Spencer mod

[wildirish]

I just got my seat back from Spencer and super fast turnaround and great work.For the money it was for me a great deal and it works!!

 

[crankshaft]

I just got my seat back from Spencer and super fast turnaround and great work.For the money it was for me a great deal and it works!!

I've been thinking about getting the Spencer mod done. My passenger isn't happy with the stock seat or the Corbin. I've heard good things about Spencer. Is it worth it? What types of things does he need to know before working on the seat?

 

[DrFaulken]

I haven't sent my seat off to Spencer's Seat Mods but I am going to now that I have my stepfather's spare seats. I was too busy this weekend to get it done, but I will probably ship them off this week.

Spencer is super responsive. Here's what he had to say about my FJR Gen II (2009) seat mod request:

For your FJR the typical riders seat modifications are correction of the seats angle to provide a more neutral position with less of a forward slant to the tank, creation of an actual supportive seating "pocket", and a softening of the frontal midline to take pressure off of the crotch. These changes combine to better distribute your weight across the width of the seat rather than concentrating it in the center. Adding the Supracor suspension included in the LD mod is definitely recommended. It will allow a more form fitting shape, provide better weight distribution, reduce vibration in the seat, and dampen road shock. All of the changes are to the internal structure of the seat for a much better feel and support. The outside look and the way it relates to the passenger section are unchanged. The Supracor works for the rider because it is a dynamic material with an instant rebound. It moves with you, working with your weight shifts for proper bike control. If you use a material in the riders section that "takes a set" it locks you in one position and fights against you. This is the main problem with foams as the rider is constantly moving, even while cruising the highway you are making small corrections in your weight distribution.
The passenger section modification is similar but on a smaller scale. It concentrates on them needing a position that keeps their weight stable, and because of them having less contact points with the bike, a position that gives them more confidence and control over their position during braking and in turns.

Pricing would be the standard minimum for a two piece seat of $50 for the actual work to the riders section, a $25 material charge for Supracor, and $25 for the passenger section if done together.

With the FJR it is helpful if you can include a photo of you in normal riding position (on the center stand is fine) Just one from the side is enough. With the adjustable seat, and Yamaha having had several seat changes with your model, it helps if I can see how you relate to the controls.

 

[user 17287]

Thanks for posting this and keep us informed of the longer rides with this seat. I am planning on doing the Spencer mod to mine this winter along with a new set of tires(although the tires may need to be done sooner :angry2: ).

 

[rvnmaniac]

I just got my seat back from Spencer and super fast turnaround and great work.For the money it was for me a great deal and it works!!

====================================================

What was the turnaround time....

THANKS

 

[firewalker]

Tried the Spencer Mod and IMHO did not do what I expected. Maybe I was looking for something other than what I received.

My passenger complained that her seat cut into her legs and couldn't ride more than an hour. Now understand I have difficulty finding any seat that suits me and have ridden Corbins, Seargeants and Le Pera's. Got a boney behind so finding anything comfortable for the long haul is challenging.

 

[DaJudge]

+1 on the Spencer mod thus far. I had it done with the Supracor about 6 weeks/500 miles ago.

I'm interested to see what it'll be like on a long trip. We've got 4 days/1300 miles planned in early October.

 

[lazbm]

I did that mod a little while ago. Have put at least a 1000 miles since then. In my case it helped just a little bit - still can't do over 2 hours at a stretch - start feeling the pain around 45 minutes to an hour into the ride.

However, seats and seat modifications are very specific to each rider and a generalization to the comfort factor cannot be made. I had tried an expensive mod with my earlier bike and that didn't do much for me either.

The vendor is excellent in communicating, saving dollars wherever possible (including shipping), and very fast TAT. Read all the details on their website - everything they claim (TAT, pricing, etc.) is delivered upon.

 

[Fred W]

One of you that has had the seat modified might want to post some pictures of the seat from various angles so folks can get an idea what it comes out like. It sounds like Spencer has a one size fits all approach to his "customizing".

If a seat didn't allow me to ride all day long without butt pain, I would call it a failed attempt at a comfort seat.

 

[crankshaft]

That would be nice if someone could post a pic of the spencer mod

 

[Lee B.]

One of you that has had the seat modified might want to post some pictures of the seat from various angles so folks can get an idea what it comes out like. It sounds like Spencer has a one size fits all approach to his "customizing".
If a seat didn't allow me to ride all day long without butt pain, I would call it a failed attempt at a comfort seat.

Fred,

I can't speak for the rest but in my case a picture is not really going to help. He recovers with the original/stock skin and I don't think the shape of my seat changed enough to show up in a picture. Maybe if I had taken precise before and after shots it would help but I didn't do that.

The spencer customization does sound pretty much like 1-2 options: with and without the surpracore material. I got mine done with the supracore b/c it was recommended for long distances. I agree with your last statement about riding all day, failure, etc. I'm considering the spencer mod as a very minor success but far less than I hoped for. Perhaps my expectations were too high. I hoped to be able to log 2 hours of saddle time before needing to stop for a leg stretch. Previously I was at about 45 minutes. I'm now up to about 60-90 min before I need to get off. So, better but not what I hoped for.I noticed another post where the forum member said he had the skin removed from the seat and sliced an X where each sit-bone hits the saddle. I may do that before opting for a customized seat. My research on this forum is leading me to the Bill Mayer variety so far but I'm still researching.

Seats are so individual that I'm feeling like there is always some risk involved that you won't be totally satisfied. My research is to try to reduce that risk but I realize that even in a ride-in customization you can't really ass-certain how it will feel after the first, second or third days of riding many miles until you try that out.

 

[Fred W]

Yup, I went a similar route to the Spencer deal. I sent my stock seats to a place in the Dakotas called Kno-Place. They cut out a big wide chunk of the foam and filled it with a big 1" thick piece of viscoelastic gel, topped with memory foam, covered with smoothing foam, then recovered the seat with the original vinyl cover. I recall that getting both seats done cost me $175. It was a very marginal improvement.

I eventually pulled the cover off and peeled off the gel and memory foam piece that they had added to the driver's seat (that's how I am so familiar with exactly what they did) before I sent the remainder to Russell to make a cuistom saddle for me. Russell also recovered the passenger seat to match so it still has the gel and memory foam under the new leather cover. Now that m'Lady is making longer distance trips with me I've purchased an extra rear seat to have Russell make a custom for her with. I'll keep the gel back seat for when I have no passengers as it looks nicer when empty than the big tractor scoop.