crd Posted May 31, 2017 Share Posted May 31, 2017 I recently completed a short 600 mile overnight trip with my SO and I am sufficiently convinced that the OEM FJ saddle is provided as a sadistic joke. The oddest bit is that I have already spent about 2k miles in the saddle, but it wasn't until this trip that I was genuinely uncomfortable. We already had a three day weekend planned in June to ride south, so I called up Rocky and booked a ride in day for Friday, June 23rd. I will just extend my three day weekend an extra day and get to spend the weekend breaking in my new custom BMS. I had previously taken my VFR down to Corbin for the full custom works and was very satisfied with the outcome. Rocky comes highly recommended and this will be my first BMS, but since my intent with the FJ is to be my touring bike for a long time I think this is the best option. I am really excited and will update this thread with my experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
koth442 Posted May 31, 2017 Share Posted May 31, 2017 Bill Mayer is what's up. That dude is awesome. '15 FJ09 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member DavidS Posted June 1, 2017 Premium Member Share Posted June 1, 2017 Love my Corbin! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member martyl Posted June 1, 2017 Premium Member Share Posted June 1, 2017 I knew right from the demo ride at Daytona that the stock seat sucked. I got a Corbin and after six thousand miles it never broke in. Fortunately Corbin will do a one time, up to a year from purchase, swap out to their softer gel foam. I had to ship it to California and it took six weeks to get it back. Big difference in comfort. Love the seat now. A Motorcyclist's Church is the open road.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcml Posted June 3, 2017 Share Posted June 3, 2017 I have used a BMS on my FJR for a very long time and, on long rides, I have stayed comfortable when others were hurting. My only beef is with the seams. They have come apart a couple of times. BMS blames it on my hitting the seat with my boot..and that's correct, I do occaisionally hit the seat. But, that is part of riding and it is going to happen and the design should take that into account. You might want to ask about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crd Posted June 4, 2017 Author Share Posted June 4, 2017 I have used a BMS on my FJR for a very long time and, on long rides, I have stayed comfortable when others were hurting. My only beef is with the seams. They have come apart a couple of times. BMS blames it on my hitting the seat with my boot..and that's correct, I do occaisionally hit the seat. But, that is part of riding and it is going to happen and the design should take that into account. You might want to ask about it. I will be sure to bring this up with Rocky. Thanks for the heads up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crd Posted June 20, 2017 Author Share Posted June 20, 2017 I'm getting pretty excited for my first real long weekend on the FJ. At just under 3000 miles, I just did my second oil change, cleaned, lubed, and adjusted my chains, and checked everything that can move. I'll be putting on fresh rubber Wednesday after work, packing up, and heading out early Thursday morning. It's really hot out here now, so I think I'll forgo my original plan of bevy camping in the Los Padres National Forest and staying at my usual spot of the Motel 6 in Buelton to have a quick ride in to Ojai in the morning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crd Posted June 26, 2017 Author Share Posted June 26, 2017 I was asked to give the seat a solid 1500 miles to "break in" and since I've only got about 850 miles on it since Friday I will hold off on any official feedback until after another trip or so. However, I would like to take the opportunity to write about the experience. I called up Rocky on Wednesday to check on any last minute details before packing up and was surprised to learn that he wouldn't actually be involved in my seat at all. It is now my understanding that Rocky is focusing completely on BMW seats and his long time Master Saddle Maker, Adrian Merdado, is taking over all other custom saddle business. At first I was really thrown off but after speaking with each of them at length before riding down and now after the experience with Adrian I have every confidence in the change and am extremely satisfied with the experience. Adrian's shop is currently located in a warehouse strip in an industrial park in Ventura, CA. It reminds me a lot of Richard and Kathy's shop up in Windsor, CA. I did a little 450 mile ride down and stayed at a motel near Ventura Coast Brewing Company. I headed over to the shop first thing Friday morning and after pleasantries Adrian immediately went to work on my seat. He had his assistant hold the bike upright while I sat in my normal riding position. He asked some questions about my riding style. He pulled the cover off of my OEM seat and carved out a bunch of the stock foam to make a mounting space for the new seat while his assistance started rewrapping my pillion seat to match what would eventually wrap my pilot seat. Once he had the new seat mated with my OEM seat pan, he had me sit on it like before to give quick feedback if I felt any "hotspots." He made a few changes based on that feedback and then asked me to take it out for a test ride of at least 15 - 20 minutes. I popped up to Cañada Large Rd to get a sense for how the new seat shape might impact a more spiriting riding style and then came back to let him know that I felt like I tended to end up sliding forward against the tank. He made a few more changes and had me do another test ride. When I returned, I had nothing else to change so he finished it off with a simple leather cover which I think looks very classy. The whole process lasted a from 0800 until just around noon. To compare it with my previous experience with Corbin: [ul type=disc][*]similar time frame[*]Corbin does custom seat pans while Adrian adds Rocky's proprietary foam seat to your OEM seat pan[*]Corbin has more options for seat coverings (fabric, stitching, design, etc.)[/ul] Given those differences, I would absolutely go with Adrian over Corbin for any other custom seat in the future. Corbin's pans need to be ordered before hand and even the guy who shaped my seat and has allegedly been doing so for over 20 years doesn't really care for them. I am also less interested in all the fancy seat covering than I am in the comfort of the seat and Adrian definitely helped me feel like this seat is 100% made to fit me and my riding and no one else's. For reference, Adrian's number is (805) 212-9582. He is planning to offer discounts for law enforcement, fire fighters, veterans, and active duty service members. If you end giving him a call about a seat, feel free to mention that you heard about him through me. Adrian has been excellent to work with and I can't recommend his work enough. I will update the thread after I've put a few hundred more miles on the seat and have had a chance to talk to Adrian about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crd Posted December 6, 2017 Author Share Posted December 6, 2017 A recent comment in another thread reminded me to update this one. I've put a few thousand miles on the saddle at this point and the simple fact is I have zero complaints. It is by far my favourite place to spend burning through a tank of fuel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crd Posted August 6, 2018 Author Share Posted August 6, 2018 I just spent another two full summer days on this saddle. About 425 miles per day of mostly back roads between the Bay Area and Santa Barbara. No complaints at all. When I got home I was exhausted from the heat, but otherwise ready to spend another two days in the saddle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member DavidS Posted August 7, 2018 Premium Member Share Posted August 7, 2018 Do you mind sharing what the cost for the seat modifications was? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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