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2019 CB500F seat

7K views 23 replies 13 participants last post by  RalphG 
#1 ·
Hi guys. Just bought a 2019 CB500F a few weeks ago. For the most part, I quite like it.

Today I went for a ride on the highway for about an hour or so and the seat and ergonomics on this bike are terrible (not a big deal for short city rides) My arse is still sore. My question is, what are people doing to make this seat more comfortable? Is there something I can put on top of it? A new seat? Why they would put such a terrible seat on this bike is puzzling. It's almost like sitting on a picnic table bench..

Any suggestions are welcome. Thank you.
 
#7 ·
Rooter, there's really 2 areas of comfort/discomfort that can't be overlooked when riding a motorcycle. Our heads, and our arses… a helmet and seat. They're not a one size fits all, but manufacturers have to go with something in the middle that's still cost efficient. I have a link of the 2019 cb500f's seat to prove a point.. it costs much less than you may have believed. And It may make you feel better about taking the seat apart to experiment with gel pads or some other miracle cure. IMO, Changes to the seat are a much better "fix" than changing your natural seating position on the bike. That's a ghost you'll never catch.:wink:
https://www.partzilla.com/catalog/honda/motorcycle/2019/cb500f/seat
 
#9 ·
Funny my arse must be as hard as my head. I often do 7 hours at a go on the stock seat with no complaints. Of course my orthopedic surgeon once told me that I am wired differently with a high threshold for pain. I figure that is the secret to a successful marriage.
 
#10 · (Edited)
All Japanese sport bike seats are awful. You can play around with them and make some improvement; I did. However, in the long run it's best to concentrate on a properly formed seat and that is the Corbin. It's $343 USD plus shipping. In the USA, Corbin will ship only "signature required" to prove the buyer got the seat. This is expensive. Shipping from Corbin in California to central Texas was $36. Still, this is the 5th Corbin seat I've had going back several decades. They are very firm, but properly shaped and very well made.

No seat improvement will overcome the harsh, overly stiff (for us lighter folks) shock absorber. $600 for a fully-adjustable Wilbers, sprung to buyer's weight and riding style, is as necessary as the upgraded seat. Not welcome news, but figure on spending $1000 beyond the purchase price of the bike. Oh, another $15-20 on E-Bay will bring you a nice set of 30mm handlebar risers. No modification required to fit them. OEM cables are long enough, but you might have to remove the cable retainers behind the headlamp. Easy job and makes a big and inexpensive difference.

Oh, if you remove the seat, whatever the reason, do yourself a favor and get rid of those idiotic Allen bolts that hold it on. I had one **** of a time getting them to line up with the threaded holes in the frame. Cross thread those holes and you'll be very unhappy. The solution I used was to get threaded rod (I believe it's 5mm x 1.0 pitch threads but others please write to correct that if I'm wrong). Cut two 30mm lengths of this threaded rod and (Blue) loctite each in to the threaded holes in the frame. Use a Nylock nut of the correct size and thread pitch and a washer to secure the seat to the studs. It is very easy to mount the seat this way any time you remove it. You'll need to carry a 10mm open end wrench with you to remove the seat when traveling.

Ralph
 
#13 ·
seat suggestions



Rooter, glad you're enjoying the bike. I have a 2016 500F and concur that the seat is punishing. I looked at various solutions but fortuneatly have a local motor trimmer who has done lot's of bike stuff. He removed the cover and added more foam to the left and right "butt cheek zones" without altering the profile of the seat (that's the important part). All up is was A$120 and so far has worked well. I agree that a custom seat is a better option but as I don't see this as my forever bike this was a good quick, affordable solution. See RalphG's note below re the seat bolts. Not sure if they've changed this on the 2019 but it's a challenging arrangement to say the least.

Cheers,
 
#22 ·
I don't have a delicate's woman butt, but I feel the pain when I go thru a bump, so what I have done is just stand on the pegs for 1 or 2 seconds while I pass the bump.
I have not tried standing on the pegs at speed, for momentary relief, but when the rear pain has set in I do stand up when going over speed humps. Even with arthritis, the best suspension is the knees!

Instead I have a gel pad that just clips on the seat (with a velcro straps that goes around the seat for added security) that I use, but it only gives limited relief. Better than nothing, but not really a solution.

Previously I have tried a bean filled cushion from www.bumbags4bikers.co.uk , but that just ends up with the beans all at the back. Somehow they defy gravity.

I have also used both together, but after a while even that makes hardly any difference.

