Comfy seat - please read
Road Captain
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 582
Likes: 3
From: Australia
Well i am currently recovering from surgery which i had 4 weeks ago on a ruptured disc which was pushing on my sciatic nerve.I had exactly the same surgery back in May.Problem with me was the disc ruptured and splintered and the splinters sit on your sciatic nerve and no amount of Physiotherapy was going to fix my problem.I had severe pain in my left buttock and down the back of my left leg and had no reflex in my left ankle to the point i needed immediate surgery so it is serious if it gets severe enough.
I ride a Heritage and i actually have Beach bars with a Corbin seat with rider backrest which is not too bad.I even took a photo i had of me riding my scoot down the highway and showed my Neurosurgeon to see what he thought of my riding position.He said it was pretty good.
But to soften the ride up a bit i am going to put a Mustang wide solo and a rider backrest for longer rides as well as some air ride suspension to reduce the vibration and make things a bit more comfy.If that doesnt do the trick i will try apes but thats if all else fails but i am confident the new seat and air ride will help things along.
Good luck.
I ride a Heritage and i actually have Beach bars with a Corbin seat with rider backrest which is not too bad.I even took a photo i had of me riding my scoot down the highway and showed my Neurosurgeon to see what he thought of my riding position.He said it was pretty good.
But to soften the ride up a bit i am going to put a Mustang wide solo and a rider backrest for longer rides as well as some air ride suspension to reduce the vibration and make things a bit more comfy.If that doesnt do the trick i will try apes but thats if all else fails but i am confident the new seat and air ride will help things along.
Good luck.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 5,257
Likes: 6
From: Leander Texas
+2 on the Mustang seat, i went thru 3 seats incuding mustang and the large 17in was way bettter than the 14in. also just adjusting the handle bar back 1 in let me sit upright. 500 mile trip is no problem
Road Captain
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 731
Likes: 2
From: Montreal Quebec Canada
have had back problems for 21 years since i rolled my car 6 times....yup that was something special and lucky to be alive, i have a corbin seat, it is nice and firm avoids the pressure points when the butt sinks into the seat, have the optional back rest that goes on and off easily, also recommend stretching for at least 10 minutes before and 10 minutes after, i know it is a pain but really works, warms up the muscles before hand, and stretches them out after the ride, also if you are a little over weight that puts added pressure, strong stomach muscles and forcing those muscles to support your back by sitting tall when you are on the bike and squeezing your stomach muscles will also help....of course massages also help, key is to keep anything from touch the sciatic nerve in your lowere back, i deal with it all the time especially when it is cold or damp.....good luck.
Tourer
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 426
Likes: 0
From: On the road to nowhere, UK
Some great advice here. I have to stretch out my hips by putting my legs rearward if I'm travelling, and am seriously contemplating getting some small mid or rear mounted rests of some sort.
The best advice I can give is to get off and walk around your bike a few times every hour!!
The best advice I can give is to get off and walk around your bike a few times every hour!!
Road Master
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 892
Likes: 0
From: San Diego (Poway), CA
I never changed seats, gone 52K miles on the orginal HD seat. I did play with the shock adjustments, bar adjustments, etc adjustments. Will be going to air shocks soon now that Momma is riding with again.
Road Captain
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 534
Likes: 0
From: Good Old "New England"
get the Ultra with the air adjustable seat. did you see that thing you can adjust it on the fly to many different positions.
if not check out Mean Citys website they can customize your seat any way you like,*** gell & memory foam etc...
if not check out Mean Citys website they can customize your seat any way you like,*** gell & memory foam etc...
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Cruiser
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 171
Likes: 0
From: Hong Kong via Australia
Thanks a lot for the replies and insights.
I was away from the forum yesterday as the doc gave me a shot of steroids guided by CT scan. He really took his time. This apparently scars the nerve and stops the pain. He says it has a 90% chance of success as he ruled out the piriformis (wallet in LHS back pocket).
Before I bought my Fat Boy and after I had a Dyna Street Bob, I owned a Suzuki GSX1400. As much as I had mechanical issues with the Suzi, there was no back or leg pain. I was leaning forward with a lot of weight on the handlebars. The Doc said that pretty much answered my long term question. I then recalled that all the times I have owned cruiser bikes, I have had a bad back.
I will have to have a think about what to do...
I was away from the forum yesterday as the doc gave me a shot of steroids guided by CT scan. He really took his time. This apparently scars the nerve and stops the pain. He says it has a 90% chance of success as he ruled out the piriformis (wallet in LHS back pocket).
Before I bought my Fat Boy and after I had a Dyna Street Bob, I owned a Suzuki GSX1400. As much as I had mechanical issues with the Suzi, there was no back or leg pain. I was leaning forward with a lot of weight on the handlebars. The Doc said that pretty much answered my long term question. I then recalled that all the times I have owned cruiser bikes, I have had a bad back.
I will have to have a think about what to do...
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 2,395
Likes: 153
From: Utah
I can't stress this enough (as someone else previously noted). Your riding position is the number one key... and unfortunately, HD hasn't done enough research in this area (that I can find). It is an expensive proposition to find the right answer, too. Plus, it changes from model to model.
I have the same issue as you do with the same history (I could ride a Honda V45 Sabre all day long because it had center pegs and I leaned forward).
I bought a Sundowner seat so that my wife could have a larger and softer pillon when she rode with me. I had an upholstery shop insert some waffle gel from Gel Tek and cut the seat a little deeper so that I would lean forward on my drag bars. Long rides were much improved, but now I get numbness in the legs which I don't do with the stock Night Train seat. I am going to have the Sundowner narrowed a bit in the front to see if that helps.
In my opinion, once you get the right riding position, nothing is more important for long rides than vibration isolation and Gel Tek makes the best product, hands down, for this. You can buy the stuff in sheets and have an upholstery shop rebuild your seat with it. Just make sure that they put a layer of the original foam on top to keep the seat smooth looking.
That's my buck fifty...
I have the same issue as you do with the same history (I could ride a Honda V45 Sabre all day long because it had center pegs and I leaned forward).
I bought a Sundowner seat so that my wife could have a larger and softer pillon when she rode with me. I had an upholstery shop insert some waffle gel from Gel Tek and cut the seat a little deeper so that I would lean forward on my drag bars. Long rides were much improved, but now I get numbness in the legs which I don't do with the stock Night Train seat. I am going to have the Sundowner narrowed a bit in the front to see if that helps.
In my opinion, once you get the right riding position, nothing is more important for long rides than vibration isolation and Gel Tek makes the best product, hands down, for this. You can buy the stuff in sheets and have an upholstery shop rebuild your seat with it. Just make sure that they put a layer of the original foam on top to keep the seat smooth looking.
That's my buck fifty...