Joined
·
1,002 Posts
I had a Corbin aftermarket seat installed on my 400 about two weeks ago. So far, I am pretty happy. I bought it from Oneida Suzuki.
Oneida was fairly easy to work with, and invariably answered my e-mails promptly. There was a bit of a glitch in the processing of my credit card, but I suspect this was due to an error on my own part. Shipping was prompt and timely.
I _do_ have two small problems with Oneida, however. One is that they did not show me how much shipping was going to be until my order was complete. It cost almost $60 to have the Corbin shipped to my home, so much that given a chance I would have shopped at other places to see if I could do better. I can't help but beleive that the folks at Oneida had already figured that folks like me might shop around, and set up their site accordingly. Second, due to the fact that I live in a small town and work nights, it is extraordinarily difficult for me to receive a UPS package that requires a signature. I work during normal delivery hours, and the local shipping center is only open three hours a day (which I also work) for package pickup in the event of a missed delivery. This means that to pick up a signature package I have to waste a vacation day. Oneida refused to waive the signature requirement on this shipment, due to the value of the seat. Because of this, I very nearly was not able to receive it. (In the end, my local center opened up an extra day for the Christmas rush, or else my seat would now be back in New York.)
I can't give anyone who will not ship packages via US Mail (which I can easily pick up) a really good service rating. However, I'll give Oneida a 7 for at least replying to their e-mail.
The seat itself is a mixed bag. For those of you who've only tuned in recently, I am truly angry at Suzuki for their inferior seat design. While the seat was comfortable for me for a quick test ride, on trips of thirty minutes or more it rapidly became more and more painful to sit on. I bought several seat cushions, including the famous "Airhawk", and though each helped ease the situation somewhat (the Airhawk most of all) nothing came even close to providing the kind of "all-day" comfort I require from a machine that I expect to sometimes spend, well, all day sitting on.
On the positive side, the Corbin is far more comfortable than the factory model. As advertised, it starts out very firm, though even on its worst day it was far superior to the factory equipment overall. I can already feel it breaking in after just 200 miles or so, and things took a big step forward when I rubbed down the genuine leather with a preservative/waterproofer/conditioner as reccommended by Corbin (though not their overpriced house brand, I fear). This made a large, immediate improvement to an already good situation, and probably would have made a larger one had I read the instructions more closely and realized that the conditioner was _supposed_ to be applied over saddle soap. Whoops!
There are definitely negatives to the Corbin, however. First, it is _very_ pricey. I paid just short of $600 delivered, which is significantly over _10%_ of the brand-new cost of my 400. I don't blame Corbin for this so much; it takes money to produce what is clearly a quality product. However, I want to _strangle_ the Suzuki people every time I think about how they should have done it right the first time. Second, the seat is heavier than the original, enough so that the shock-strut arm will no longer support the weight. Though I've been told that there is a stronger strut available, I've not yet had time to look into this. Yesterday, I tried to improvise a prop rod out of an old broom handle, but discovered that anything long enough to be useful will probably also be too long to easily carry around with me. Third, the Corbin did not fit my bike perfectly. Despite having been reassured about how easy a seat is to install, I chose to pay for an installation after taking one cursory look at the mounting bolts. I was very glad that I did, because the first attempt at installation failed due to the latch not lining up properly. The installer finally had to modify the hardware (a task totally beyond my capabilities) to allow the Corbin to open and close properly. Indeed, even now the latch remains stiffer and harder to operate than the orignal setup. But things are slowly getting better. Either I am getting better at operating the improvised system, or the parts are wearing in. I suspect a little of both. I plan on calling the factory up soon, to let them know about my fitting issues. I'm not seeking a refund, just wanting to keep them informed so that they can (hopefully) improve things.
I'll also note that the Corbin sits just a smidge higher than the factory model. Whether that's good or bad is purely subjective, I suppose. For me, it doesn't matter either way. It also creates a little more legroom, according to another forum member who's tried mine. I, however, don't even notice it.
Overall, I rate the Corbin an 8.5. It's too expensive, and didn't quite fit perfectly. However, it _did_ solve my pain problem when nothing else would work, and for that I am very grateful.
One closing note: Corbin's seats come with a rather nifty-looking backrest system. However, the backrests which fit it cost something like $200 apiece. For that kind of money, I fully intend to try and do without. If anyone else tries one, however, I'd be pleased to hear of their experiences.
