Awfully similar Russell vs Mayer

[Mackeroni]

I have nearly 30,000 miles riding on a Bill Mayer leather covered seat and I love it. Bought it because another forum member who bought one Russel and one Bill Mayer so he could test drive both. He decided he liked the Russel better so I got the barely used Mayer for a very good price. :yahoo: The seat is heated which offers incredible comfort way down into the 30's.

I am an IBA rider and when this Bill Mayer seat wears out, if ever... I will be back for another!

 

[Eric L]

Just to throw something different into the mix, Cee Baileys does seats now, and is developing a pretty good rep. My Honey has one on her 650 GS and loves it. LINKY Said to be slightly cheaper and faster turn around than the others at the moment.

They are selling these on ebay. I wonder if one of the brothers is doing this for them.

 

[Pete Bansen]

Just to throw something different into the mix, Cee Baileys does seats now, and is developing a pretty good rep. My Honey has one on her 650 GS and loves it. LINKY Said to be slightly cheaper and faster turn around than the others at the moment.

They are selling these on ebay. I wonder if one of the brothers is doing this for them.

I would be VERY surprised if that was the case. Seems like they both have more work than they can manage and I can't imagine why they would want to effectively compete with themselves. IIRC, the story was that there were some CHP officers who had the Cee Baileys people customize their saddles and were happy enough with the results that Cee Baileys figured they were on to something and should expand their offerings. It's not exactly rocket science to improve a stock saddle, but making one that is comfortable for a 1,000 mile day or a series of them is a whole different story. The 650 GS rider will be a good test for the Cee Bailey's seat, because she puts on some MILES!

 

[Fred W]

+1 - I don't think the Cee Bailey seat has nearly as much craftsmanship involved as a true custom built seat (ie Mayer or Russell). They are trying to take the easy way out by using visco-elastic memory foam to provide the "custom" fit.

It's not exactly the same thing but, in my search for seat nirvana, I had my stock seats re-worked by an outfit in the Dakotas (called Kno-Place). They cut out a saddle shaped section and installed a gel insert, topped by visco elastic memory foam, then reinstalled the stock cover. It was pretty inexpensive. But it also didn't work nearly as well as a custom seat does. The used Rick Mayer I tried worked better and the Russell I had custom built for me, even better than that.

The custom seats all work because the seat is pan shaped to cradle your butt and upper thighs. That spreads the saddle weight around over the most square inches possible, reducing pressure in any one area. It's the localized pressure that causes blood circulation to be hindered that is responsible for butt pain.

Of course, YMMV.

 

[pmspaul]

Russell is a bit more money. Original design with spring. Mayer is 'newer designs with multidensity foam' Leather or vinyl? I don't really have a problem with vinyl. Did you guys spring for leather?

I have a Russell in vinyl. I was more than willing to spring for leather if there were any benefit to me. I did some research, talked to Heather at Russell and she even recommended vinyl for me. Less cost, less maintenance, and the Aerostich doesn't notice the difference between the two.

I am one of those who is fat fortunate enough to need the springs, they seem to do a good job to me. I couldn't be happier with my seat.

 

[user 213]

Just remember, the bigger you are, the better seat you need. Though the skinny, no butt guys have issues too. The mythical 'average rider' is comfortable on nearly anything.

 

[2006FJR]

I love my Rick Mayer seat that is heated in leather. I am pretty sure I would have been very happy with the Russell too.

 

[mab864]

I'm getting pretty excited. My ride in appointment with Russell is April 8th. I'm thinking of going with solo black vinyl with rectangle pattern. Pretty boring I know but looking forward to the comfort. Should be an adventure!