Is the stock KLR seat really uncomfortable?
 

Hi

I'm very close to getting a US KLR - from browsing around the web it sounds as though the stock KLR seat can be very uncomfortable.

Any comments?

There are a number of suggested alternatives to the stock seat in
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/D...64/page36.html

It looks as though the Russell Day Long might be a good aftermarket seat (http://www.day-long.com). Can anyone confirm this? A negative for this option (as far as I can make out) is that the Russell seat is built on the stock seat base - which means you'll be without your bike for a few weeks.

Thanks
Grant

[This message has been edited by gmarch (edited 27 May 2005).]

Yes, I guess you'd have to say the stock seat is pretty uncomforatable. But then most stock seats are in my experience. Also, it is narrow which is preferrable in situations where you have to move around (stand up over the tank for climbing for example) but this doesn't lend itself well to weight distribution. A large touring saddle I think would be a disadvantage in off-road and bad-road situations. I've left my KLR stock and found that since I ride it one-up, i can move around on it enough while on the highway to make it bearable. Of course, I try to stay off the highway as much as possible.

There's also a gel insert that can be had for the KLR. I haven't had any feedback on how well that works. On my BMW R11R I just throw a gel pad over the stock seat and can manage 800 mile days with that.

Kurt

The seat on my KLR was rotten when I got it, and 200 miles was all I could manage in a day.

Now have a corbin seat which is wider, but my legs are very long, so pretend am riding a horse. It's comfortable enough, but I don't like the way it is cut to curve steeply from back to front. Am either jammed up against the gas tank - good off-road, or almot in the pillion pose - highways.

If you have plenty of time before your trip, you could get one and have them re-cut it for you. But Corbin move veeery slowly.

Happy travels
Toby

While I can't attest to it's effectiveness, Dual Star (www.dual-star.com) sells a 'gel seat' in the form of a kit you replace the existing foam and cover. A much cheaper option than a whole aftermarket seat. Maybe someone here has had some experience with it.

Kurt

hey guys, when i first got my 99 klr in montana 2 yrs ago i set off on my 1st moto/climbing tour- a week long ride around idahos selway-bitterroot wilderness, along the lonely darby-elk city dirt road, doing day climbs of easy peaks off the road (on foot- this is Wilderness- no geeky motors allowed!) at one trail head i left my klr overnite as the peak i wanted was far enuf in to warrant spending the nite in the wilderness on foot. imagine my surprise on returning to my bike the next eve to see a huge hole chewed in the seat by a (black)bear! seems he found the sweat smell too tempting. he was hanging around the trailhead and i got good video of him- bet he didnt last thru october hunting season. bummer. got a local upostery shop back in whitefish to add some foam and re cover it for cheap. had to stuff clothes in the hole the rest of the trip, but still made it up 5 peaks in about 50 miles walking and 750 mx riding. fun!

I just did a 14 hr day ride "01 KLR650" from NJ to OH and back with a Travelcade seat and it was cold out L 36 H 55 and I was fine
Tammy

I have a Day-Long for my Concours which I like. But, Day Long has been sold if you look at their web site, and from what I understand it will take around three weeks longer to get a seat now. It took me six months to get mine back.

What I've found to help with long days in the saddle is to use silk boxers. Either that or I've cut the elastic out of old underwear and that helps too. I've also heard good things about Corbin, though no personal experience.

Hey tammy!! Isnt this board awesome! This whole site really rocks. Poor glenn is going to go mad when he sees how much nicer this site is. although i still want to post over there to stir up trouble - those guys are really irritable.
anyway, i think the stock seat is a whole lot better than most competing bikes. ever sat on a honda 650-- ouch!! I almsot bought a corbin seat, but my money found other outlets. travelcade looks nice also.

yea pretty funny he told me he didn't appreciate me posting links to other sites and I'm sure thats why he made the board rules topic. I was trying to give people the heads up about this great place, geesh were's the KLR love!

[This message has been edited by c0_re (edited 13 February 2002).]

The stock seat is uncomfortable for a fat guy after about 10 minutes in the saddle. I bought the Happy Trails highway pegs and the seating positions improve the effectiveness of the stock seat about a million percent. Another benefit of the pegs is the crash protection... let me rephrase that... the spill protection. They saved me about $1000 when a friend took a jaunt down a stone wall recently (oh, HE bailed off just in time to save his hide).

