Seat upgrade

[Doug_Baliko]

I know that this subject has been beaten to death so forgive me. I have a '07 RT and a couple of years ago spent big bucks ($1200) on a Touratech Kahedo seat. While it's a vast improvement over the stock seat I find that I need about another 1" or so of room to the rear. I end up sitting on the seam between the driver and passenger seat which in the long run isn't overly comfortable on long tours. A couple of my riding buddies use a Sargent seat and like them but I'm not sure that they will solve my problem.

 

I'm considering a Russell Day Long just because its a custom made seat. I can have it made the way that I want and see a lot of good reviews on the boards. A couple of my friends intimate that this is an old mans seat and doesn't look very good on the bike with the large wings the RDL has. But I'm more interested in overall comfort. One concern that I have is with handling the bike in the twisties with those large wings on the drivers seat. Can the RT be ridden in the curves well with this seat or am I giving up being able to lean over in the curves? Your thoughts?

 

Doug

[TEWKS]

I've had a Corbin, Sargent, Rick Mayer and now a Russell on my GT. The three other seats were on different bikes of course, the Russell is by far the most comfortable seat I ever owned. IMO you will adapt to the wider seat and it will be fine in the twisties. The real payoff is after a thousand mile day you can get up in the morning and do it again.

 

Pat

[mistral]

I know that this subject has been beaten to death so forgive me. I have a '07 RT and a couple of years ago spent big bucks ($1200) on a Touratech Kahedo seat. While it's a vast improvement over the stock seat I find that I need about another 1" or so of room to the rear. I end up sitting on the seam between the driver and passenger seat which in the long run isn't overly comfortable on long tours. A couple of my riding buddies use a Sargent seat and like them but I'm not sure that they will solve my problem.

 

I'm considering a Russell Day Long just because its a custom made seat. I can have it made the way that I want and see a lot of good reviews on the boards. A couple of my friends intimate that this is an old mans seat and doesn't look very good on the bike with the large wings the RDL has. But I'm more interested in overall comfort. One concern that I have is with handling the bike in the twisties with those large wings on the drivers seat. Can the RT be ridden in the curves well with this seat or am I giving up being able to lean over in the curves? Your thoughts?

 

Doug

 

You know someone with a Russell (Brad) he is pretty damn fast in the twisties. I know he loves the Russell.

 

Ron

[xoomerite]

You cannot see the wings when you are on the RDL. Who cares what it look like, if it is comfortable?

 

In the twisties, aka the dragon-like roads, I simply move up a tad and sit in front of the wings. Lesser twisties, the lean is still there, I just lean more forward.

 

Chris

[Rinkydink]

The RDL is the ugliest seat there is but your butt won't know that....get you some!

[CVA-42]

I have a Russell on my 1200RT and I also have a stock seat. I don't find the stock seat particularly uncomfortable on a shorter ride or even a day ride but the Russell is way more comfortable on a long ride. Handling, for me, is fine with either. I do have one complaint about the Russell, though, and that is that when I have it in the higher position (which is how I like to ride) it becomes awkward for me to handle the bike at stops or in parking lots because of the loss of inseam due to the wideness of the seat and I'm 6'1". It's fine with the seat in the lower position, though. The stock seat, for me, is easy at stops, etc. even when in the higher position.

[mwsR1200RT]

I have not found the Russell's to affect my fun in the twisties at all! Pegs still grind, my wife still giggles.

 

Actually, the comfort could be considered an improvement in the fun!

 

I had them move the "tush pocket" back about 1" for me as well. A bit tricky because of the dual seat pans, but they did a great job. And made it thicker for more knee room. I have 34"+ inseam. At stops, I do need to slide forward onto the nose to get both feet solidly down.

 

If you can possibly get it done in person at the shop (they're in northern California, only a 1.5 hour ride for me!), it is well worth it as you can try it out and have them tweak it to perfection before stitching up the cover. They moved the passenger seat up to where my wife can see over my shoulder.

Lastly, I had them re-upholster the passenger pad on the trunk to match as well. All in grey leather (to minimize butt burns on hot sunny days!), and it actually looks quite distinctive on my silver on silver RT.

 

So yeah, not the sexiest seat, but oh such a wonderful seat.

[kltk165]

I don't find the Russell hampers riding twisties either. And if you find it does, you can always slide forward out of the "pocket" and move around just fine.

[erikrichard]

Email Russell and tell them you find yourself sitting between the driver/passenger seats, but I have a feeling all seat options are going to be about the same length due to seat pan design and how they mount in the bike. Is your issue the handlebars being too close, the pegs too rearward or both? Are you exceptionally tall with long legs or avg size and just find the stock ergos awkward?

[mwood7800]

on my 05rt I went to a sargent to a rick myer and now a russel, russel hands down the more comfortable. Just did a 1500 trip and never shifted or squirmed around once..

[Michael B]

The Russell DL will make your butt happy! Russell will design in about anything you could ask for, so when they say "custom," they mean custom! I recently made a 5-day 1,700 mile trip to Michigan on my 2011 R1200 RT with zero tush complaints, and I have their heavy duty suspension. Normally I ride nothing but twisties and the wings are a non issue. At stoplights you will quickly get used to sliding a bit forward of the wings to get your feet down, but once underway you seem to automatically slide right back into your "tush pocket." Piece of cake. BTW, my seat came in around $700 with shipping.

 

Suggestion: Call them soon about your seat build so they will be making it during the worst of winter to limit your down riding time. They will probably schedule your seat a couple of months after your initial call. They're very easy to work with.

 

Oh yeah, I ordered a protective seat cover, around $45 I think, as a waterproof item in the wet. I've used it a lot more than I thought I ever would, so give that some consideration. Have fun and enjoy the comfort! Michael B

[Doug_Baliko]

Thanks for all of the replies and input. I shipped my stock seat off to RDL yesterday.

 

Doug

[Drufus]

I have a russell on my 04, which makes my bike more comfortable for long hauls than either my or my wifes car. My longest day has only been a meager 350 miles, but if I did that in my Subaru, my arse would be sore, but not so on the RT!

[Doug_Baliko]

I received my Russell on Thursday and left Friday morning for a trip to Arkansas. So far I love this seat. It's extremely comfortable and is truly a day long seat.

[David13]

I got my Russell at the 'factory' last Thursday, the 15th.

I now have 925 miles on it.

I do not like it. I'll post a big post. I'm hoping they can rebuild it almost totally and make it work.

But right now I'd rather have the original back and maybe, maybe look for something else.

Something totally flat, like the Cloud 9 that I have on a bicycle.

dc