Does anyone NOT like their Russell Day-Long seat? 60 day ride coming this fall.

[SoCalFJR1300]

Hated mine. Sold it almost as soon as i got it.

and you hated it because??

 

[Canadian FJR]

After 100,000 miles on the stock seat I decided to try a Russell just becuase there was a group buy happening and I had a few extra bucks to play with. When I first got the seat I thought it placed me too close to the tank and called Russel to express my concerns. They said to give it 500 - 1000 miles and then call back. It did take a while to "break-in" but now love it. Sore ass has not been an issue. It did take a little getting use to in terms of riding in twisties because I was use to hanging off and the Russell restricts this a little. All in all, I like the seat.

Canadian FJR

 

[user 213]

I've had two Russell Day Long seats, one on the FJR for about 140k and one on my Super Tenere for the last 30k or so. I've been happy with both.

In regards to people not liking the Russell, it happens. Most often it's men that have what women refer to as having "no butt" where their pants hang off loose in the seat area. Skinny, bony guys seem to not like the fit of the Russell, though that's certainly a generalization.

As I recall, that's not a problem for you Ralph, but you're not a big guy, as in 225+ lbs, so you're also not in need of the Russell heavyweight suspension like I am. The big guys usually love the Russell over anything else.

I'm torn on the ride in aspect of custom seats. Both of mine have been mail in and it's not been an issue for me. Part of the issue here is that you can't always tell on a short ride what you will like or not like. A ride in doesn't mean you'll never need adjustments done to the seat. It does mean that you won't be w/o the seat for a couple of weeks or more though. Not too much an issue if you can get a winter build date. At least for some.

Worth mentioning is that Russell also offers a Sport version of the Day Long seat that has much smaller 'wings' and is more conducive to moving about on the seat. I tend to move my upper body, rather than sliding my butt around, for spirited riding thru the twisties. Once you adjust to the method, it's very effective in terms of shifting the bike around. Especially when combined with other techniques like peg weighting, etc.

You've had your FJR for quite a while. If the seat hasn't bothered you in the past, why spend the money now? The trip sounds like great fun, but you'll be at your own pace and what sounds like a fun, relaxed pace at that.

 

[Chiefblueman]

Another Laam rider here. Haven't ridden a Russell but have had stock, modified stock a Corbin and a Bill Mayer. All these seats had a 1 - 2 hour squirm factor. I've ridden the Laam for 8 hours +, several days in a row. It's not that you are thinking Ahhhh, such comfort. It's more like the seat is no longer getting your attention. Allows you to concentrate on other things that may be bugging the shit out of you.

Imho, for the price of a Laam I wouldn't waste money on an off the shelf seat. + Seth is a great guy to do business with.

 

[Fred W]

So here's the question: You're going on a 60 day ride. Do you really want to risk that trip on a seat that might not be the ultimate in comfort?

I've never met anyone that got a Russell made for them, and gave the seat a chance to break in, and maybe even had to send it back for an adjustment (I did) that has then complained the that seat was uncomfortable. On a long multi-day day ride I would not want to have anything else under my butt.

If when you get back you decide the seat is too restrictive to ass-sliding (which really isn't an issue, but whatever...) you can always sell the seat at that point and get most of what you put into it.

The Laam seat does look nice, but so does the Rick Mayer seat and I know from 1st hand experience that it is not nearly as comfortable for long rides as a Russell.

As for the cost, a Laam Solo in full leather is $404. A Russell Solo in full leather is $600, so the Laam is not "half the price" as someone just claimed.

Is it worth the risk on your epic lifetime adventure to save $200?

 

[Chiefblueman]

So here's the question: You're going on a 60 day ride. Do you really want to risk that trip on a seat that might not be the ultimate in comfort?

I've never met anyone that got a Russell made for them, and gave the seat a chance to break in, and maybe even had to send it back for an adjustment (I did) that has then complained the that seat was uncomfortable. On a long multi-day day ride I would not want to have anything else under my butt.

If when you get back you decide the seat is too restrictive to ass-sliding (which really isn't an issue, but whatever...) you can always sell the seat at that point and get most of what you put into it.

The Laam seat does look nice, but so does the Rick Mayer seat and I know from 1st hand experience that it is not nearly as comfortable for long rides as a Russell.

As for the cost, a Laam Solo in full leather is $404. A Russell Solo in full leather is $600, so the Laam is not "half the price" as someone just claimed.