2dogstruckin

good to see you over here 2dogs. hey i remember that story about your friends dance with the wall - hope you got your bike all prettied back up.

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Ian aka "Maniac"
93' KLR650

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Maniac28:
Poor glenn is going to go mad when he sees how much nicer this site is. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Literally (poor). IT TAKES MONEY.
These are some of the things you can do with money, Ian. I can't edit our board much... it has a pre-defined layout and only allows me to use html headers, footers, ect..

I have run boards before (vbulletin boards which are EXPENSIVE) and they are great. This one is an infopop board which offers free service(this is upgraded so there are no ads), but you still have to pay for the hosting.

[This message has been edited by Glenn_M (edited 14 February 2002).]

The stock seat, obviously sucks. I would get a Corbin seat if I were to get anything, because the "kit" that Dual Star sells isn't worth the money in my opinion since you have to restaple it and do it yourself. Corbin comes ready to install.

Sorry, i didnt mean to stir any trouble glenn.

Anyway, i was looking at the corbin klr650-flat seat for 199.99 - looks like a great deal and i have heard great things about it. I will get one soon. It doesnt have that dished out front like many ppl hate.

I´ve just returned from a 12,000 k trip thru Africa in a KLR650. The bike was great, no problems at all, but I have to agree with those who say that the seat is unconfortable. The brakes are not the best either, but I still strongly recomend the bike.
Juan Pablo

Well I got the corbin and put it on today. It is vinyl basketweave with blue trim and no dip. It looks very nice IMHO and it fits extremely well. It is so much wider - a must for long riding i believe. I may go up to death valley next week - is a 600 mi day feasible on the klr? I have time for a whirlwind tour - tammy, do you think i could do it?
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http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/smile.gif Happy Riding http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/smile.gif
Ian aka "Maniac"
93' KLR650

[This message has been edited by Maniac28 (edited 06 March 2002).]

[This message has been edited by Maniac28 (edited 06 March 2002).]

[This message has been edited by Maniac28 (edited 21 September 2002).]

With 6500 miles of butt-on-KLR-seat experience I can say that I can easily do 50 miles and at a stretch 100 miles before taking a break. At the moment this is good enough for me. I only reckon to do about 200 miles a day.

A note on Corbin seats - I was very much welcomed by 3 different Transalp riders who I got in touch with from the Helpful People links page on HU - anyway 2 of them got custom seats made by Corbin. That is they went down to Corbin - who are somewhere 40 miles south of San Jose in California. It took the best part of a day and the guys waited in a cafe. Periodically they were asked to come out and try the seats for minor adjustments. One of the guys is super tall and had his seat specially raised up an inch or two above the normal Corbin standard.

I didnt know they provided a service like this. However, it may not be much good to you if you live on the other side of the world?

I have to agree with the list. The first 1,000 mile day I did on the KLR was rather uncomfortable. I have only done four 1,000 mile days on the bike since I bought it. I find that after about 600 miles I am starting to shift my weight around occasionaly. I spent 10,000 miles riding to/from and in Mexico last November. If you plan on doing any more than an occasional thousand mile day, definitely get a new seat. Otherwise, the stock seat is OK.

Actually, I don't mind the seat too much except it is way too soft. I am 6'3" and anytime I am on the road I am sitting on the passenger seat. The drivers seat is too far forward. If I were to change the seat I would make it stiffer. Soft seats put all kinds of pressures on your butt and can actually cause the skin to stretch, which is really painful after a while. A sheep skin would be helpfull too. I am way too cheap to spend the big bucks on an aftermarket seat. I have a freind that does re-upholstery for cars and I plan on getting some good stiff seat foam from him and making my own seat. Some day. Hey, the bike only has 13,000 miles on it, it's still under warrantee.

Bob
New Boston, NH

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email address removed by Grant - see http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/faq.shtml#notify for why.

[This message has been edited by Grant Johnson (edited 11 April 2002).]

1000 mile day on a KLR? Man, you've got buns of steel!

Kurt