Sargent or Corbin?

tekxtc · Post by **tekxtc** » Tue May 17, 2005 2:18 pm

Is there any other?

Please reply saying I have .... and I love it because I have done this or done that ...

It will be helpful

Optimus Prime · Post by **Optimus Prime** » Tue May 17, 2005 2:21 pm

I've never tried the Corbin, but the Sargent is very nice.

1150rTodd · Post by **1150rTodd** » Tue May 17, 2005 2:36 pm

Yes, there is also the Russell Day-Long. A buddy that has an RT swears by it. He tried a Corbin first and then got this. He said it took a couple thousand miles to break in but after that he has no problems racking up some serious miles in that seat.

ofrogg · Post by **ofrogg** » Tue May 17, 2005 3:34 pm

I haven't heard anything about 'em, but these look interesting!

Bill Mayer Saddles

competitive price too!

Looks like Cee Bailey's does some interesting things...

dallara · Post by **dallara** » Tue May 17, 2005 4:01 pm

Well...

I've had both - Corbin and Sargent (though not on the R-1150-R) - and here's my take.

Had two Corbin's over the years - one still resides on my 1986 Honda VFR-750-F. Though it's great, and a vast improvement over the stock saddle, I wouldn't buy one again (more on that in a moment...). Corbin's are tough, but they are brutally *HEAVY*, and they take a while to break in, seeming to be hard as a rock for quite some time.

Now, I have a set of Sargent saddles for my BMW R-1150-R, and I couldn't be happier. Lightweight, extremely well-made, fit and finish is perfect (maybe even better on both counts than the OEM seats!), and they were comfortable from day one. With the stock Beemer seat, or even the BMW "Comfort" saddle, I would start squirming and shifting around at about the 100-120 mile mark, and the last 20 miles before a gas stop would be really uncomfortable... Dropped the Sargent on right before I took a three-day trip, and from the very first stint I could easily have gone way past the R-1150-R's fuel range without any discomfort whatsoever! The Sargent seat makes long, long days in the saddle a pleasure, and the biggest single compliment I can give it is that you completely forget about it. For me, it's perfect.

Now, why I wouldn't buy another Corbin... Both times I got Corbin's before actually *GETTING* them was a royal pain in the a** !!!

Back in those days (before the web) you had to call and order them. First call always went smooth as butter, with the Corbin folks being really nice and taking your credit card info, order, etc. all syrupy nice and sweet... And they would give you a delivery date... Which both times turned out to be an absolute *JOKE*! For instance, on the VFR saddle (and I was getting the matching plug in backrest, too), they told me three to four weeks and it would ship. Four weeks go by, I call 'em, and at first they can't even find the record of my friggin' order!

After about 20 minutes on the phone they find my order, but they tell me they haven't even started on it yet, and they should have it out in about another *TWO WEEKS*! The worst part was tehy were not the least bit courteous or apologetic - in fact, they were downright rude. So, two more weeks go by, and I call again to check on it, and they still haven't started on it. To make a long story short, it took nearly *THREE MONTHS* to get the seat, and even then they had to ship the backrest later... about another week!

I had experienced a similar situation with my first seat from them, so after the second time of getting hosed I decided I would never grace Corbin with any of my $$$.

Now, my experience with Sargent was *COMPLETELY* the opposite. I called them to order the set of R-1150-R saddles, and they were extremely nice, and they told me that tehy had a backlog on the Beemer seats so it would be about six weeks before they could get one to me... I was disappointed, but before I could be dismayed any at all the guy at Sargent checked his orders and told me one of their biggest dealers - R&L Motorcycles in Thomasville, Georgia was due their shipment in less than a week and I should give Richard there at R&L a call.

I called R&L and he took my info... He had a passenger seat in stock and put my name on it, and said he would call me when the front seats arrived and take my credit card info then. Sure enough he called right on time, shipped the seat the same day, gave me a really good deal on three day shiping so I could have the seat in time for a ling ride coming up, and the seats got to me in plenty of time. In other words, *EXEMPLARY* service from both Sargent and R&L...

I can't recommend either of them enough!

