I am considering a Corbin seat, both for looks and comfort. I am particularly interested in gunfighter seats as I do not plan to do any two up riding. All of my riding is winding mountain roads with a few highway blasts between roads.
I noticed on Corbin's website you can choose different colors and materials for the seat bottom, sides and rear of the seat. I would love to see what all of your seats look like and your impression of the seat vs. stock.
My gunfighter
Are you close enough to ride to Hollister CA? They have ride in service on Saturdays and will make your seat while you wait with several "test fittings" to make sure it fits you like a glove (ass glove I guess). You'll probably be meeting Mike Corbin as well and that is worth the trip alone... great guy with a great story!
Frank
I have had both Gunfighter and the Gunfighter and Lady seats on a few bikes over the last 25 years. IMO....stay away from leather for the area that you actually sit in. On 300+ mile rides, by the end of the day you will think you are sitting on a 1x12 piece of wood. Also, the vinyl weave material has a tendency to harden and crack over time if the bike is not garage kept.
I had my gunfighter and lady seat recovered locally and I chose a marine grade vinyl.
Fred
I did have a Gunfighter for a short time that was on my Black bike before I sold it. The seat was purchased by a fellow member.
Quote from: giantkiller on November 22, 2016, 08:23:21 AM
My gunfighter
That is one of the exact color combos I am considering. I have an 86 FJ1200 in red and white. Do you remember what color red you chose? Ninja Red and Tomato Red are the two closest on the Corbin website. How close does it match the red of the bike (its hard to accurately tell in pictures).
Quote from: aviationfred on November 22, 2016, 09:53:49 AM
I have had both Gunfighter and the Gunfighter and Lady seats on a few bikes over the last 25 years. IMO....stay away from leather for the area that you actually sit in. On 300+ mile rides, by the end of the day you will think you are sitting on a 1x12 piece of wood. Also, the vinyl weave material has a tendency to harden and crack over time if the bike is not garage kept.
I had my gunfighter and lady seat recovered locally and I chose a marine grade vinyl.
Fred
I did have a Gunfighter for a short time that was on my Black bike before I sold it. The seat was purchased by a fellow member.
It looks like that seat has the carbon fiber, which I assume is a vinyl. They also have a material called "grabber", but not sure how that feels or holds up.
Quote from: Formula51 on November 22, 2016, 10:08:43 AM
It looks like that seat has the carbon fiber, which I assume is a vinyl. They also have a material called "grabber", but not sure how that feels or holds up.
I did not have Corbin recover my seat. There is a local shop here in Wichita, KS. that I used and I chose the material from sample swatches that they had.
This is the shop that I used. http://www.uniqueautoupholstery.com/home.shtml (http://www.uniqueautoupholstery.com/home.shtml)
Fred
Quote from: Formula51 on November 22, 2016, 10:06:07 AM
Quote from: giantkiller on November 22, 2016, 08:23:21 AM
My gunfighter
That is one of the exact color combos I am considering. I have an 86 FJ1200 in red and white. Do you remember what color red you chose? Ninja Red and Tomato Red are the two closest on the Corbin website. How close does it match the red of the bike (its hard to accurately tell in pictures).
I actually had it recovered locally. Using marine grade vinyl. Like Fred. I actually took the tail section in with me to try and match as close as possible.
I like Frank's idea.
If I was to do it again I would lose the white and have It be solid red. With black seat.
Quote from: giantkiller on November 22, 2016, 11:16:02 AM
If I was to do it again I would lose the white and have It be solid red. With black seat.
Here is what FJmonkey did to his Corbin Gunfighter.
(http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb37/campsimonette/FJ1100/IMG_7591_zpspy2ss181.jpg) (http://s208.photobucket.com/user/campsimonette/media/FJ1100/IMG_7591_zpspy2ss181.jpg.html)
Very comfy, I used this seat when I completed my SS1000 (1000 miles within 24 hours).
http://www.ironbutt.com/ridecerts/getdocument.cfm?DocID=1 (http://www.ironbutt.com/ridecerts/getdocument.cfm?DocID=1)
Gunfighter with Lady on my '87
(http://i858.photobucket.com/albums/ab144/FeralG/Misc/dsc00275_zpsmfh6ssyo.jpg)
This is my home made corbin seat. I made it using the stock FJ and fusing an 82 seca turbo ass on to it.....cut some foam....formed it using tooth picks and sent it off to the upholstery shop for some new skin.......I will be sending it back this winter to re-do again....with the passenger seat white and the riders seat all black ..... :drinks:
(http://i1071.photobucket.com/albums/u517/photocandman/mywheels096.jpg)
CanDman
Quote from: aviationfred on November 22, 2016, 11:39:12 AM
Quote from: giantkiller on November 22, 2016, 11:16:02 AM
If I was to do it again I would lose the white and have It be solid red. With black seat.
