OEM or reproduction XS Eleven seat

[CrispieGee]

Hi Guys,

I'm a new member here (thanks TC!) and have been doing a lot of research on this issue before posting this question.

Is there any company or person who sells an OEM-style reproduction seat for the '78-79 XS Eleven standard model (non-special)?

I've been casually looking to purchase an XS Eleven, but every one I've seen has a completely worn out seat or one of those hideous king/queen seats. I've found some vinyl seat covers in a ribbed design, but nothing that has the original diamond pattern of the first XS Elevens. That seat got rave reviews by the motorcycle press and it looks right on the bike.

I would eventually like to have an Eleven that looks like it just left the showroom, not a cafe bike, not a custom... just a pristine original. Is it possible?

Thanks!

Chris

[Bikes]

Hi Chris and welcome....
There"s always a chance you can find a good original seat...or a parts bike...pretty slim though......check with andreas here on the forum, he has a lot of stuff.....
We have a lady here on the coast who would replicate the seat cover...she does a nice job.....starts aound two hundred clams.....depending on the seat pattern etc....maybe someone in your area that does boat seats or whatever....
I put on a new vinyl cover but saved my original for when I have mo' money..
Post pictures of your bike/progress.....

[mack]

Seat

It's not really how ratty the seat itself looks, it's the condition of the seat pan that is important. As long as most of the sharks teeth are present and in good shape, you can strip out the foam and cover. Recondition the pan then take to a good upholsterer and they can match any stitch you want. My SF seat was done that way and he did the back rest at the same time to match. The fasteners are usually the issue. Some guys like to crank the nut till they break off.

[skids]

It's not really how ratty the seat itself looks, it's the condition of the seat pan that is important. As long as most of the sharks teeth are present and in good shape, you can strip out the foam and cover. Recondition the pan then take to a good upholsterer and they can match any stitch you want. My SF seat was done that way and he did the back rest at the same time to match. The fasteners are usually the issue. Some guys like to crank the nut till they break off.

If you do that (recommended), they will need foam and seat to use as a pattern. I have had 2 done that way by different upholsterers. One turned out really nice and the other did not look quite as good, although both are comfortable. If you want some specialized pattern, you might need to chat with the seat guys.

[dbbrian]

I was happy to see the original question, but still not sure the answer is there....I have a seat that looks great, but up close, I see what looks like seam repairs, and lumps and bumps that look like its been recovered.

....other than s**t luck finding an original seat in great condition, are any of these solutions gong to make a seat that looks like OEM?

Brian

[mack]

Db

Click on the link for my SF in my signature. That seat was redone from the pan up.

[Ranger_xs1100]

Click on the link for my SF in my signature. That seat was redone from the pan up.

Mack,
I just gotta tell ya.....
Your bikes are beautiful!,
No less than AWESOME!

[bikerphil]

Didn't that fella James England have a source for repro seats over in the UK? There is a pic of it in post #5 of this thread....

http://www.xs11.com/forum/showthread...highlight=seat

[dbbrian]

That looks very good.

[Prothec]

Has anyone seen what B&H Specialties produces for the 78-79 standard? The stitching on my XJ cover from them is oem-style.

It looks like they updated their website recently, but still no pictures for XS1100s.

https://www.motorcycleseatcovers.com...-1100-standard

[dbbrian]

Hey guys, I sent them an email to say a few of us on xs11.com were wondering if they had pictures, and received this response:


Shirley Newton <service@motorcycleseatcovers.com> Today at 1:37 AM
To
Brian
Message body
If you can give me till tomorrow evening I will have some pics of our xs1100 std '78-'79. I will sew one up Monday and get you guys several pics!
Thank you.
Shirley

Sent from Shirley's iPhone

[johnstewart]

+1 to this thread.

I've actually got an original seat with the original, perfect, vinyl. But the bike it came from was in a rollover accident (he walked away, bike was shot)... and the pan got a little bent in.

I'm riding it now, but the biggest problem with an original 1979 seat... ORIGINAL FOAM. Holy cow, does my ass get numb after an hour on that thing.

So these B+H options... they are meant to go OVER a seat, right? Or are they meant for recovering completely?

[3Phase]

John,

I'm not sure what you mean but I've got two B&H covers and one no-name cover.

Remove the old cover first, clean up any bad foam and rust on the seat pan, then stretch the new cover over the seat pan and foam and hook it in place with the teeth. If you have a Yamaha emblem, carefully punch a couple of holes in the cover and put the emblem back on the seat too.

Is that re-covering or putting it over the seat or both?

.

[johnstewart]

John,

I'm not sure what you mean but I've got two B&H covers and one no-name cover.

Remove the old cover first, clean up any bad foam and rust on the seat pan, then stretch the new cover over the seat pan and foam and hook it in place with the teeth. If you have a Yamaha emblem, carefully punch a couple of holes in the cover and put the emblem back on the seat too.

Is that re-covering or putting it over the seat or both?

.

I'd call it re-covering. Removing the old vinyl first. Awesome.

So I've got a crappy 3rd party seat I may carve up, put in new foam, and try this with!

I emailed B+H and they're going to put up also a pic of the XS11 Special cover.

[Prothec]

I'd call it re-covering. Removing the old vinyl first. Awesome.

So I've got a crappy 3rd party seat I may carve up, put in new foam, and try this with!

I emailed B+H and they're going to put up also a pic of the XS11 Special cover.

Yep, it's a replacement cover. The seat cover covers the foam. Most of these replacement covers, including B&H Specialties, have a thin layer of foam attached to the underside of the cover where it matters to help smooth out damage to the existing foam.

I upgraded to the "premium" material for my XJ, but have no basis for comparison having never seen the non-premium material.