Here's R&L's web address if you're interested:

http://www.cyclesaddles.com/home/

Just my two cents, and of course, YMMV.

Cheers!

Dallara

Post by **Pat** » Tue May 17, 2005 4:24 pm

I put over 25,000 miles on a sexy looking Corbin affixed to my Sportster 1200.
I put about the same amount of time in a Corbin on my R1150R.

I employed the help of Sargent's to make a custom lowered/narrowed seat for my Roadster. In fact, I had them make me two of 'em and sold one.

I also made my own seat with memory foam, another one with the addition of a gel pad, and recently another seat for my Triumph with a 3/4" gel pad.

I'm short, so my intent is to make for as low a saddle as possible. However I'm heavy as well (240 lb's), so I have to retain some comfort.

Corbin's are VERY FIRM, and can be a very attractive saddle. The theory is that soft padding actually constricts blood flow and causes numbness.

Sargent's likes to cup the butt, and offer some padding. They look good, but I wish they would use an adhesive to make the material adhere to the padding. I would also like to see a Sargent made with leather, but they dissuade you from considering it.

Gel Pads can be hot when left out in the sun. A thick gel pad may offer more padding, but they squirm/move too much under your butt. I have subscribed to the notion that a gel pad works, but I am led to believe it must work better for someone who may not already have too much padding on their butts, i.e. skinny/hard butt.

My Alaska Leather wool sheep pad though, is a GOD SEND!

Post by **mcooperstein** » Tue May 17, 2005 4:25 pm

Rick Mayer Saddles (son of the infamous Bill Mayer and the *only* son that actually learned how to make saddles while his dad was still alive). Rick is a critical care nurse with backround in orthopaedics. I have his saddle and it's great. I cant say enough about it.. it's like night and day difference between the stock saddle and the RM saddle. BTW, the Russel Day Long saddle was originally a Bill Mayer design that was sold to Russell later on.

Mark

saguaro777 · Post by **saguaro777** » Tue May 17, 2005 4:40 pm

BMS. I called them the last week of march, they told me they would build it the first week of april. I ordered and sent in my seat. The week they were building it I took a nasty fall at work and managed to break my wrist, real bad break. Anyway I recieved my seat in quite a timely fashion, from the day I shipped mine to the day I recieved it back was about 3 wks. But all I could do was look at it, very well made and felt good, I had mine custom made (taller) to stretch out my 34" inseam legs. Last week I took it out for a short test ride, nothing much the wrist isnt really ready and I would hate to go backwards in the healing process, but I couldnt stand just looking at it anymore. I can tell right off this is worlds apart from the stocker. Cant wait for a good long ride. I bought the basket weave vinyl w/smooth sides and had the pillion seat recovered to match. Price with shipping was around 411.00

bakernks · Post by **bakernks** » Tue May 17, 2005 4:45 pm

I'm quite happy with the BMW saddles my bikes have. If I was in the market for a saddle for either, I wouldn't hesitate to buy Sargent's products. I had them make a custom saddle for my '83 Honda Ascot thumper, and they came through , exceeding what I'd hoped for in fact, and that saddle was a knockout to see, matched the Honda red color to a "T" and made an uncomfortable seat into one I put 27,000 miles on before I sold the FT500 (because of a generic bad starter design).

Post by **mistercindy** » Tue May 17, 2005 5:49 pm

I had a Corbin on my '94 Honda CB1000. It was certainly better than the stock seat. I bought it used, so I can't speak to Corbin's customer service.

Dallara wrote:Well...
Now, I have a set of Sargent saddles for my BMW R-1150-R, and I couldn't be happier. Lightweight, extremely well-made, fit and finish is perfect (maybe even better on both counts than the OEM seats!), and they were comfortable from day one. With the stock Beemer seat, or even the BMW "Comfort" saddle, I would start squirming and shifting around at about the 100-120 mile mark, and the last 20 miles before a gas stop would be really uncomfortable... Dropped the Sargent on right before I took a three-day trip, and from the very first stint I could easily have gone way past the R-1150-R's fuel range without any discomfort whatsoever! The Sargent seat makes long, long days in the saddle a pleasure, and the biggest single compliment I can give it is that you completely forget about it. For me, it's perfect.