Oneida was fairly easy to work with, and invariably answered my e-mails promptly. There was a bit of a glitch in the processing of my credit card, but I suspect this was due to an error on my own part. Shipping was prompt and timely.
I _do_ have two small problems with Oneida, however. One is that they did not show me how much shipping was going to be until my order was complete. It cost almost $60 to have the Corbin shipped to my home, so much that given a chance I would have shopped at other places to see if I could do better. I can't help but beleive that the folks at Oneida had already figured that folks like me might shop around, and set up their site accordingly. Second, due to the fact that I live in a small town and work nights, it is extraordinarily difficult for me to receive a UPS package that requires a signature. I work during normal delivery hours, and the local shipping center is only open three hours a day (which I also work) for package pickup in the event of a missed delivery. This means that to pick up a signature package I have to waste a vacation day. Oneida refused to waive the signature requirement on this shipment, due to the value of the seat. Because of this, I very nearly was not able to receive it. (In the end, my local center opened up an extra day for the Christmas rush, or else my seat would now be back in New York.)
I can't give anyone who will not ship packages via US Mail (which I can easily pick up) a really good service rating. However, I'll give Oneida a 7 for at least replying to their e-mail.
The seat itself is a mixed bag. For those of you who've only tuned in recently, I am truly angry at Suzuki for their inferior seat design. While the seat was comfortable for me for a quick test ride, on trips of thirty minutes or more it rapidly became more and more painful to sit on. I bought several seat cushions, including the famous "Airhawk", and though each helped ease the situation somewhat (the Airhawk most of all) nothing came even close to providing the kind of "all-day" comfort I require from a machine that I expect to sometimes spend, well, all day sitting on.
On the positive side, the Corbin is far more comfortable than the factory model. As advertised, it starts out very firm, though even on its worst day it was far superior to the factory equipment overall. I can already feel it breaking in after just 200 miles or so, and things took a big step forward when I rubbed down the genuine leather with a preservative/waterproofer/conditioner as reccommended by Corbin (though not their overpriced house brand, I fear). This made a large, immediate improvement to an already good situation, and probably would have made a larger one had I read the instructions more closely and realized that the conditioner was _supposed_ to be applied over saddle soap. Whoops!
There are definitely negatives to the Corbin, however. First, it is _very_ pricey. I paid just short of $600 delivered, which is significantly over _10%_ of the brand-new cost of my 400. I don't blame Corbin for this so much; it takes money to produce what is clearly a quality product. However, I want to _strangle_ the Suzuki people every time I think about how they should have done it right the first time. Second, the seat is heavier than the original, enough so that the shock-strut arm will no longer support the weight. Though I've been told that there is a stronger strut available, I've not yet had time to look into this. Yesterday, I tried to improvise a prop rod out of an old broom handle, but discovered that anything long enough to be useful will probably also be too long to easily carry around with me. Third, the Corbin did not fit my bike perfectly. Despite having been reassured about how easy a seat is to install, I chose to pay for an installation after taking one cursory look at the mounting bolts. I was very glad that I did, because the first attempt at installation failed due to the latch not lining up properly. The installer finally had to modify the hardware (a task totally beyond my capabilities) to allow the Corbin to open and close properly. Indeed, even now the latch remains stiffer and harder to operate than the orignal setup. But things are slowly getting better. Either I am getting better at operating the improvised system, or the parts are wearing in. I suspect a little of both. I plan on calling the factory up soon, to let them know about my fitting issues. I'm not seeking a refund, just wanting to keep them informed so that they can (hopefully) improve things.
I'll also note that the Corbin sits just a smidge higher than the factory model. Whether that's good or bad is purely subjective, I suppose. For me, it doesn't matter either way. It also creates a little more legroom, according to another forum member who's tried mine. I, however, don't even notice it.
Overall, I rate the Corbin an 8.5. It's too expensive, and didn't quite fit perfectly. However, it _did_ solve my pain problem when nothing else would work, and for that I am very grateful.
One closing note: Corbin's seats come with a rather nifty-looking backrest system. However, the backrests which fit it cost something like $200 apiece. For that kind of money, I fully intend to try and do without. If anyone else tries one, however, I'd be pleased to hear of their experiences.
