jcWhitney seat

[heckertb]

Has anybody tried the double bucket touring seat kit (uses original pan, $99) from whitney? Looking for a little more comfort without the cost of a Diamond or Russel.

[MartyA]

I had one till this summer, came with my bike when I bought it 7 years ago. It was well worn then, only so-so for comfort for the first couple of years, but the foam under the 'leather' broke down. Being somewhat tall, I seemed to want to sit a little back from where the seat wanted my butt, on the hump between the buckets, which was not very comfortable for me on long trips. If I slid forward to the correct position, my um, er, zipper was too close to the tank. But I imagine a smaller person would fit well on it. I am 6'3", for reference. On long trips I sometimes sat in the back bucket for a stretch.

The 'leather' stood up well, no rips or tears. If I was a little younger, a little thinner, and had younger knees, I would consider buying one. Certainly not the best choice, but for $100 you could do worse.

I had mine recovered by an upholsterer this summer. Cost a little over $125, it is straight and plain, but I can shift back if I want to stretch a little, and there is lots of foam under there. Not pretty, not very stylish, but it works.

[heckertb]

Thanks for the input. Have to do something different, I have some all day rides coming up and I get the butt burn after an hour. Am also looking into other suggestions from other posts on the subject. Thanks again

[xssiveone]

Hi Bruce, nice to see you still hanging around. I have had good luck with putting a sheep skin on the seat. I don't think it's so much the seat, as it is the lack of "butt" ventilation once your sitting on it. Another suggestion to me was a gel pad. Haven't tried it on the m/c, but it does work great on the bicycle.

[TopCatGr58]

Bucket seat

Hey there Bruce,

I bought the complete bucket seat from JC, with the Fiberglass pan since mine was so rusted out!! I'm also quite tall at 6'6". The XS is essentially too short for me no matter what seat I use. I remember the old stock one, and I felt like I was always being forced into the tank on it as well. One thing that I think helps is getting a set of cruise pegs to allow you to stretch out your legs. I, too, use the SheepSkin, put a large roll behind my back for support, and lay back in the seat a bit like a recliner instead of straight up, spreads the pressure out over more area, since I have a skinny butt also. But I do have to shift position every so often anyways. And stopping every 100 miles or so doesn't hurt either for stretching out. My seat I've been told, and I think I saw a tag on it, was made by Cavalcade, it's a bit stiff, but the bucket comforms to my derrier fairly well, and the sheepskin adds another layer of comfort and breathability for my skin, so not so much heat buildup between me and the leather cover!?!? I've only had it 2 years, have taken a couple of LDR's, to Upper NY from Va. and also to Western NC without much saddlesoreness involved. YMMV.

Good luck with whatever you get. I've heard the gels aren't that great, but haven't tried them, I could see how they might be better for a bicycle seat where you are constantly moving your legs and sliding/shifting your bottom while peddling the bike, I know I had some serious butt crack soreness after a lengthy bicycle ride many,many years ago, those 10 speed seats suck!!!

T.C.

[heckertb]

Hi T.C. , Thanks for the info. Have a 3 hour "test ride" coming up before the XS East rally so I'll see how it goes with the sheepskin. The rally will be about 8 hours. A friend who rides a goldwing wants me to do the "SaddleSore 1000" with him (1000 miles in 24hrs.) , thats mainly why I'm going for all the comfort I can. I'll see how the ride to the rally goes before I commit to the 1000 mile ride.

[MartyA]

The sheepskin didn't help me, but I am heavy and the seat as I mentioned was old. A friend cut down one of those beaded car seats and positively swears by it. I haven't tried that yet, as I have a new seat and I haven't tried an extensive test yet.

I did find the hotter it was the shorter I lasted on the seat. Very cool days were more comfortable, probably little sweat and more slide-able.