Bandit Alley
MODEL SPECIFIC => BIG BANDIT BANTER => Topic started by: ZenMan on April 02, 2007, 02:58:33 PM
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Ok, this thread turned into a bit of a confused mess due to me going back and changing it too many times. So I edited the whole thing down to a comprehensive, illustrated tutorial on the correct procedure to adjust the seat and posted it in the FAQ section.
To be found here:
http://forums.banditalley.net/viewtopic.php?p=70283#70283
The rest of my posts in this thread will be edited out to avoid confusion and save bandwidth. :wink:
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You undo the screws that hold the spacers (C) on....remove the spacers, flip them over, then screw them back in place...those long legs on the spacers when flipped over raise the seat.
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http://forums.banditalley.net/viewtopic.php?p=70283#70283
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Nope you don't touch (B) or (A), just (C) because you are only raising the pilot's half of the seat...I have no idea why they say it should be done at the dealer...just shook my head after reading that :annoy:
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http://forums.banditalley.net/viewtopic.php?p=70283#70283
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http://forums.banditalley.net/viewtopic.php?p=70283#70283
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http://forums.banditalley.net/viewtopic.php?p=70283#70283
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Yep, it's quite ingenious the way Suzuki has that whole adjustment thing arranged. I messed with it for about 3 hours before I had it completely figured out. Of course the 2 or 3 beers I had while figuring it out may have lengthened the whole process somewhat.....
:grin: :grin: :grin:
I've got mine in the high position and it's just right for my left knee (old hockey injury) whereas the low position puts that knee at an awkward angle. Who'da thunk 3/4" would make that much difference ???
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Yeah Rick, my knees suffer a little in the low position, too. But being able to flat-foot and wrestle it around in neutral when parking and stuff, kinda out weighs a little discomfort I guess. And I'm blessed with short legs... :roll:
It's nice to have a little choice without having to shell out buck$ for a new seat or messing with reshaping the foam, etc., even if it's only 3/4". :bandit:
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Well, I'm 6' even and have a 33" inseam and the high position works out perfect all round for me.
I did/did have my seat reworked though, but for comfort not for shape/height. That stock foam is just WAYYYYY too hard for my boney butt so I had the upholstery gal cut off the top
half of the stock foam from the front seat and put some softer stuff in its place. The seat still looks like stock but my butt is a LOT happier now and I can actually ride almost down to reserve before getting numb-bum.
:grin:
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Thanks for the very complete information; I'm indebted to you. Worth a free lunch and libations if you are ever in Southeastern Pennsylvania, USA.
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Your welcome, Frisk, glad it helped.
I'll definitely take you up on that lunch if I'm ever out your way... mmmmmm, Philly cheesesteak! :bandit:
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Zen - Cheese steak sandwiches? You're a cheap date, but they aren't good for the waste line. After a couple of those, you might have to put your seat back in the high position if it settles down under you.
By the way, changing the seat position may require some adjustment of the handlebar. Higher seat makes for a longer reach to the bars? I raised the seat height on my 650 V Strom to get leg room by putting a 1000 V Strom seat on it, but didn't need to do anything about the bars, so maybe not.
I have been thinking about risers or different bars for the B1250 to counter a problem with the pin that holds my left shoulder together, to get a 1" up and 2" back adjustment. But after some strenuous break-in time on the bike, maybe this won't be necessary. My arm is telling me that the pin might have moved forward and down
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Well. all I can say is it must be nice to have adjustable pins holding you together. All my pins, screws, nuts, bolts and wires are fixed in place, except those long bolts in my hip that broke a long time ago... :roll:
I just had both rotator cuffs im my shoulders repaired, but I managed to get about 500 miles break-in on my B1250 in between operations, and the first thing I remember noticing (besides the awesome power) was how nicely I fit on the motorcycle. The handlebars were just right and I even commented on it in my first ride report: http://forums.banditalley.net/viewtopic.php?t=8546&start=0
I'm a weird body shape, 6'2" and only 30" inseam, so I was suprised that the bike fit me so well... especially with the bad shoulder. But if I change windshields, it may change my forward lean weight due to less wind pressure, so I'll have to see how it feels then.
But if I do change it, I'll definitely go with new handlebars. I think I mentioned elsewhere how I feel about those "risers". I think they were invented for Hardley riders who wanted the "lean-bacl" look and were too lazy or cheap to do the job right.
Just another one of my old-fart pet peeves, I guess... :bandit:
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Zen, the rotator cuff operation on my other shoulder hasn't given me any problems with reaching for the bar, so hopefully you should be okay on that. Oh boy, you've brought up another variable. I've ordered an MRA Vario windscreen and we'll see if that pushes me back to reconsidering new bars or risers. Being both lazy and cheap, I want to avoid messing with cable and brake line lengths. I read somewhere that new bars have to be drilled to accommodate pins on the control mounting brackets.
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Drilling a couple holes is no big deal, and whether you use bars or risers, you'll need to change the hoses/wires depending on how far up and back you go regardless.
I'm really curious about your new MRA Vario windscreen... I'll be awaiting your review on that when you get it installed. I'm considering the one-piece MRA Touring screen myself...