I've had precisely the same experience with Sargent and my R1150R. My Sargent saddle is the best $300 I've ever spent on any bike.

Dallara wrote: Now, my experience with Sargent was *COMPLETELY* the opposite. I called them to order the set of R-1150-R saddles, and they were extremely nice, and they told me that tehy had a backlog on the Beemer seats so it would be about six weeks before they could get one to me... I was disappointed, but before I could be dismayed any at all the guy at Sargent checked his orders and told me one of their biggest dealers - R&L Motorcycles in Thomasville, Georgia was due their shipment in less than a week and I should give Richard there at R&L a call.

I called R&L and he took my info... He had a passenger seat in stock and put my name on it, and said he would call me when the front seats arrived and take my credit card info then. Sure enough he called right on time, shipped the seat the same day, gave me a really good deal on three day shiping so I could have the seat in time for a ling ride coming up, and the seats got to me in plenty of time. In other words, *EXEMPLARY* service from both Sargent and R&L... I can't recommend either of them enough!

Here's R&L's web address if you're interested:

http://www.cyclesaddles.com/home/

Just my two cents, and of course, YMMV.

Cheers!

Dallara

And I had the same experience with both Sargent and R&L. Sargent said six weeks for delivery and they suggested I call R&L if I needed it sooner. I did and R&L had the front seat in stock. I had it within the week in time for a weekend ride. Although I only bought the front seat, both organizations were a pleasure to deal with.

I'd highly recommend looking to R&L first if you need a saddle in a hurry. If not, Sargent has nice folks, too.

Post by **Deans BMW** » Tue May 17, 2005 6:38 pm

Nether.

Post by **rph802** » Tue May 17, 2005 7:39 pm

I was very lucky to find a Corbins front AND rear on Ebay for about $350 as I recall. The damn things looked brand new to me (and so the seller claimed but you know..) and the only thing I was bummed about was that I got them around Christmas when there was like 3 feet of snow on the ground.

I've only put on about 500 miles so far this year, but I gotta tell ya this seat would have been worth paying the almost double it would have to have purchased new!! As mentioned above, thses suckers are much heavier than stock and on the firm side. I was stunned when I pulled the stock saddle off the bike then picked up the Corbin. This thing feels indestructible.

I suppose anything is better than stock. My longest ride was about an hour and a half with a pit stop in the middle. BUt having done the same ride with the stock saddle, I definitely felt the difference in comfort. This just may be my innate lack of riding experience but with the stock saddle I was very uncomfortable cruising along at much more than 3500rpm and 3000rpm "felt" better. There just seemed to be a "buzz" coming thru the frame that wasnt a happy happy feeling. Now nothing has been changed as far as set up on the bike but that buzz is absent even slipping along at 4500rpm. Maybe that was supposed to be a good thing, but for me it just added to fatigue.

The only complaint I have with the Corbin is the height it added. With the stock saddle, I had it on the middle position (btw 95 R1100R) of three and could comfortably flat foot the bike. Now with the Corbin on the lowest position, its just not as solid a foot plant as before. Dont get me wrong, I dont feel unstable or tipsy, just havent completely adapted to the extra lift yet.

In all, the Corbin works for me but I've never sat on anything other than stock and Corbin but thats my $0.02!!

Craig

ZinMan747 · Post by **ZinMan747** » Wed May 18, 2005 1:00 am

I just got the Sargent, and find that it's more than I expected. First, it makes the bike look even better. Second, the way I'm now positioned it feels like the bike handles better.

I bought it hoping it would be less tiring on 100+ mile rides, but I haven't taken any since getting the seat so can still only hope in that area. But the above makes it a great buy regardless.

Post by **DJ Downunder** » Wed May 18, 2005 1:30 am

Nether for me to....I'm with you Dean-O....I know you have the new ST but are these guys soft or what!

I've read so much here about how bad the stock seat is but I like it.

I've asked others in our club that ride RR's if they like their seat and each time I get a puzzled look back and they say 'Yes it's a great seat'.

