A good saddle is the basis for a comfortable ride on a motorcycle. And on a custom saddle (as well as other design elements) emphasizes the style of the motorcycle. Therefore, it is necessary to pay attention to the manufacture of the saddle. First of all, you need to have a clear idea of what to make.
It is necessary to install the saddle when the tank and the rear wing are finally placed on the home-made fabric. It is also necessary to install pedal assemblies. It is the location of these knots (i.e. steps + controls), the shape and position of the saddle determine the convenience of riding a motorcycle.
The saddle designs are very diverse. And practically everything can be repeated in "garage" conditions. For devices solved in the style of "old cheekbones" a good solution will be the use of standard rubber separate seats "Urals" and "Dnieper".
Let's consider the most common saddle design. It is a saddle with a metal frame and a soft element of foam rubber or latex.
Such designs are applied practically on all serial motorcycles in style "Kastom". However, it is worth noting that the saddle base is often made of plastic, and as an elastic element is used only molded foam rubber. While latex has a much better quality. A saddle with such an element at good softness is never pressed to the base. Leaf latex is very expensive and almost non-existent in the sale, including in specialized furniture stores. Since even for expensive sofas now use cheaper foam rubber. The question arises: where to get this material?
Latex was used in the saddles of motorcycles "Dnepr" and "Ural", as well as in car seats until about 1995. That is, if you do not have an old saddle in good condition, you will have to go to the disassembly of "Moskvichi", "Zhiguli" or "Zaporozhetsev". For one big new two-seater motorcycle saddle is necessary about one and a half old motorcycle saddles or one car.
Also a good material for saddles is the material used in gymnastic mats. They can be purchased in sports shops and are very expensive. This material is made up of particles of foam rubber, latex and microporous rubber pressed into one sheet.
So, the material for you has and now it is possible to make a metal frame of the future saddle. For this purpose, sheet steel with a thickness of at least 1.5 mm is used. Thinner metal can bend over or even be carried on with the wrapping.
The saddle frame must be fitted with a flanging for the cladding material and a row of holes for the air outlet.
The finished frame is mounted on the motorcycle and the approximate seat cushion dimensions are estimated. The latex saddle is then cut out of the existing latex seat and glued to the metal frame in any order. This work is done on the shoe glue "Nairit". In case of using foam or mat, the work is significantly simplified.
Then, with the help of a sharp knife and scissors, the necessary seat cushion is cut out. The material has to be processed very smoothly, otherwise the hillocks will flow through the cladding.
A strip of leather should be glued to the saddle flange to avoid cutting the trim when tightening.
The saddle cover is made of genuine leather or soft leather. The leather case is beautiful and durable, but very impractical because of its marquetry and hygroscopic properties. That is, with such a leather saddle you will always have a wet ass. Therefore, the best material, in my opinion, is leather vinyl. This material should be chosen as soft but thick and dense as possible.
Particular attention should be paid to the accuracy of the cut of the cover, because you can often see even on the "solid" saddle, reminiscent of the shape of a bread loaf. This is mainly due to the fact that the cover is cut out incorrectly and to get the necessary shape and to remove wrinkles and folds had to tighten the material very tightly. A good cover should be stretched on the saddle with little effort and do not form large folds.
Sewing of the cover is carried out by a capron thread with an expansion. Sometimes the seam is used with inserted decorative edge.
The finished saddle cover is tightened and glued to the back of the flange only with Nairit glue.
Large saddles have a good look for decorative buttons, which also help to bypass the saddle deeper. The buttons are inserted into the specially drilled holes in the seat base on a capron thread. The finished saddle is painted from below with paint or soil.