Yet Another Seat Mod?

tomtic · Post by **tomtic** » Sat Feb 02, 2013 1:46 pm

Well possibly, but I'll give it a few long rides to decide!
Having experienced the 'joy' of the limited seat space on the PCX because of the seat hump, tonight I finally got round to doing something about it. I unbolted the hump and went for a good ride to see if comfort improved ......... and what a difference! Even with the two seatframe 'bumps' (just what are they called????) still under the seat cover, I was able to move back just enough to get a lot more comfortable.
I don't think I'm going to have to remove the two seat bumps, as others on here have, but just wanted to seal the holes in the seatcover. The perfect solution (for me) might well be two low profile, but wide plastic carriage bolts that I can thread through the seat holes and tighten them up, thereby stopping any water getting in. But, what I've done in the meantime is to use two mushroom puncture repair plugs.
I've applied rubber solution to them and trimmed them off inside.
If they work in the long term they will have saved me a few quid in not having to get the seat recovered. If they peel off in a few weeks I won't really have lost anything - and at least I will know that the seat is far more comfortable without the hump. If needed (why?) I could refit the hump and it would look just as it did when new.
Just thought I would share this idea, as I'm sure not everyone will need to remove the seat bumps to get comfy. What we're really looking for might be just a couple of the plastic bolts described above ........ I can see them in my mind, but damned if I can see them in the tool catalogues!
The pic below gives an idea of what it looks like. I'm hoping the 'creases' in the plastic cover will disappear now the hump is removed, but I feel that the improved comfort outweighs any aesthetic considerations (within reason) especially as I've got a few 200 mile day rides coming up!!

you you · Post by **you you** » Sat Feb 02, 2013 2:01 pm

That does seem very practical and cheap half way house

gn2 · Post by **gn2** » Sat Feb 02, 2013 2:14 pm

I'm liking that, do you have a linky for the plugs?

If you rotate the pic it looks like a smiley face

tomtic · Post by **tomtic** » Sat Feb 02, 2013 4:21 pm

Hi. These are the cheapest mushroom plugs I've found on the UK's ebay site:-

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TYRE-PUNCTURE ... 4abf7b58e7

To be honest I can't remember if these are the exact same ones I bought a year ago, but they do look the same. I've had them hanging round for quite a while, so thought I would use them.
Of course, now I'll go and get a bloomin' p**cture!

I'll post back in a while once I've proven whether it works well ....... or not

you you · Post by **you you** » Sat Feb 02, 2013 4:28 pm

gn2 wrote:I'm liking that, do you have a linky for the plugs?

If you rotate the pic it looks like a smiley face

And it'll be appearing from yer bottom. Unexpected result

Alibally · Post by **Alibally** » Sat Feb 02, 2013 5:22 pm

They look like standard car tyre patches. Speak to your local tyre repair shop.

happyscooter · Post by **happyscooter** » Sat Feb 02, 2013 8:43 pm

dude! thanks for this idea! i work at an auto parts store so we have these. Gonna try it this week. thanks man

Theboybilly · Post by **Theboybilly** » Sun Feb 03, 2013 5:37 am

Considering the 'Heath Robinson' style of modding this is a decent effort, much better than anything I could have come up with. Thankfully the hump doesn't bother me too much even after an hour's riding. I'm just wondering why Honda, assuming they know of the problem, don't just fit a plain seat or at least set the hump say, 2" further back. I'm about to buy a Givi SV202 tunnel/tail pack and would imagine (when attached to the seat) it will give back support.

Bill

tomtic · Post by **tomtic** » Sun Feb 09, 2014 4:21 am

Well I did this mod a full year ago, and have done another 4000+ miles. The rubber tyre plugs have held up brilliantly, and blend in very well. Even the creases in the vinyl cover have disappeared, so no more smiley face!
To be honest I didn't expect the plugs to last very long, and thought this was only a temporary measure. But despite my shuffling around on the seat (especially on 200 mile rides), they have remained in place with no 'lifting' at the edges. They have also remained completely waterproof.
So, if you are still looking for a quick and cheap way to remove the hump (until you order your 2014 model obviously) I can honestly recommend this one.
Tom.

dem0nk1d · Post by **dem0nk1d** » Thu Feb 13, 2014 4:41 pm

Do these plugs have adhesive on the back side. I took the hump off yesterday and decided i don't want to ride without it, because i could cause damage to the seat, where the holes are.

tomtic · Post by **tomtic** » Thu Feb 13, 2014 4:49 pm

Hi there. Yes they do (at least the ones I've used did) but I also used a spot of 'rubber cement' around the plug. This is the glue that comes in a bicycle puncture outfit. It doesn't harm the plastic seat, and if I ever need to remove the plug it should come off pretty readily. It also helps form a watertight seal around the hole.
As I said, I have not had any problems with water seeping into the underseat compartment. Despite the best efforts of Nature .... who has hit us with torrential storms and gales for the past three months!
Roll on summer!

tomtic · Post by **tomtic** » Thu Feb 13, 2014 4:58 pm

........ and yes, I understand about the fear of damage to the seat once the hump is unbolted. This worried me as well. What I can say though, is that despite wearing leather motorbike jeans and occasionally motorcycling textile jeans the holes have never been stretched not torn the seat at all.
I do not ride with a pillion, but do sit back on the seat. My rear sits just forward (half an inch?) of the holes in the seat, and just forward of the plastic protrusions in the seat base. So there isn't any real pressure applied to the seat cover.
Other people have found (search this forum) that moving the bolt holes just half an inch rearward has given them enough extra space to feel comfortable.
You might want to try a ride or two without the hump, just to see if it suits you, then decide to use the plugs if you think they'll work.
Hope this helps.
Tom.

dem0nk1d · Post by **dem0nk1d** » Thu Feb 13, 2014 5:10 pm

Seen that seat mod. I really don't like the hump. Kind of stupid if you ask me.

Reg Llama · Post by **Reg Llama** » Sat Oct 18, 2014 9:44 am

Hello tomtic

It's now some eight months on from your last post about this mod. How's it holding up?

I'm doing the Knowledge of London to be a London black cab driver, and I'm doing it on a black PCX.

Sometimes I get bit cramped doing 300 miles a week, this mod might solve my issue.

potnoodle · Post by **potnoodle** » Tue Oct 21, 2014 10:12 am

I did the same mod to my bike about 4 months ago and mine is holding up fine. Im also in LONDON

The Honda PCX / Forza / ADV150 / SH Forums