Corbin seat

[CorEnFa]

FWIW - regarding the timing...
I ordered mine on the 18th of January and got my tracking number today. That's 11 days turn around. Consider me thrilled. Now I just have to wait on FedEx from CA to VA. It should be in on Saturday.

 

[surf1div1]

Just called Corbin about the issue on closing the rear seat and they stated I could send it back and they would shave it down to fit better. Humm..what a hassle- I stated I would contact a local upholster to do that if that's their solution. Unfortunately they failed to offer any consideration to the additional cost to do this.

I ran into the same issue with my install, plus the hole on the right side didn't match up to the hole like the stock seat. It's a bitch to close the pillion seat as well. As anyone else modded the pillion to work easier?

 

[CorEnFa]

Well...in all fairness to them, they do advise this on their website in the description of the seat and advise buying both seats. I made the conscientious choice to only buy the front seat knowing that the back seat is difficult to close.

 

[Billy Budd]

Just called Corbin about the issue on closing the rear seat and they stated I could send it back and they would shave it down to fit better. Humm..what a hassle- I stated I would contact a local upholster to do that if that's their solution. Unfortunately they failed to offer any consideration to the additional cost to do this.

Before you do anything, why not try putting several hundred miles of seat time on it? That worked for me.

 

[Nortwestrider]

Is the Corbin any wider then the stocker ??.I need a seat that supports my hips so wider is good.Could you take a pic of the 2 side by side ??

 

[CorEnFa]

Ut turns out FedEx was a little delayed on mine, so I don't get it until later today. I'll take a pic and post it of the two side by side and give you an impression of their widths.

 

[johnakay]

Rocker give Tony archer a bell. he did an excellent job on my ER6 cheap as well.Tony Archer - Classic and Modern Car Trimmer, Motorcycle Seat Specialists
the ER6 very near ended my biking.
the original seat was to hard and had reupholstered and it was even worst.
did 200 miles and by the time we got home I was almost in tears with pain.
never road the bike for over two months,tried to sell it but no takers.
some one on the ER forum suggested that I give T Archer ago.
so I rang him and told him exactly what I wanted.
never looked back.
we went for a ride out and did 260 miles or more with just a slight ache.
I couldn't believe it what a difference it made.
the only down side is that he will need your seat to work on

 

[Rocker66]

Rocker give Tony archer a bell. he did an excellent job on my ER6 cheap as well.Tony Archer - Classic and Modern Car Trimmer, Motorcycle Seat Specialists
the ER6 very near ended my biking.
the original seat was to hard and had reupholstered and it was even worst.
did 200 miles and by the time we got home I was almost in tears with pain.
never road the bike for over two months,tried to sell it but no takers.
some one on the ER forum suggested that I give T Archer ago.
so I rang him and told him exactly what I wanted.
never looked back.
we went for a ride out and did 260 miles or more with just a slight ache.
I couldn't believe it what a difference it made.
the only down side is that he will need your seat to work on

I had my NC seat done by a local guy some time ago. I know of Tony archer from my time in the "Pan Clan" many members of which use his services

 

[CorEnFa]

Well, so far it's a no go with my Corbin.

The seat doesn't fit the bike at all. Getting the stock seat off was easy and fishing the wires for the heater was also easy. There was no need to remove all the tupperware that they recommended. It's quite easy to fish the wires from the seat position safely to the battery in seconds without disassembling. However, that's where the easy part ended.

The new seat pan is tight. VERY tight to the bike. So tight that no matter how hard I push (or rubber mallet) it to the front of the bike, it just won't go any further. There's about a 1/2" (12mm) gap between the front of the seat pan and the frunk. That makes it so that the rear of the pan sits flush on the gas receiver lip (the little rubber gasket surrounding the gas fill spout) and the tabs where the 2 10mm bolts holding the seat in place are almost an inch away from reaching the mount tabs on the bike. No amount of pushing and shoving will make it reach.

The fact that the seat is resting where it is also makes it completely impossible to close the rear seat. Not difficult - impossible.

Also, the little pig tail that plugs the heater element in. Well, it's not so little. It's actually quite large. And since the seat pan is custom molded to the bike and the pig tail is only about 4 inches long, there's absolutely no place to put it where it doesn't damage the seat pan.

I called Corbin tech support and was VERY dismayed. I sat on hold for over 15 minutes and then as soon as the person picked up, I got hung up on.

I called back again, waited 20 more minutes and the young lady I spoke with seemed FAR more interested in getting me off the phone than helping. She told me to follow the trouble shooting steps on their website (which do NOT help). After I mentioned this, she said I'd have to take pictures of how the seat doesn't fit and send it to them.

So far, questionable build quality, high cost, poor fitment, and bad engineering. Couple that with bad customer service and they're going to have to do a LOT to keep me from getting pissed off at them. I'm going to notify them of this post and since there are others here who have expressed some level of disappointment, hope that they'll come here to discuss.

For now, I'm quite disappointed and sincerely hope I don't have to fight to get my money back. I just want a dang seat that works.