Here is what FJmonkey did to his Corbin Gunfighter.
Yep that's what I would do
Formula51,
Also consider the Gunfighter and Lady seat even if you don't ride 2-up. I had both and I found that the Gunfighter seat that I had was deeper -- that is it sat me back further away from the bars- than the GF & Lady. I preferred the GF & Lady seating position so got rid of the Gunfighter and kept the other. If I was taller (I'm 5-10) I think the GF would have been more comfortable for me.
Just a thought --
Mark M
Another thing I would change. I also had the grippy stuff on the seat area. It makes it too hard to move around on the seat. I have to use Armor All on the seat if I'm going to be riding the twisties.
Quote from: aviationfred on November 22, 2016, 11:39:12 AM
Quote from: giantkiller on November 22, 2016, 11:16:02 AM
If I was to do it again I would lose the white and have It be solid red. With black seat.
Here is what FJmonkey did to his Corbin Gunfighter.
Do you know if he used Corbin materials? I like this look as well and am trying to figure out if Corbin has a red that matches the FJ closely.
Another option would be black seat with red sides and white tail section. The white tail would match the theme of the white gas tank top and therefore not require the reds to match as closely.
Quote from: Formula51 on November 22, 2016, 02:02:22 PM
Do you know if he used Corbin materials? I like this look as well and am trying to figure out if Corbin has a red that matches the FJ closely.
Another option would be black seat with red sides and white tail section. The white tail would match the theme of the white gas tank top and therefore not require the reds to match as closely.
I used a local shop that had marine quality materials. I also had some extra foam added to raise the seat.
Went by the Corbin factory several years ago while on a family trip up to SF. Ordered the seat on the way up and picked it up on the way home. Enjoyed walking thru the factory and seeing all the work going on.
Corbin recommends leather for the seat bottom, but ya'll are saying vinyl. Can anyone elaborate why?
I don't know, some like to move around on the seat in the corners. I tend to keep my butt planted unless I miss judged the corner and feel like I need to lower my CG for comfort. If you keep your FJ covered then the material really depends on what your ass likes. Don't worry too much on material, get what you want and enjoy the ride...
My lady and gf came with leather. And it was hard as a rock. Still looked good. I had it recovered in vinyl. Comfy now.
Quote from: Formula51 on November 22, 2016, 06:04:46 PM
Corbin recommends leather for the seat bottom, but ya'll are saying vinyl. Can anyone elaborate why?
I don't think the material matters much. Several other factors do, like how wide and soft your ass is. The big advantage of getting a custom fit Corbin is their knowledge about what you're going to like based on talking with you. You also get to ride the saddle before it's done to make sure it is a go. They tend to focus on firmness and on width between the legs... the width is particularly important since is trades off ease of use (narrow) for comfortably spread out load (wide). The cover should be soft and compliant and the seat/pad designed to interface you to the bike.
If you can't go there, Corbin will get it 90% right for you out of the box anyway... just talk to them when you order and they'll get you in the ballpark to say the least. If you can do it, go to their place and wait for your masterpiece. They will also adjust things for a year after you buy it, in case that fitness program kicks in...
Frank
Awesome. Their website says they will send fabric samples so I can see what color matches the bike closest. I do like the ability to move around on the seat some so thinking vinyl over leather.
Leather is probably more slippery than the vinyl grippy stuff that kinda looks like carbon fiber. The leather (at least the stuff they used to use) gets hard. Like I said mine still looked great, it was just hard/ not pliable at all.
I just wanted to post a picture of my bike. This is at GMR for those in LA county.
(http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/s361/anchondomichael/20141221_161140_zpsyhsx0mbz.jpg) (http://s1048.photobucket.com/user/anchondomichael/media/20141221_161140_zpsyhsx0mbz.jpg.html)
Quote from: Mike 86 in San Dimas on November 22, 2016, 09:41:39 PM
I just wanted to post a picture of my bike. This is at GMR for those in LA county.
