like in the yellow bike. Note the angle from the swingarm to the final drive. The Replika shown has the shorter arm and a straight line from the swingarm to the final drive. Does your bike have the angle?

jduke · 03-12-2009, 06:22 PM

If you have to ship your seat to a custom seat builder, you'll be better of buying a Sargent or Corbin. I have a Bill Mayer and it's been back 3 times at almost $50 a trip and still not what I expected from a custom.

mendoje · 03-12-2009, 07:46 PM

Hi Marc, my first post on the board, and it's on a subject I spent quite a while dealing with. I have a 2004 R1100S, similar situation (5-6, 170#, inseam challenged). I researched all of the seats above, from what I've gathered it appeared they still wouldn't meet my needs. On most bikes I've had I end up cutting down and recovering the seat (except on my '81 R100RS Corbin made a seat that worked great), so I was resigned to going down this route again. From what I've read and my experience getting the shape right is 99% of the battle. So to minimize trips or shipping costs to the seat builder, I picked up a used stock seat (condition doesn't matter), skinned the cover off, and over several months worked at it with a bread knife and a high speed angle grinder to shape the foam and the seat pan, recover temporarily, ride for a while, then repeated the process. Once the shape was nearly there (say within a 1/4"), I brought it to a seat builder local to me (Cee Bailey's in Montebello, CA), told them here's the basic shape I want, just clean up/blend in the lines, replace the foam as needed, and recover with my choice of materials. It turned out great, have about $450 into it, and I havent brought it back for any adjustments yet. I'll post a picture this weekend. Hope this helps. Jeff

grizmo · 03-12-2009, 07:59 PM

I have a Rick Mayer on my 03 BCR and have been very happy with it.
I live up in Redding so it was very convenient. It would be a worth while trip up to his shop from the Bay area. I could post a pic this weekend if want to see what it looks like.

SeabeckS · 03-12-2009, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by grizmo

I have a Rick Mayer on my 03 BCR and have been very happy with it.
I live up in Redding so it was very convenient. It would be a worth while trip up to his shop from the Bay area. I could post a pic this weekend if want to see what it looks like.

+1...to grizmo

sfbmwrider,

Since you're in the Bay Area it's not that long a ride to Redding area. I'm very pleased with the comfort and style of Rick's seat modifications. One thing that's probably crucial to getting the best fit is taking the time to ride to a shop and have the seat made to fit you. Making the seat really fit your riding position and body configuration makes a world of difference. So, no matter what seat you buy that's probably the number one consideration in your choice.

Like you, I was a bit tired of the boys being squished by the stock seat. During my "fitting" with Rick I also mentioned I liked sitting fairly close to the tank, and had not a lot of use for a lot of longitudinal length in the seating area. I have no need to "tuck" into a track type position, got enough the very high speed riding in my "Ducati Days". As a result he made the seat exactly to my desires and comfort needs. The resulting seat is not only comfortable, but also provides the support on long (800 mile) days in the saddle. With just enough room to occasionally move to slightly different places on the seat...you know, for those non-stop 170 mile between-gas-station-day rides!

Not sure any one mentioned it here, or if you've looked at Rick's websites or ads, but he's an orthopedic nurse, and an Iron-Butt rider (on a Beemer), so he understands anatomy, and anatomy on motorcycles.

Guess you can tell I'm a fan!

On another note, the sheepskin idea is a good one, but may be counter to your concerns about seat height / flat footing. I'm a bit taller, so most of the time don't have similar concerns. But, I've used sheepskins to enhance comfort on long distance rides on BMW, Hondas, Suzukis, and yes, even on a Ducati. They sheep pelts definitely add to comfort, but at the same time add noticeably to the effective seat height. Still use mine, primarily on long rides throught desert country on hot days, and they do last a long time. The one I use is 30+ years old, and I bought it at a Saddle/Tack Horse shop and cut it to fit with a couple of grommets and leather ties to fasten it to the seat. Even if you buy a custom seat that fits really, really well I'd advise one of these for riding in hot weather. Sort of counter-intuitive, but having a bit of air circulation under your bum is quite nice!

Here's a pic of my R. Mayer saddle...

Cheers!
Bill J

kpolito99 · 03-12-2009, 10:00 PM

This is kind of a strange request but does anyone with an R1100S live near Bill Mayer's Saddles in Ojai? And if you do would you want to let me get measured using your bike as a test mule under my saddle?

I travel to LA often for business and am interested in purchasing a custom saddle. I don't think it would be much trouble to fly out with my stock seat and take a vacation day to drive up to BMS and have my saddle re-done.

Problem is I cannot very well bring my S along as a carry-on or checked baggage and I don't think the foam cutting part would turn out right if my saddle was not installed on the bike.

I know suspension and bar heights might be different but how else is someone living FL supposed to get a custom saddle made fit to order in CA?

I plan to write BMS about this situation, I don't suppose they have a bunch of bikes sitting around though.

I welcome any constructive suggestions - maybe a friendly BMW motorcycle dealer in the area would let me rent an S for a couple hours?

SeabeckS · 03-12-2009, 11:09 PM

Please excuse my typos tonight...perhaps one too many Sazeracs!!!

Cheers! Bill J

sfbmwrider · 03-13-2009, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve Carlton

I can't think of anyone local with an aftermarket seat, but I'll let you know if I do. There's two lengths of paralever or torque arm. If you have the longer arm, your ride height will be lower, like in the yellow bike. Note the angle from the swingarm to the final drive. The Replika shown has the shorter arm and a straight line from the swingarm to the final drive. Does your bike have the angle?

Mine does have the angle. The ride height of the bike is really much less of an issue for me than the discomfort. It would just be nice to flat foot it for those slow maneuvers.

Thanks again all for taking the time to offer me your great suggestions.

zustation · 03-13-2009, 01:15 PM

I'll add a vote for Sargent. I also had issues with "the boys" slamming into the tank, and the sargent seat fixed it for me. It doesn't have quite the slant that the stock seat has, and the front doesn't rise up quite as wide - it's more pan shaped.

Lars · 03-13-2009, 02:54 PM

I have a Sargent on my Prep (short torque arm). I'm very happy with it. I'm in Davis, a little over an hour from SF. You are welcome to try mine if you are in the area.

Steve Carlton · 03-13-2009, 04:27 PM

What model year was it when the seat mounting pegs changed?

Lars · 03-13-2009, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve Carlton

What model year was it when the seat mounting pegs changed?

Mine's an '02 and it has the later (shorter) pegs, so I had to use the Sargent-supplied extensions. I'm not crazy about those since they put extra leverage on the spindly little tubes that support the rubber bushings. Mine's a salvage-title bike so lord knows what it went through, but just before the Central Coast TC I discovered that both tubes were cracked and about ready to fall off the rear subframe. I'm guessing that BMW had some warranty issues with the longer ones breaking, and shortened them.