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I'm 59, 5'9" with a 30" inseam and barely breaking 165lbs, so my classic 1993 Ultra Classic is a lot of bike for me to handle...but I absolutely love it. I'm looking to lower the center-of-gravity a bit to minimize the threat of it toppling over one me (I'm convinced it tried to kill me in my garage once), but I'm also looking for seat recommendations to lower my ride a bit, and perhaps narrow my stance. I've called Mustang and they don't offer any seats for my '93, so now I'm looking at the Le Pera L-567 Daytona 2-up. Does anyone have experience with this seat? Are there any others I should consider?
I have a Le Pera Maverick an it lowers me quite a bit an it's very comfortable. You could also send the stock seat to mean city an ask them to make you as low as possible an to narrow the seat. If you order the LePera don't get the daddy long legs model, it looks the same but moves you back from the bars, get the standard model. If you have 13" shocks you could swap them out for some 12" shocks. you lose some ride quality but you're light so it helps limit the effect. Do you need the tour pack all the time? I'm not familiar with that year but I bet someone has modified it to be removable like the newer bikes tour packs, an that's some high weight too.
Yeah, I considered removing the Tour Pak. I don't know what it's dry weight is, but I'm sure it does a good job of raising the center-of-gravity. I'd miss the storage, but the reduction in fear of having the bike laying embarrassingly on its side in a parking lot might be worth it!
You can flip the swingarm but you'll be sacrificing the ride quality mine's been flipped for the 15 years I've owned it You'd have to reposition the bags a bit because of the different shock angle but all it would cost you is your time. to see if it meets your needs. If you do have it apart I'd replace the cleve blocks unless they're in good condition. My TruTrack scrapes when I lay it over in a corner and the suspension loads\unloads. You want to be sure your wiring clears the tire with the reduced clearance.
They'll dial-in your OEM seat, or customize< cheaper than replacement. Give them a call...you won't be sorry.
5 words I'll "always" recommend...... Mean City can blow me...... destroyed my Corbin seat, knew they screwed it up and kept my money, I was sorry.
OK, back to the regular scheduled program. 12" shocks can work, ran a set of Progressives but like mentioned earlier ride quality will suffer BUT just put a set of real 12" shocks on it that need set up properly. A good set of coil overs will sag 1 inch meaning a 12" will be 11" and won't bottom out like a set of base Progressives, running a Corbin Hollywood and looking for a taller solo seat because the seat height is now on the low side. Nobody on here is going to recommend lowering brackets on the swing arm for the shocks, weak swing arms on the Evo touring bikes.
I'm about the same size as the op...and removing the tour pak was a big help. It isn't too terribly heavy, but it seems to help with the cog and makes the bike "feel" smaller, even though it doesn't actually change any thing dealing with ride height etc
5 words I'll "always" recommend...... Mean City can blow me...... destroyed my Corbin seat, knew they screwed it up and kept my money, I was sorry.
Ok, that's a first, but there's always "two sides" to every story. I'd like to hear MCC's defense on this one b/c you rarely hear anything negative about them and/or their business. So far, you're the Highlander here, unless others chime in.
OP, do what you want, but still recommend MCC for the cheapest & easiest fix...IMO.
5 words I'll "always" recommend...... Mean City can blow me...... destroyed my Corbin seat, knew they screwed it up and kept my money, I was sorry.
OK, back to the regular scheduled program. 12" shocks can work, ran a set of Progressives but like mentioned earlier ride quality will suffer BUT just put a set of real 12" shocks on it that need set up properly. A good set of coil overs will sag 1 inch meaning a 12" will be 11" and won't bottom out like a set of base Progressives, running a Corbin Hollywood and looking for a taller solo seat because the seat height is now on the low side. Nobody on here is going to recommend lowering brackets on the swing arm for the shocks, weak swing arms on the Evo touring bikes.
Sounds like an Impending Trade to me!! Seats that is...
I will add that if it is as easy as the FXR or Dyna to lower the front end.. It does Not take much to make a Big Difference.. besides just a bit lower [where ya need it] the Rake will be reduced, which will make it handle more Nimbly at low speed... it is Not much certainly, but, it will make a difference..
$0.02 ...
Note; The Boy's FXR is full height rear, and a bit lower [not even 1/2 an inch] Front, and it is noticeably more nimble.
Last edited by Racepres; Apr 16, 2019 at 07:37 AM.
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