Fiberglass seat pan

[joebus]

I have mentioned here before that i was planing on going the cafe route with my bike. I am planing on making my own seat pan out of fiberglass. I have a Special so the ignition is right under the seat so using a premade cafe style seat is not an option. I have not had much luck finding supplies outside of the internet. Anyone have any ideas on what kind of local store would sell fiber glass materials? Once I get the stuff to do it I will do a write up if anyone is interested. If anyone has fiberglass advice that would be helpful also

[trbig]

Walmart carries fiberglass materials by the house paint, and anybody that has much to do with boat stuff will carry it also. No help here as to actually using the it! lol.

Tod

[andreashweiss]

xs1100 seat pan made of plastic

I sold a xs1100 seat pan to a member (forgot who) that was made of plastic,. It was a complete stock looking style pan for a standard I believe. Someone must have had it made. It fit perfectly and had all the stock mounting points etc. Just made out of plastic instead of steel. Maybe that member will read this post, take a picture, send it to you. Only one I ever saw that was made of plastic. thanx andreas

[CatatonicBug]

I would think that any good Auto Body shop would have fiberglass supplies. My dad had to re-do the fiberglass door on his Lotus when I was a kid, and that was long before the internet happened.

You could get some sculpting foam at an art store and make a positive mold for the mounting points and such, then make a negative from that out of plaster of paris, which you could then form the fiberglass pan over the top of.

[joebus]

I think i will be going the route seen on this link. http://www.websxtreme.net/ebook/scr/...t%20Pan%20.htm

I have a old motorcycle gas tank that i am going to cut up to use as the back end of the seat mold to get that cafe look. I think i just saw AutoZone sells fiberglass is a couple different sheet types by Bondo. I will go check it out tonight.

[latexeses]

Do you have TAP Plastics anywhere around?? Out here on the left coast they are a real good source. Have many different cloths, all the way to Carbon fiber and Kevlar.

Rodger

[Jerry]

JAT...Diamond Seat out of Florida sells their seats on new fiberglass seat pans they make (or have made) for their use. Might want to contact them and see if they will sell you just a pan. Is already made to fit and could be modified, I bet. Might be easier than builing one from the ground up.

Diamond URL is http://www.diamondseats.com/

[fredintoon]

I have mentioned here before that i was planing on going the cafe route with my bike. I am planning on making my own seat pan out of fiberglass. I have a Special so the ignition is right under the seat so using a premade cafe style seat is not an option. I have not had much luck finding supplies outside of the internet. Anyone have any ideas on what kind of local store would sell fiber glass materials? Once I get the stuff to do it I will do a write up if anyone is interested. If anyone has fiberglass advice that would be helpful also

Hi Joe,
if the ignition box location is the only thing stopping you from using an aftermarket seat, moving the ignition box is FAR easier than DIYing an FRP seat pan. Especially as it sounds like this will be your first attempt at using the stuff. If you are determined to use FRP the advice so far given is OK
but let me add; for your health's sake be careful with that stuff. If you breathe them in the fumes from the resin, catalyst & solvents will rot your liver, the glass fragments floating in the air as you cut and lay the stuff out and as you sand the finished product will give you emphysema and if you smoke they can also trigger lung cancer. Wear a cartridge type breathing mask as well as eye protection at all times when working with FRP.

[Montreux_Blue]

Da-bubble had a fiberglass seat pan made for his bike. He may have some info about the process. Here is his build. http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread...light=Dabubble

[CatatonicBug]

Wear a cartridge type breathing mask as well as eye protection at all times when working with FRP.

I enthusiastically concur. You do NOT want to get that stuff in your lungs. It can be done safely, but be sure you protect yourself.

[TopCatGr58]

Hey Joe,

Recent threads by Da-Bubble IIRC, showed a great looking bobber, and he was able to relocate the Ig Box into the small tool box without any rewiring. Another member removed the tool box, and made an aluminum plate and mounted it behind the battery where he was able to bolt the IG box to, so it can be done that way fairly simply! As stated, why re-invent the wheel when you don't have to!
T.C.

The Travelcade K/Q style bucket seats that are sold by JCW have fiberglass pans, so if you could find an old one on ebay, that would also be a source, they have the correct hardware fittings/locations as well! JAT.

[joebus]

I have a extra steel seat pan from an old king and queen seat but it is so stinking big. I thought with doing my own molded pan and doing the Velcro mount I could make the bike look more like a true cafe style. I like the style of the "sport seat" on Mikesxs but i doubt it would fit. I am not overly worried about the mounting points of the current seat as long as i can get a seat to just stay on solid. I will look into the relocation of the ignition.