Sargent Seats?

[PhilDinAZ]

Like many of you I am not satisfied with the stock seat options offered by BMW. I have had good luck with Corbin in the past but have never tried any other after market seat maker. I have been considering a Sargent seat partly because you can purchase just the riders seat but there seems to constantly be at least one if not more for sale here in the classifieds. After digging deeper I discovered that their stock seat height is probably a bit short for my 34" inseam.

I currently have the BMW high seat with a thick pile sheepskin cover. I like that arrangement other then BMW thinking they have to accommodate riders with shorter legs even on the high seat by making it narrow up front and humped in the back. I like Sargent's options for just the riders seat as that's how I do most of my riding and with Corbin it's the whole darn thing making it more costly.

So the reason for my post is to query if you have switched to or from Sargent or Corbin why are you currently happy or unhappy with whatever you have? You past Sargent owners, why did you get rid of it?

[jarobi]

Hi there,

I have about the same inseam 33-34 and liked the Sargent. Caveat: I'd never used the tall on mine, so the Sargent was higher than the stock standard seat and I immediately liked it. I did many 300 - 400 mile days on the Sargent and intend to buy a Sargent for my current bike. I sold it because my beemer was wrecked.

I imagine if you shell out the bucks to get a new Sargent, you could call them and have it made higher. Also, Bill Mayer does a good custom seat made for your height/weight. good luck to you ditching the torture rack BMW stocker

[SLEDGE]

Who is the fellow in Fla. that reconstucts your seat, and sends it back in a matter of days? He takes your seat pan make it taller or shorter, changes pading, shap ect.

[jarobi]

There's bill mayer, who developed the Russell Day Long then sold the patent, and his son Rick Mayer. They're the only two I know of, I think they're in CA..

[mcollect]

I had a Corbin very low seat and hated it, bought it from the classified, it was too low for me. I then got the Sargent with leather and top stitched, I hate welts as they tend to rub the inside of my thighs, I rode it for a couple thousand miles. It was too soft on my bony butt. Now I have a Corbin again no welts and therefore my Sargent is in the classified. I have a 30" inseam and the with the sargent I could only get my toes on the pavement, or slide my rear to the side and flatfoot one side. The Corbin I can flatfoot one foot and toes on the other. Plus the Corbin has a butt stop like the old Ducati's and more room to move front to back. Hope that helps.

[johnnyjs1]

Who is the fellow in Fla. that reconstucts your seat, and sends it back in a matter of days? He takes your seat pan make it taller or shorter, changes pading, shap ect.

Is this it? I've heard really good things about him.
http://greatdaytoride.com/Home_Page.php

[NAIAD]

I had a Sargent on the 04 50R that I recently sold...my inseam is in the 31-32 inch range and I never had a problem putting my feet on the ground...and that seat was one of most comfortable I've ever had the pleasure of riding... Nice thing too about Sargent is no "down" time waiting for the seat return.

Bill J

[jfslater98]

So the reason for my post is to query if you have switched to or from Sargent or Corbin why are you currently happy or unhappy with whatever you have? You past Sargent owners, why did you get rid of it?

Hey Phil, you can read what I have to say (so far) about the Sargent here:

http://r1150r.org/board/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=15021

[PhilDinAZ]

Hey Phil, you can read what I have to say (so far) about the Sargent here:

http://r1150r.org/board/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=15021

I appreciate the input but you kind of left that post hanging. Any follow-up you can add?

[jfslater98]

Not much. I will add that I have 35 miles one-way to work. Sadly, the Rockster sees mostly slab in its usage. I will start to feel the stock seat about 75% of the way in. I don't notice the Sargent at all. The only other concern that has yet to be verified by my tape measure is the height. I have 33" inseams, and I suspect the Sargent is lower. However, the cushioning on the stock is softer, so I don't know if my knees wind up at the same angle anyway. While that is a concern, my knees do not seem to detect a difference, despite almost 400 miles yesterday.

So it's a few more weeks before I decide whether to put up in Buy/Sell/Trade. Will let you know.

[SLEDGE]

Yes, johnnyjs1 thats the guy,greatdaytoride.com.I think I would see what his mods are like befor spending hundereds on a new seat.For around $50.00 plus shipping could save you big.
My $0.02 worth, good luck

[wncbmw]

I had my seat redone by the guy at greatdaytoride.com and while I was satisfied with the work (leveled out the seat so the I did not smash the 'equipment' into the tank), my desire to alleviate some pressure on my knees did not happen. I would recommend them if your problems with your stocker are minor. The option for the gel insert might be worth it also.

That said, if you have some serious problems with the stock seat, I do not believe his mods will be satisfactory. Nice guy and good work though.

[jeremell]

+1 for the Sargent seat, it is the best seat (of many) that I have ridden on.

[rockstercliff]

+2 for the Sargent. Had Corbins on past bikes that I believe made them a tad better than stock, but the Sargent is a bigger improvement. Once it wore in a bit, no problem with both feet down, and I am 32 inseem. With the factory seat, my wife was always sliding forward, especially at a stop and we would clang helmets. Now she is level, as am I. And, you get the little pocket underneath to stash earplugs and all the paperwork, and such.

[jfslater98]

So a few more observations on my Sargent.

Twice, after baking in the sun all day, the seat felt supremely comfortable. It's like the foam needed to melt a little bit or something. The ride home tonight was bliss. Not sure if any other Sargent folks noticed that.

I did a very informal measuring of the seat level while it was on the centerstand. Despite it's looking lower, the Sargent appeared to be at the same height as the stock seat, about 34". This was a very quick measure, and I may do this again to be sure.

I'm feeling more and more like this seat will be a keeper. I think I shall make my decision by Labor Day.

[peterbulgar]

No input on the Sargent rider's seat, but my skinny-butt son says that the Sargent passenger seat is a very big improvement over both the stock BMW seat and the BMW "comfort" seat. We purchased it at an MOA rally in Spokane when he began complaining about the comfort seat after a day on the road on our way to the rally. No complaints (at least about the seat) the next 4k miles of the trip.

I keep thinking that maybe I'll go with the Sargent rider's seat, but with 64k miles on the BMW tall seat, I'm still thinking about it. My butt is a bit sore after a 500 mile day, but I suspect that after all day in the saddle I'd be sore on any seat.
Peter '74 R75/5, '04 R1150RA.

[PhilDinAZ]

So a few more observations on my Sargent.

Twice, after baking in the sun all day, the seat felt supremely comfortable. It's like the foam needed to melt a little bit or something.

No shortage of sun and heat here in PHX to test your theory! I have a Sargent arriving on Wed so I will have my own opinions soon.

[Hottech]

I have a sargent seat on my 2004 R1150R and I like the looks but it seems abit hard. The bike is always garaged even at work. Never seems to have the sun beating down to soften it up. After reading your comments I dug out the old stock low and found that it is much softer and the seat height seems to be the same. I will have to take some measurements to verify if there is a difference.

[Jeffreydas]

Rode 2, 13 hour days back to back on my sargent on route to NYC from Charleston SC. They could have easily been 20 hour days if my hands and wrists didn't get sore. The seat is excellent for my 31'' inseam and my wife loves the removable back rest. I did a similar trip on a f650 GS, stock seat... ouch.

[sjbmw]

Love the Sargent. It's not really a height boost per se, but the Sargent is wider than stock, so your legs are spread a little more at stops, and this takes some length off your inseam.