 

[Cagedodger]

That is truly disappointing! I hope you paid with a credit card so that you can dispute the charges if it comes to that.

I've got to say, I've never been a fan of their seat cover designs, but I was almost tempted to place an order with them since they have a "bolt-on" replacement. If the bolts don't line up, though... that's a different story all together. And not a good story at that.

 

[CorEnFa]

I didn't care at all for the seat cover design on the MP3, but I did sit on a few and found them WAY more comfortable. (But sitting on a box of shuffled razor blades might have actually met that criteria also).
I went with the carbon fiber weave leather cover on this and I will say, the fit and finish of the outer cover is quite nice. Props to them on that.

Considering I was advised to bend the tongue, I'm going to give it quite a bend tomorrow morning first thing. I tried bending it with channel lock pliers, but it maybe budged 1mm. I'm going to put the tongue in a vice and see if it won't budge a good half-an-inch.

 

[Cagedodger]

I didn't care at all for the seat cover design on the MP3, but I did sit on a few and found them WAY more comfortable. (But sitting on a box of shuffled razor blades might have actually met that criteria also).
I went with the carbon fiber weave leather cover on this and I will say, the fit and finish of the outer cover is quite nice. Props to them on that.

Considering I was advised to bend the tongue, I'm going to give it quite a bend tomorrow morning first thing. I tried bending it with channel lock pliers, but it maybe budged 1mm. I'm going to put the tongue in a vice and see if it won't budge a good half-an-inch.

Wait.. what? Bend the tongue?! I'm sorry, but making a template is a very basic thing which this seat should be based off of.

I suppose it's a nice consolation that you've got a nice looking shelf ornament or door stop. You should push them to delivering a seat to you that fits to the bike and is worth their asking price.

 

[CorEnFa]

Yeah...they advise lubing the rubber stops (done) and the tongue (done) and bending it if it doesn't fit.
I noticed when I put a light, white grease on both sides of the tongue, only the top part of the tongue receptacle on the bike frame shows any trace of grease. That tells me only the top of the tongue is coming in contact with the bike. Logic would tell me, reduce that friction point and I should be able to get the seat on a few more millimeters. That's what I'm hoping at least. When I bend that tongue, if I fix it, I celebrate and ride. If I break it or there is no better fit, then I call VERY cranky.

In either case, by 10AM tomorrow (Wednesday), I'll know for sure.

 

[CorEnFa]

Update...
I woke up early this morning trying to resolve the seat fit issue and I have some success to report.

The tongue most DEFINITELY needed to be bent down. Once I bent it down (only about another 5mm), the seat slid on much better. It allows the seat to go more forward and with the bend, a little up the tank. That made the seat fit more flush with the body and thus made the bolt tabs line up better. I say "better" because they still don't line up perfectly, but they can be pushed into place with a little gentle pressure while tightening the bolts and they're held well enough in place (without causing major undue strain on the seat or the frame.)

The pig tail MUST be worked in such a way that it slides under the tongue support. You have to cajole the wiring a little bit too to make sure that it does in fact go under it and that it doesn't get pinched by the small rectangular support blocks on the bike frame.

The gastank/rear seat is a booger to close and open now. I'm worried that the strain on the locking mechanism may prove to be too much. However, I'm going to give it a little time and see.

The look of the saddle is top notch. I do give them props for that. It's well made. The leather is riveted in place instead of stapled (tighter fit, but I suppose a bear to fix if you need to access the heater element).

As with all Corbin seats, it's firm. VERY firm. I don't really consider this to be a problem. While it is firm, my (very short) sit test this morning confirmed that the seat does support the sit bones in the arse and helps to ensure correct posture. The Honda stock seat does not support the sit bones and virtually assures poor posture in the lower lumbar. This particular seat is a low profile seat, so if you've used a Corbin before and thought it was firm, this one is even more firm. As usual, I expect it (and my arse) to break in over time.

At this point, my concerns are:
1 - Their customer service (In addition to the lady yesterday, I had an e-mail go completely unanswered regarding my already placed order). That being said, they shipped it well before they said they would. I'm willing to call this a wash.
2 - The gas tank/rear seat fit. I'm contemplating just purchasing the rear seat now. It's not expensive, it should look really nice, and it will keep my bike from being damaged by the tight fit on the seat.
3 - How comfortable my butt will be after a 30 minute heated ride and how I won't want to get off.

Short version of the story - I'm aggravated by Corbin for a bad example of customer service, some engineering gone awry, and their lack of troubleshooting steps identified on the instructions (virtually ensuring I have to sit on hold for extended periods of time just to be told to go to their web page). On the other hand, I'm pleased by the look and feel of the seat and certainly pleased that they got it to me while it's still cold.

J.

 

[nc700xbarcelona]

Many thanks for the update CorEnFa. The seat mod together with the different screen options represent the most popular purchasing issues that face us NCers. The quality/price product is one thing, but customer service is often the most important and this you only find out after you've made the investment, so great feedback!

 

[CorEnFa]

Thanks nc700xbarcelona!
FWIW, I always give a company a second chance with regards to customer service. There are always a number of factors that play into how an interchange goes down. Maybe I got the lady after she had a bad customer, maybe I sounded pissy, maybe she needed to pee and I was the only call standing in her way.

