R1100gs sargent seat advice

[pieter.oneill]

Hi all hope you are all making to most of the hot weather, I'm hoping for some advice or ideas. Had the day off today and spent a couple hundred Miles in the saddle around Shropshire and Wales beautiful roads....mostly. my 30 year old 115k gs didn't miss a beat however my arse didn't do as well....no deliverance issues by by the way lol. I have a sargent seat that I can only assume is 20 plus years old at best, I thought it was OK on shorter rides but today it showed its age. Now I love my gs because I paid a measly £1400 for it and aside from general overhauling and fettling I've kept it a bargin bike so, does anyone know of a decent place to refurb it to put some life back in, or what other model seats fit the gs that may be an option? Or any other suggestions welcome. Cheers all

 

[pieter.oneill]

Sargent seat feeling it's age

 

[Wrigsby1]

Hi all hope you are all making to most of the hot weather, I'm hoping for some advice or ideas. Had the day off today and spent a couple hundred Miles in the saddle around Shropshire and Wales beautiful roads....mostly. my 30 year old 115k gs didn't miss a beat however my arse didn't do as well....no deliverance issues by by the way lol. I have a sargent seat that I can only assume is 20 plus years old at best, I thought it was OK on shorter rides but today it showed its age. Now I love my gs because I paid a measly £1400 for it and aside from general overhauling and fettling I've kept it a bargin bike so, does anyone know of a decent place to refurb it to put some life back in, or what other model seats fit the gs that may be an option? Or any other suggestions welcome. Cheers all

You'll get different advice re seats, different types and foams etc but after a few 11GS's I have used an air hawk type pad permanently since my third out of five... The standard seat was iffy when new but age makes it a plank. I've tried having them rebuilt etc but since my first airhawk, I haven't bothered... Manageable for 500+ mikes in a day...

 

[pieter.oneill]

Cheers wrigsby, i totally forgot aboit seat pads, certainly the cheaper option over all, might add s bit of height to my already decent strech to the floor but i could lower the seat a bit, ill check them out more tomorrow, it doesnt move around to much under you i take it in the corners?

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

Hi all hope you are all making to most of the hot weather, I'm hoping for some advice or ideas. Had the day off today and spent a couple hundred Miles in the saddle around Shropshire and Wales beautiful roads....mostly. my 30 year old 115k gs didn't miss a beat however my arse didn't do as well....no deliverance issues by by the way lol. I have a sargent seat that I can only assume is 20 plus years old at best, I thought it was OK on shorter rides but today it showed its age. Now I love my gs because I paid a measly £1400 for it and aside from general overhauling and fettling I've kept it a bargin bike so, does anyone know of a decent place to refurb it to put some life back in, or what other model seats fit the gs that may be an option? Or any other suggestions welcome. Cheers all

I rode my GS with a Sargent seat yesterday for a total of 5hours plus another 4 hours after a ferry and did nearly 400 miles

Only in the last 30-40 mins of the second stint did my cheeks start to squirm

I find mine pretty ‘all day comfortable’

I have a Corbin on my Tenere 700 and that is rock hard in comparison and a different seat make up altogether-however it is very comfortable in a totally different way

 

[Neil W]

On my original 1150 that I owned for over 9 years I was crippled after less than 100 miles with the standard seat , tried the gel insert route and it was slightly better but had to use an Airhawk for touring.
With the 1150 I bought a couple of years back I took it to Saddlecraft and went down the route of better quality foam with an extra inch of height and a good quality gel pad.
As a result I can easily ride 250 miles on the bike with zero issues.
Speak to an expert , they will advise and will probably tell you the seat foam has degraded

 

[Pukmeister]

Perhaps get it reworked by a seat specialist (saw a Tony Archer thread on here only yesterday) and/or fit a sheepskin pad or air hawk?

Is it a postural problem, is the seat unsupportive/squidgy under your arse or are you getting pressure points eg coccyx ??

Are you “bike fit” or do you usually ride just short journeys? I usually take two days when touring on long rides to really settle into the saddle.

I’ve sworn by Sargent seats for many years on several GS/GSA, they suit me well due to having a relief area under my coccyx and being firmer/more supportive than a stock seat.

As they say, YMMV.

P.S. if you wanted to improve the scuffing wear on your pillion seat, some black leather dye from Gliptone (aka Liquid Leather “scuff master”) applied by sponge would have it looking like new for about £30.

If you were closer to me I’d be happy to remove your seat cover and add a thin layer of upholstery foam then re staple it, although I’m no upholsterer or seat specialist I’ve done a few repairs to my own seats over the years.

 

[pieter.oneill]

Cheers lads for the detailed response, yeah sargent seats seem to be touted as one of the best and ive no dought it was when new butnas mentioned must be at least 20 years old so i suspect foam has lost its mojo, it just feels pretty much like theres no absorbtion from movment not totally hard but way to firm especially as on my rt i have a comfort seat and thats just nice and squigy and i can ride a good while without any numb bum. Ohh i couldnt fix the pillion seat ita part of the charactor an patina of my old girl haha. Ive had many seats re done and improved over the years and they have been great but cost a fair bit and as she was originally brought as my winter hack bargin bike deal im loathed to spend a 3rd of what i spend on the bike to get seat a bit comfier but i will enquire to prices, ill check.out that tony archer in a bit, might be worth me starting with a seat pad/cover to start with only reason i took the gs on such a big run was my rt is waiting for esa shocks to come back all refreshed.

 

[pieter.oneill]

On top of clee hill shropshire yesterday i love the look of the old girl, still amazed 30 years old and rides as.well as it does, i was 10 when someone brought this new

 

[quaycrest]

Plus 1 for an airhawk seat pad but try to get an older neoprene one as I find these comfier, harder wearing and can be patched easily. Get one in the correct shape and size for your seat top and leg length. Put the least amount of air in it to get your backside just off the seat from a bicycle hand pump don't use breath to inflate it and you should be able to ride comfortably for a good distance. The air will need adjusting as temperatures fluctuate through the seasons.

 

[Paul Young]

My daughter has a horse and a point she makes is that leather needs conditioning to retain its elasticity otherwise saddles become firm and less comfortable. Has the seat’s care been maintained over the last 20yrs..? Maybe it needs some saddle soap and/or conditioning.

 

[PIGGLET]

Seats are really subjective so what works for one may not work for another. I'm another sargent fan. When new I found my sargent pretty firm but over time it gives a bit to the shape of your arse. Perhaps yours has 'given' to the shape of its last owner and so doesn't provide the support you need? I personally hate airhawks and seat pads as they make me feel slightly disconnected from the bike. before the sargent I tried a corbin after hearing people rave about them but found it like sitting in a bin lid. It wasn't for me. I believe both the 1150 and 1100 twin seats are interchangeable so you should have plenty of scope to try alternatives and or get a SH stock seat and have it re upholstered???

Good luck!