Is it worth the risk on your epic lifetime adventure to save $200?

In one sentence you have determined a Laam seat is a Rick Mayer seat by virtue of their looks. While I have read several warnings about Rick Mayer seats, I've only read and heard positive comments regarding Laam seats. Painting the two with the same brush without having spent any time on the Laam seems a bit presumptuous.

I'm certain the Russell is a great product but I won't compare it to anything because I have no experience with it. AAMOF, I'd love to try one. If we weren't on opposite coasts I'd hit you up for a swap Fred.

As far as pricing, Seth ships for free and is currently offering 5% off.

I'm also curious why somebody disliked their Russell. Don't hear that very often.

 

[Fred W]

The Laam seat does look nice, but so does the Rick Mayer seat and I know from 1st hand experience that it is not nearly as comfortable for long rides as a Russell.

In one sentence you have determined a Laam seat is a Rick Mayer seat by virtue of their looks.

No, I did not. You are completely putting words in my mouth. Please read what I wrote again.

I''ll paraphrase for your convenience: I said the Laam looks comfortable. I said the Rick Mayer, which also looks comfortable, is not as comfortable as a Russell. I did not say the Laam is like the Rick Mayer except that they both look comfortable.

The Russell is a very, very well known quantity. The Laam is relatively new, and therefore is not.

For a (paltry, IMO) $200 difference in upfront cost, is it worth taking the risk on a 2 month vacation ride of a lifetime? That is the question.

PS - Not sure I'd swap. Once you rode on my seat I might never get it back!

 

[bikerskier]

Well, this is a major ride, one I'll likely not repeat, so comfort is extremely important since I'm spending two months on the bike. My Sargent has been OK but after 3 or 4 days, I start to squirm after 5 or 6 hours. And since 6 weeks of this ride is solo, I'm not likely to be sliding around on the seat much in the twisties, It will be a bit more leisurely while still spending most of the ride on 2 lane roads having fun. Those that ride with me know it will still be quick.

I'm leaning towards Russell for an April fitting.

I sure appreciate the input from everyone and look forward to contributions on routing, eateries, drinkeries, clean cheap motels, points of interest, etc once I post the main route.

 

[Geezer]

I was happy with the stock seat when I first got the FJR. I didn't intend to replace it until I saw a used Russell at a good price.

I bought my Russell used from a person who was not exactly my size. I took the cover off and removed a little foam in a few places, and added a little in a few places. It took several iterations before I got it right, but since then I have put over 100k miles on it with no complaints.

The Laam seats look very nice, and cost quite a bit less. By looking at the shape, they do not spread your weight over as large of an area as the Russell so I would expect that they are not likely to be as comfortable for very long days.

 

[MCRIDER007]

The Russell is a very, very well known quantity. The Laam is relatively new, and therefore is not.

Laam Seats is relatively new but Seth Laam is in his 13th year of seat building. His seat building probably mirrors that of his previous employer but Seth stressed that he uses different foam that he has extensively tested. He offers a lifetime guarantee that he insists is good as long as he stays in business and he has a lot of business for the short time he has been in business. I have never met a seat that does not give me butt burn eventually and the Laam seat isn't different, what is different is that it takes longer for that to happen and after I am off the bike for a few minutes its like starting new again. Previous seats I have owned were only good for short periods on round 2 and thereafter. I currently have a Laam seat for my C14, S10, and FJR. The C14 seat is the only seat that is fully broken in (Seth says 500 miles, I found it continued to improve far beyond that) and it feels the best when I sit on the seats in my cold garage.

I have never ridden on a Russell but sat on many and they really feel soft and comfortable. I would guess the Russell has softer foam than the Laam and you are sitting deeper in the Russell which would restrict movement a bit. A lot of interesting comments about what "butt" size works best for various seats. My experience is that the aging process results in either a fat ass or no ass and I am in the latter category with very little padding on my hip bones. I think I would do better with a seat I can move around on but would love to try a Russell on a all day ride sometime. I also think Seth could build a Russell type seat if that is what the customer wanted, he knows exactly how a Russell is built because a big part of his business is rebuilding after market seats.

 

[zenwhipper]

Yah ain't too far from Rich's custom seats.

https://www.richscustomseats.com/

I am very happy with their work.

 

[Chiefblueman]

The Laam seat does look nice, but so does the Rick Mayer seat and I know from 1st hand experience that it is not nearly as comfortable for long rides as a Russell.