But today I took delivery of a Tourtec air cushion, so hopefully that will help. However I never thought to measure it, as the eBay page listed our bikes as being compatible. And I have not placed it on the bike yet. But it is wide. Definitely too wide. But I am not someone who sits off the edge of the seat with a knee down, so if the straps under the seat hold it in place then maybe the edge being cushioned will be for the better.

Although I have already found the best cure for the seat: winter. It is getting too cold and the days too short to be able to go on my weekly 400-mile day trips now!
 
#18 ·
Fork: You wondered about a photo of my seat studs. I'm away from the bike for a few days but wanted to respond. Just get two bolts in a hardware store which are the same diameter and thread pitch as the OEM Allen bolts and have a threaded length of at least 30mm, as that's the length of the studs you'll make. Cut off the head of this bolt (and while you're at it, the head of the "engineer" who designed this frustrating mounting system) and then clean the threads of the cut end of the stud you've made. Run this stud with your fingers into the threaded hole in the frame the OEM Allen bolts had fitted in (if you got lucky).

Once satisfied that the studs' cut ends will enter the threaded holes without undue force, remove them, coat the cut ends with blue LocTite and using two nuts jammed together on the other end and using the top nut, tighten each stud down into the threaded hole until it "bottoms". Let the LocTite dry overnight. Then put the seat on and use a flat washer and a Nylock nut on the upper end of each stud.

Note that the Corbin seat has two chromed steel "tabs" which affix to the studs you've made. This is slightly different than the OEM holes in the seat pan but it works securely.

As to frustrations with the seat and shock absorbers being a reason not to buy less expensive bikes, I have had high-end sport and sport-touring bikes (Honda VFR-750 and ST-1100; Moto Guzzi California 1100) which were wonderful bikes but each needed (desperately) a Corbin Seat and were transformed once that modification was made. Others required an aftermarket shock absorber, sprung to rider's weight, to complete the conversion to a long distance bike. The only Japanese bike in my direct experience that had a splendid OEM seat was my 1981 Honda GL-500 Silverwing. Shape is everything and it requires no more expense to shape a good seat than a terrible one. Also, the seat should be parallel to the ground for maximum comfort. Sport bikes' OEM seats always seem to slant down toward the front, which insures discomfort.

Ralph
 
#21 ·
Fork: You wondered about a photo of my seat studs. I'm away from the bike for a few days but wanted to respond. Just get two bolts in a hardware store which are the same diameter and thread pitch as the OEM Allen bolts and have a threaded length of at least 30mm, as that's the length of the studs you'll make. Cut off the head of this bolt (and while you're at it, the head of the "engineer" who designed this frustrating mounting system) and then clean the threads of the cut end of the stud you've made. Run this stud with your fingers into the threaded hole in the frame the OEM Allen bolts had fitted in (if you got lucky).

Once satisfied that the studs' cut ends will enter the threaded holes without undue force, remove them, coat the cut ends with blue LocTite and using two nuts jammed together on the other end and using the top nut, tighten each stud down into the threaded hole until it "bottoms". Let the LocTite dry overnight. Then put the seat on and use a flat washer and a Nylock nut on the upper end of each stud.

Note that the Corbin seat has two chromed steel "tabs" which affix to the studs you've made. This is slightly different than the OEM holes in the seat pan but it works securely.

As to frustrations with the seat and shock absorbers being a reason not to buy less expensive bikes, I have had high-end sport and sport-touring bikes (Honda VFR-750 and ST-1100; Moto Guzzi California 1100) which were wonderful bikes but each needed (desperately) a Corbin Seat and were transformed once that modification was made. Others required an aftermarket shock absorber, sprung to rider's weight, to complete the conversion to a long distance bike. The only Japanese bike in my direct experience that had a splendid OEM seat was my 1981 Honda GL-500 Silverwing. Shape is everything and it requires no more expense to shape a good seat than a terrible one. Also, the seat should be parallel to the ground for maximum comfort. Sport bikes' OEM seats always seem to slant down toward the front, which insures discomfort.

Ralph

+1 ,top post10/10 the seat fixing is crap.


Plasma1
 
#19 ·
I had gel pads put in the stock seat and what an amazing difference. I live in Thailand and am lucky to have a seat upholsterer who is not too expensive. Did a 5000 kms road trip earlier this year and no pain at all. I am a pensioner so another comfort mod I had done was to get 2 inch bar back risers installed. Just needed one cable changing, which I think was the brake cable.
 
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