It must be an American thing or just that Aussies are tuff...(in the arse)....

DJ

1150rTodd · Post by **1150rTodd** » Wed May 18, 2005 10:43 am

I just rode 1200+ miles this past weekend. I wasn't too sore when riding because I was wearing a pair of my bicycling shorts underneath my riding pants. But the next day my tail was a little tender. From what I understand, I wouldn't even feel that if I got a custom seat.

Acacia · Post by **Acacia** » Wed May 18, 2005 11:08 am

Had a Corbin seat on my R1100R - liked it. Tried a Sargent on the R1150R - too flat and gave me hot spots after 200 miles.

Ended up with a Bill Meyer. Probably need some tweaking to it to get it just right for me - after 3406 miles in 6 1/2 days ride to Torrey - got back yesterday -with a 904 and 756 mile day rides in that trip, I guess that it is as comfortable as a motorcycle seat will be.

There is no magic seat formula. Some find the stock good, some the Sargent- I like my BM. The real test of a seat is when you have more than a 500 mile day on it - and then several of those in a string. The bells, whistles, springs and stripes are marketing - the test is your butt and how it meets the leather or plastic over the span of several hours.

An Aussie or American thing? I am an ex South African so that theory does not fly. It is a butt, plus miles, plus hours thing.

1150rTodd · Post by **1150rTodd** » Wed May 18, 2005 3:02 pm

It could me an American thing since we are such fat asses.

Post by **BeemeRandy** » Thu May 19, 2005 7:54 pm

I've had Corbins on a bunch of bikes. My first was on a 1982 Yamaha XV920R (even then, I liked "R" bikes) - this was the euro, or "Seca", version, not the Virago - which was custom-made back when Corbin still did custom work. Since then I've had 'em on 2 Beemers (including my current 1150R) and a Ducati 900ss. I've not experienced any of the oft-mentioned problems with customer service. My transactions with Corbin have always been fine.

When I bought my 1150R, the dealer had a Corbin seat for it sitting in the showroom. I told the salesman, "I'll ride this one home, but only with that seat on it". So basically, I don't even know what the stock seat feels like. I like the Corbin.

I've had custom work done by Sargent, which I didn't like (probably my fault as much as theirs), but haven't tried any of their off-the-shelf seats. They look nice, though.

Anyway, I'm happy with Corbin on 4 bikes and counting...

Randy

Beemertoni · Post by **Beemertoni** » Mon May 30, 2005 10:36 am

I have a Corbin & will NEVER own another one. Seems tha\e Co..Sir Mike, has decided he is above us all and doesn't care much about a trivial matter such as a bike seat. I tried to contact him twice 5 months ago & am still awaiting his response. A guy does have to have a vacation once in a while..right?
What Corbin doesn't tell you is that they adhesive their leather covering to the foam. It is sooooo tightly glued on don't ever think of having the seat recovered. Ruins the foam totally. Thanks Mikey! I'll respectfully take my business elsewhere. Somewhere they appreciate it.
Beemertoni

rivi7777 · Post by **rivi7777** » Mon May 30, 2005 12:10 pm

I was lucky and found a used Corbin for my 1150. It was from the second owner so he didn't know much about it. It was simply too tall for him. The odd thing about it is it's a two piece Corbin (I think it's an older preproduction type). Corbin only makes a one piece for our particular model and I don't like it. How's that for a custom seat manufacturer?

I was fairly pleased with the BMW comfort saddle, but when I saw this seat, I knew I had to have it. It fits me prefectly while allowing me to ride in much greater comfort over the long haul. It is cupped, wider, and doesn't jam my crotch into the tank. Very comfy. I don't know what foam they used, but this seat isn't the regular park bench hard that I'm acustomed to from Corbin. It's actually quite plush yet provides just the right amount of firmness. I would highly recommend this saddle to anyone, if only they'd duplicate it. But, because they won't, I'd have to say buy the Sargent or other brand.

http://r1150r.smugmug.com/photos/23446323-M.jpg
http://r1150r.smugmug.com/photos/23446324-M.jpg

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