In one sentence you have determined a Laam seat is a Rick Mayer seat by virtue of their looks.

No, I did not. You are completely putting words in my mouth. Please read what I wrote again.

I''ll paraphrase for your convenience: I said the Laam looks comfortable. I said the Rick Mayer, which also looks comfortable, is not as comfortable as a Russell. I did not say the Laam is like the Rick Mayer except that they both look comfortable.

The Russell is a very, very well known quantity. The Laam is relatively new, and therefore is not.

For a (paltry, IMO) $200 difference in upfront cost, is it worth taking the risk on a 2 month vacation ride of a lifetime? That is the question.

PS - Not sure I'd swap. Once you rode on my seat I might never get it back!

How about this- I've never even sat on a Russell. The Russell seat does look nice, but so does the Rick Mayer seat and I know from 1st hand experience that it is not nearly as comfortable for long rides as a Laam.

I don't care about the grammar lesson, I know the impression the statement made and I don't think it was very fair to a great vendor who provides a great product, especially when you've never even plopped your buns on one of his seats. As far as your "paraphrasing", nowhere in your post did you say anything about anything looking comfortable. You said they look nice. Hell, the stock seat looks nice too. The OP was considering a Russell or Laam seat, not a Rick Mayer. So where did that come from?

I got it regarding your opinion on going with an RDL and I don't disagree with "the question", but thanks for walking me through it anyway.

If we lived close enough to swap seats we might just as well swap bikes. Save moving the seats around.

S'pose I better run for cover now

 

[user 213]

I have never met a seat that does not give me butt burn eventually and the Laam seat isn't different,

Oh dude! You have no idea what you are missing. A truly good seat is one you never think about for any length of ride. And I'm talking about 20+ hours in the saddle, not 4-8 hours. If your Laam seat gives you butt burn at all, it's not all that.

And to put a point on it, No, Laam can't make you a seat like a Russell, it's a patented process that has a specific construction that is not of foam. It feels the best when you sit on it in your cold garage? YGTBSM. Any poser can make a seat that feels good in the garage. But at 104F in the middle of a 36 hour ride, only Russell will make a seat that you're not swearing at. Or even thinking about.

@Zenwhipper -I know Rich, and his seats. He makes a darn fine seat, but not a long distance seat. It is what it is, and it's not what cuts the mustard for true long distance riding. A good friend that swears by Rich's product has ridden a lot of miles with me. I was stunned when he pulled off on a SS2k ride and when I asked him WTF? thinking something was wrong, he just said, "I just need to get off the bike". I'd been on the bike for just as long, and my brand new Russell day long only had 400 miles on it before this trip and I didn't need to "get off the bike". Since then, I've known a lot of guys with Rich's seats. As I said, it's a darn nice seat, but it's not long distance seat. And it's no Russell Day Long either. Rich wants to make you the seat he thinks you need. Not necessarily the seat you ask him to make. Some times that works, but not always.

 

[MCRIDER007]

I have never met a seat that does not give me butt burn eventually and the Laam seat isn't different,

Oh dude! You have no idea what you are missing. A truly good seat is one you never think about for any length of ride. And I'm talking about 20+ hours in the saddle, not 4-8 hours. If your Laam seat gives you butt burn at all, it's not all that.

And to put a point on it, No, Laam can't make you a seat like a Russell, it's a patented process that has a specific construction that is not of foam. It feels the best when you sit on it in your cold garage? YGTBSM. Any poser can make a seat that feels good in the garage. But at 104F in the middle of a 36 hour ride, only Russell will make a seat that you're not swearing at. Or even thinking about.

I think we had a bit of miscommunication, when I said what fits best in my cold garage, I was talking about TODAY. I just got my FJR seat from Laam and was comparing it to my other Laam seats.......and my C14 Laam seat did very well riding in the heat last summer. When I said I never met a seat that does not eventually give me butt burn I was not limiting my comment to motorcycle seats, that also applies to car seats, truck seats, and siting chairs. I envy you guys that can sit in one place for hours and not get butt burn but I suspect our body construction and padding is probably quite different and so are our goals. I have never done a 20 hour day and do not have any interest in doing one...and even on a long day (for me) the seat is not the limiting factor on how long I can go before having to get off the bike and take a break.

I'll ask Seth about the Russell construction the next time I talk to him because I'm pretty sure he has rebuilt a few but "a patented process that is not of foam" sounds like marketing hype. I'll still like to try a Russell, can I borrow yours the next time I am in your part of the world?