As an engineer myself, I wish the instructions would have either had troubleshooting steps identified in the manual, or a direct pointer to their website where the troubleshooting steps are. Instead, the manual has a big sign that says "Questions? Give us a holler at 1-800-xxx-xxxx." If they had just pointed me to the troubleshooting steps in the instructions, I wouldn't have done what they asked (called them) and waited on hold for a very long time just to be told to visit their website.

Anyway - I'm completely with you. Customer service is where it's at. I'm going to give Corbin a chance to redeem themselves - especially since the seat is so darn nice!

Cheers!

 

[deedub]

So far, questionable build quality, high cost, poor fitment, and bad engineering. Couple that with bad customer service and they're going to have to do a LOT to keep me from getting pissed off at them.

I had similar fit problems, while others have received seats that fit perfectly. It seems it's a crapshoot whether you get the drunk guy or the sober guy building your seat. I took pictures, emailed them to the support person I was in contact with, and sent the seats back. They've had them back in hand for a week but I haven't heard a peep from them, despite sending an email requesting a status update.

BTW, I strongly recommend against getting the passenger seat in the hopes that it'll fit better with their front seat. I got one, and it's clear that it wasn't designed with frequent gas tank access in mind. It doesn't fit as well as the stock seat, is much heavier, and doesn't have the shock absorber rods that the stock seat does.

 

[CorEnFa]

Last update on this for now.
I got the seat working and installed as described above. When it's in place, it really does look quite nice!
The heater element is HOT. VERY HOT.
I went out riding to get lunch today - a 15 minute ride each way. Half way into the ride, my arse was on fire! I had to kill the heater on it due to discomfort. I don't really consider this too much of a problem as I was wearing only jeans. Normally, I wear riding pants over my jeans which, in this mid-50s weather, would be warmth enough. Also, in lower temperatures, the riding pants will shield me from excessive heat from the seat. It's the exact opposite problem than what I thought it would be. I was expecting it to not produce enough heat. Problem solved. The switch is also easily accessible while riding. It got hot enough though that I had to ride on the pegs while some cool air swept between my toasted cheeks and the seat and cooled them both off.

I have some pics in my Member Portfolio.

Cheers-
J.

 

[searsboy]

Gotta love the toasted buns!!!

 

[HONDABIKEPRO]

Update...
I woke up early this morning trying to resolve the seat fit issue and I have some success to report.

The tongue most DEFINITELY needed to be bent down. Once I bent it down (only about another 5mm), the seat slid on much better. It allows the seat to go more forward and with the bend, a little up the tank. That made the seat fit more flush with the body and thus made the bolt tabs line up better. I say "better" because they still don't line up perfectly, but they can be pushed into place with a little gentle pressure while tightening the bolts and they're held well enough in place (without causing major undue strain on the seat or the frame.)

The pig tail MUST be worked in such a way that it slides under the tongue support. You have to cajole the wiring a little bit too to make sure that it does in fact go under it and that it doesn't get pinched by the small rectangular support blocks on the bike frame.

The gastank/rear seat is a booger to close and open now. I'm worried that the strain on the locking mechanism may prove to be too much. However, I'm going to give it a little time and see.

The look of the saddle is top notch. I do give them props for that. It's well made. The leather is riveted in place instead of stapled (tighter fit, but I suppose a bear to fix if you need to access the heater element).

As with all Corbin seats, it's firm. VERY firm. I don't really consider this to be a problem. While it is firm, my (very short) sit test this morning confirmed that the seat does support the sit bones in the arse and helps to ensure correct posture. The Honda stock seat does not support the sit bones and virtually assures poor posture in the lower lumbar. This particular seat is a low profile seat, so if you've used a Corbin before and thought it was firm, this one is even more firm. As usual, I expect it (and my arse) to break in over time.

At this point, my concerns are:
1 - Their customer service (In addition to the lady yesterday, I had an e-mail go completely unanswered regarding my already placed order). That being said, they shipped it well before they said they would. I'm willing to call this a wash.
2 - The gas tank/rear seat fit. I'm contemplating just purchasing the rear seat now. It's not expensive, it should look really nice, and it will keep my bike from being damaged by the tight fit on the seat.
3 - How comfortable my butt will be after a 30 minute heated ride and how I won't want to get off.

Short version of the story - I'm aggravated by Corbin for a bad example of customer service, some engineering gone awry, and their lack of troubleshooting steps identified on the instructions (virtually ensuring I have to sit on hold for extended periods of time just to be told to go to their web page). On the other hand, I'm pleased by the look and feel of the seat and certainly pleased that they got it to me while it's still cold.

J.

this is why we do not sell corbin seats, 8 out of 10 do not fit, we ordered one for a customer and when you put the seat on the side covers would come off, the customer said not thanks i do not want this seat, and corbin would not take it back, they would only give me a credit on future products, but i had to give the customer back his money. you should not have to have a trouble shooting manual to install a seat. dale