(http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/s361/anchondomichael/20141221_161140_zpsyhsx0mbz.jpg) (http://s1048.photobucket.com/user/anchondomichael/media/20141221_161140_zpsyhsx0mbz.jpg.html)
This is a great photo that actually shows the newer style of the Gunfighter. Look at all of the previous posts and you will notice that the passenger section is very
round. This newer style is more flat and has a sleeker profile.
Fred
Actually this is not very new. I bought it used a few years ago, cant remember now if it was from a forum member or an ebay purchase. I dont know how old it is. It was like new when I bought it. A little lower seat than stock a little wider too. I like it. If this is the one for you, I suppose you could send photo to Corbin, they could identify and make for you.
If the bike is going to sit out in the sun you might want to reconsider the red/white color combo.
The red can fade to pink and the white can get easily stained.
As far as the vinyl vs. leather. I have leather on my '85 and had vinyl on my '93. Could not tell any difference.
Both were a HUGE improvement over stock. First thing I bought for my FZ1 was a Corbin.
Quote from: FJ_Hooligan on November 28, 2016, 04:14:03 PM
As far as the vinyl vs. leather. I have leather on my '85 and had vinyl on my '93. Could not tell any difference.
Upholstery grade vinyl is a very uniform product but it's hard to lump all leather into the one basket, it ranges from thick cardboard stiff to soft Conelly hide and everything in between.
Noel
A tip I learned from an old friend: His dad ran his own custom marine upholstery business. He suggested to me if I ever recover a seat - use marine vinyl. It has superior UV resistance than "regular" vinyl, and other properties that make it more durable. And it comes in all those purty colours too.
Marine Vinyl (http://www.perfectfit.com/15992/Marine--Exterior.html)
Brand new corbin
Silver piping looks nice!
Did you get the back rest for the Lady?
That brand new Corbin looks like a million bucks. The way it tapers off at the back and the over all low profile really work with the appearance of the bike.
I purchased this Corbin off eBay a while ago. I also picked up the backrest as well. Aftermarket. I haven't had the seat redone yet as I have no idea what colour scheme to do it or do I leave it black all over? Ideas please. I've been reading the articles. Interesting. Some photos of peoples choices are fantastic. The piping on mine is red ( original I Doubredly,)but I temporarily changed it to black. (Texta colour for now) . It works. I must admit. Even in its deshevelled state it has to be the most comfortable seats I've sat on. The material must be the original as it's hard as hell and minimal give its cracked all over the place but I love it. Oddly enough my wife thinks it's ok as well. It's one of the first jobs for the new year that's getting done.
Quote from: Jeff0308 on December 22, 2016, 06:10:49 PM
I purchased this Corbin off eBay a while ago. I also picked up the backrest as well. Aftermarket. I haven't had the seat redone yet as I have no idea what colour scheme to do it or do I leave it black all over? Ideas please. I've been reading the articles. Interesting. Some photos of peoples choices are fantastic. The piping on mine is red ( original I Doubredly,)but I temporarily changed it to black. (Texta colour for now) . It works. I must admit. Even in its deshevelled state it has to be the most comfortable seats I've sat on. The material must be the original as it's hard as hell and minimal give its cracked all over the place but I love it. Oddly enough my wife thinks it's ok as well. It's one of the first jobs for the new year that's getting done.
You have to live with it/look at it for a very long time and bling can become tiresome. I sometimes think folks try and make a feature of too many things and it starts looking too busy. An excess of cosmetic adornments could lead to this, it starts with contrasting piping and before you know it.......
(https://motorbikewriter.com/content/uploads/2013/12/blingwing-1500.jpg)
Seriously, the only person that needs to like the look of the seat is you. Search the internet and find a look you like and do it.
Noel
I know it's entirely a matter of personal taste but I like all black with contrasting texture/pattern for some relief, subtle but classy. Do not use leather!
I'm selling this one for $175 plus shipping if anyone's interested.....backrest included, like new with no tears
Quote from: yambutt on December 31, 2016, 01:13:22 AMI'm selling this one for $175 plus shipping if anyone's interested.....backrest included, like new with no tears
If anyone still has Corbin for sale with back east please let me know.
Cheers!