 

[Top_Speed1]

On my 'other' sites, I always hear great things about a Seth Laam seat.

Laam Seats

However(1); I think the overwhelming choice (here) is for the RDL.

However(2); I'm now leaning towards the Sethmeister.

 

[user 213]

@McRider - Ok, yes, some misunderstanding about what you meant.

The RDL uses a steel spring, at least on the heavy weight versions. It runs across the seat from wing to wing to support the rider's weight. This is a patented design and when the Mayer's moved on to their own companies, they made agreements not to use that design when Russell Cycle Products was first sold by the founders.

I have no doubt that Laam seats are decent seats. But every seat maker has their own ideas and processes. A lot of them use memory foam, which collapes when it gets hot and doesn't provide support. I've had seats that were great, until it got hot enough for the foam to lose any support. At that point, the seat was no better than the oem one, perhaps worse. I live in the desert and LD ride all over the country, that just wasn't going to work for me. An expensive lesson not to bother with anything but the Russell Day Long. That said, The guy that bought the seat loves it, and doesn't LD ride, but lives in TX and isn't a small guy either, (I'm 260 lbs).

I'm familiar with most of the seat makers and have ridden on or seen their work. I've talked to Rich long ago and seen a bunch of his seats and talked with the owners, comparing seats among LD riders that spend 20 hours or more at a time on the seat, often up to 8 hours w/o stopping for anything. (11.5 gallons of gas) And in that world, nothing beats the RDL.

As for sitting in one place w/o butt burn, yes and no. It's a process that involves keeping circulation moving thru out your body to avoid discomfort. I don't even think about it now after 10 years of doing it, it's just part of my routine. That does include standing on the pegs now and then, moving an arm or leg to a new position, shaking out a limb, isometrics, etc.

That said, no car seat has ever been as comfortable as my Russell seats! I'd much rather cross the country on a bike than in a car, for that reason alone.

As to Ralph's epic trip, (and I hope it is EPIC for you, my friend), it's more about how long he wants to spend on the bike at a time, than how long the trip is. Only he can decide if that factor and his comfort with the oem seat, or lack there of, puts him in the position of needing a RDL or just a better than oem seat. I suspect anything custom made will be a significant improvement over oem and be just fine for his trip.

 

[MCRIDER007]

As to Ralph's epic trip, (and I hope it is EPIC for you, my friend), it's more about how long he wants to spend on the bike at a time, than how long the trip is. Only he can decide if that factor and his comfort with the oem seat, or lack there of, puts him in the position of needing a RDL or just a better than oem seat. I suspect anything custom made will be a significant improvement over oem and be just fine for his trip.

You make a really good point about "how long you spend on the bike at a time" because the way it usually works is the longer the trip, the lower the average miles per day, especially when one is going to areas they haven't been before and are going to do a lot of sight seeing and/or taking pictures. My longest trip to date was 29 days to Alaska and the Yukon (side trip to Inuvik) and we only averaged 250 miles a day. Seat comfort and butt burn was never an issue on that trip. After re-reading Ralph's comments about his current seat it sounds like it will work just fine.....but a new seat is like a new bike, you may not need it but you can always enjoy it.......and it really doesn't cost anything because it is coming out of your kids' inheritance.

 

[Fred W]

How about this- I've never even sat on a Russell. The Russell seat does look nice, but so does the Rick Mayer seat and I know from 1st hand experience that it is not nearly as comfortable for long rides as a Laam.

I've got no problem with that. But do you really (have 1st hand experience with a Rick Mayer)?

I don't care about the grammar lesson, I know the impression the statement made and I don't think it was very fair to a great vendor who provides a great product, especially when you've never even plopped your buns on one of his seats.

That "impression" was created in your head. I never said anything derogatory about Laam seats.

I did says something (slightly) negative about Rick Mayer seats (i.e. it not being as comfortable as a Russell). The point was that you cannot tell how comfortable a seat is just from how it "looks".

When you are talking about how comfortable seats are, and you say how one "looks good", the inferred meaning is that it "looks comfortable."

Sorry that you misinterpreted my post so badly.

 

[Chiefblueman]

Hey Fred, no worries! I may have gone a little overboard sticking up for a guy that provides a great product and customer service.

My apologies.

 

[Ramblin]

I have owned Sargent and RDL but prefer the RDL especially for long rides.