You're all right about The Seat

[Olythom]

I have almost 8k miles (one year) on Skookum now and have been commuting whenever the road's not icy. Daily commute is 45 minutes each way. I have read over and over about what a crappy seat the NC has and I never really bought it because, in all of my commuting, the seat never really bothered me.

Today, I did a 4.5 hour ride. You are all correct... this seat is pretty awful! I did alright for the first 2.5 hours or so but after that, things got painful.

Time to start shopping.
>T

 

[bduffey]

Honda got a lot of things right with this bike. The seat............... not so much!

 

[Deckyon]

Um, well, duh. But, at least there are ways to fix. For me, it only took an Air Hawk 2. Would another whole seat make it that I dont have to use the AH2? Possibily. But I can find better places to drop $300 than on a new seat.

I tried a gel pad for a while, and it helped, but didnt fix the problem for me. The AH2 works for me.

 

[670cc]

Honda got a lot of things right with this bike. The seat............... not so much!

Obviously Honda doesn't care. We got bold new body work for the 2016 model, but basically the same old torture device seat that's the number one complaint about the motorcycle. Honda only needs the seat to look decent and to be comfortable for the duration of your pre-purchase test ride, and it has done it's job.

 

[Ruggybuggy]

Um, well, duh. But, at least there are ways to fix. For me, it only took an Air Hawk 2. Would another whole seat make it that I dont have to use the AH2? Possibily. But I can find better places to drop $300 than on a new seat.

I tried a gel pad for a while, and it helped, but didnt fix the problem for me. The AH2 works for me.

Buy the Seat Concepts seat. Relatively cheap but get it with the grip cover. I've done very long extended trips on the seat and it's the best seat I've had on any of my bikes, and I've had plenty.

 

[walawn]

I love my Corbin. I'm not flat footed anymore at lights, but the comfort is worth it.

 

[dduelin]

Every time I pass another mile under my wheels the pain of paying for a comfortable seat is less and less.

 

[misterk]

ah2 for me as well

 

[sumo]

What's an Air Hawk 2?

[video=youtube;W_x_TGH6p5M?t]AR2[/video]

 

[drdubb]

I've got one from my old nighthawk and they work great. I have a hard time with the added height.

I currently have the Seat,Concepts low...works pretty well.

 

[Gibsito]

With Airhawks, beads, and any other kind of throw-on-top-of-the-existing-seat thing you end up further away from the asphalt. That might be a good thing for some, but it's not so good for those of us with shorter inseams. I've got a Seat Concepts "Low" on order and am hoping it kills two birds for me.

 

[yearroundrider]

I hear yeah Thom. I got the Corbin seat but still use the air hawk for longer rides. With a longer inseam it's not an issue when stopped and actually gives me a more comfortable bend at the knee when riding. Happy shopping!


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[OneGun]

I just sent my seat to Seat Concepts earlier this week. Should be there today. Total OTD cost for me on this will be around $220 including my shipping to them. If you want to do the installation yourself, you save $20 as well as the cost of shipping to them. So that puts you in the $180 neighborhood. For that price vs. the cost of some of the Air Hawks I've seen around $120, kicking in the extra $$ for the actual seat just made more sense.

And as has been said, the OEM seat is fine for commutes, but if you're doing anything north of 3 hours, it's tough.

 

[supertux1]

The bike is primarily marketed as a commuter bike, not an Iron Butt Rally machine so I can see why they went with various cost saving measures on the seat and elsewhere.
It is built to a price point, which thankfully you can go way beyond with aftermarket options. (Who doesn't love turning a $7000 bike into a $13000 bike?)

If they made it any more plush it would make the bike higher and that might not appeal to shorter riders who would be more confident buying the bike if they could flat foot it in the showroom.
The fact that I can flat foot this bike was certainly a factor in the purchase decision, and maybe after learning its characteristics I'll be more keen on upgrading the seat, even if it means I have to lean left at stops.

 

[dduelin]

It's pretty much the same on every motorcycle forum. Stock seats suck and folks can't ride to the corner store without trying beads, fur skins, gel pads, semi custom aftermarket seats and fully fitted personally crafted custom seats. Honda would never get a stock seat design that would make most people happy so they do the best they can which was pretty good considering how personal seats are.

 

[johnakay]

easy solution as far height goes is to get a lowering kit.
some can get away with airhawk seats,others can't.
what suit one person may not suit another.
I tried the A/hawk pad but wasn't entirely happy with the results so this year I'll ride without and see if there is any difference to this ol *** of mine.

 

[JDE]

easy solution as far height goes is to get a lowering kit.
some can get away with airhawk seats,others can't.
what suit one person may not suit another.
I tried the A/hawk pad but wasn't entirely happy with the results so this I'll ride without and see if there is any difference to this ol *** of mine.

Yup, lowering is easy. Just lowered mine yesterday after I had a Russell Day long seat installed last Friday.

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[johnakay]

if I decide to go for a new bike next year I may go for the Russel all day seat.

 

[JDE]

It's a very nice seat. Luckily I live within about 3hrs ride from there. So, I made a ride in appointment. Very nice staff, they made up the front and rear seats let me try it out and then put the cover on after making some adjustments. I wouldn't hesitate to do business with them again.

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[HNM]

100 mile and my rear is feeling the pain modified Seat Concepts.
Stock Seat Concepts was just to flat. So what is the best seat?