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Notice how I shamelessly use the above title to stay on a seat discussion while talking about windscreens. This is mostly for Zenman but others may benefit. I already have an MRA Vario screen on my V Strom and there are many variations one can make on how the wind passes over or through it because of the adjustable spoiler. It works great on the V Strom, but it's a crapshoot as to how it will work on the smaller and lower area it will cover on the Bandit 1250S. I'm hoping for a higher stream of wind over my head, so that MAYBE I can raise the seat. But then there's still the reach to the bars to contend with. I think the plain Touring MRA would provide less flexibility in terms of adjustments. Okay, I'm done here.
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http://forums.banditalley.net/viewtopic.php?p=70283#70283
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I've ridden with the higher seat position for a week now. Moderately more room for my long legs, but the seat shifts back and forth now when I shift my weight. I do NOT like this. I'm switching back this weekend. I'm going to install engine guards with highway pegs to tackle the leg room issue.
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For what it's worth. In general I find that just about all motorcycles have a design issue, and that is, that the seats slope forward. I guess that's ok if its a crotch rocket and you spend all your time on the track, snuggling up against the tank. Heck, you could be sitting on a piece of wood and it wouldn't make much difference on the track... You're just not in one position long enough for it to matter. I've also heard that the seats are designed with a slope to keep you from sliding back when you're accelerating hard. But honestly, I don't buy that, because most bikes have a hump between the front seat and the rear, which will do a lot more to prevent you from sliding back, than the slope of the seat. The only thing I can say for sure is that the front of a seat is narrow to allow your thighs to sit more comfortably when you're at a stop, but as for the sloping, it seems to be strictly a styling thing.
For the average street rider, sloping just causes two problems; 1) you slide toward the front, narrow section, so you get less support for your butt, and 2) the actual sliding action of the forward tilt will stretch the skin on your butt... I kid you not... Actually, stretching of your skin is a major cause of monkey butt... I'll get to that...
Anyway, the Bandit 1250 seat is no different; When you look at it from the side, it has a slight tilt forward; the seating area is not flat. Also, because the front is narrower than the back, the front actually compresses more which just adds to the slope.
One of the things you can do to increase your long range comfort on any motorcycle is get rid of the slope in the seat. One way to do that is customize your seat foam. Basically you figure out how it's sloped and then cut and/or add foam to level it. I did it on one of my R1150R's here: http://www.vesware.com/R1150RSeat/RealManSeatR1150R.htm (leveled and added more foam to make it thicker and wider in the front). But, with the Bandit there is a much easier approach... You can actually use the Bandit seat height adjustment to level the seat.
Basically you use the height adjusters, and a little modification of the rubber pads, to raise the front of the seat, but not the back. If you haven't yet, go look at the seat height adjustment thread in the FAQ's so you understand the basic adjustment procedure: http://forums.banditalley.net/index.php?topic=9058.0 then come back here.
Given the basic procedure, here's what you do:
1. You DO NOT change the height location of the bracket that holds the front section of the seat to the back section. Leave the bracket in it's original position. Because you want the back of the operator seat to stay low.
(http://www.vesware.com/Bandit1250/Seat/BackHeightAdjustment.jpg)
2. DO change the location of the screws at the front of the seat. This will raise the front of the seat.
(http://www.vesware.com/Bandit1250/Seat/FrontSeatHeight.jpg)
3. DO Swap the rubber blocks around.
4. TRIM THE RUBBER BLOCKS AT THE BACK OF THE SEAT SO THEY ARE JUST SLIGHTLY HIGHER THAN THE SEAT SUPPORT PAN.
(http://www.vesware.com/Bandit1250/Seat/TrimmedBlocksOnly.jpg)
(http://www.vesware.com/Bandit1250/Seat/TrimmedBlocks.jpg)
The end result is rear blocks are short, front are long. When you mount the seat on the bike this puts the seat level.
(http://www.vesware.com/Bandit1250/Seat/HeightSideView.jpg)
One final thing. As I mentioned earlier, sliding on the seat stretches your skin and adds to the Monkey Butt problem. Fact is, even on a flat seat, you will still get stretching. Actually, it's not just your skin that stretches, it's the vinyl on the seat and your jeans, and your undies, and since your skin is next to all that, it stretches too.
So, if you want to minimize Monkey Butt, put something on that doesn't stretch. To date, I've only found one piece of clothing that seems to solve the problem. I have a pair of Tour Master rain pants that have a reinforced nylon panel in the butt and crotch area. When ever I put those on, Monkey Butt is gone. I kid you not. Now of course we can't go riding around with rain pants on the whole time, and they will not all have the thick reinforced panel... but, this points to a solution. Maybe some of those Kevlar reinforced jeans that are available would be strong enough to resist the stretching. Or maybe reinforced leather pants. I've never worn my full leather suit off the track, but maybe it would be worth a shot to see if leather would work. Maybe this is why sheep skin covers work, the sheep skin doesn't stretch.
There you go. Judge for yourself.
Oh yeah, and I haven't been on here in a couple years... sold a bandit... bought another one... keep coming back to a good thing...