I got a new Coker this year. It came with a Viscount saddle. I have an older
saddle from a Tom Miller made 20" uni, which I’ve been using instead. It has
a metal base, a piece of foam, and a flexible cover.
I’ve experimented with all kinds of combinations.
I removed the foam and replaced with an innertube.
I put the innertube on top of the foam.
I put the innertube under the foam.
I bent the front part of the seat down to give more room for my testicles.
I got some softer foam from some packing material.
I bent the front part down even more.
Now I seem to have solved the testicle problem, but now I have a lot of
pressure on 2 pieces of my pelvis. That seems to be where all the weight is.
I’m wondering if it would help to cut holes in the foam where these bones
rest. I also wonder if a wider seat would help distribute the weight better.
I’m really envious of those of you that go for long rides. I can only go
about 4 miles at a time due to saddle discomfort.
Sounds like you replaced your Viscount with a Schwinn/Semcycle seat. The Viscounts were designed to replace those. I find both to be about equal in the comfort department, depending on quality of the foam. Neither is a great comfort design for me personally, but seat comfort is a very personal thing.
If you’re not wearing cycling shorts, you’re torturing yourself for no reason. Invest in a decent pair and you’ll find they make a world of difference.
You can experiment with the shape of the foam to try to improve comfort. You don’t want to lower the part where your sit bones are, though. That’s the weight-bearing area. I did a little experimenting years ago, and put a pair of ridges where the sit bones go, and cut a channel in the foam down the center where your soft tissues and nerves go. That was an improvement over the basic Miyata seat.
But today I prefer either a KH/Velo seat off the shelf, or a Miyata seat with air. The Miyata air has the edge on comfort, but the KH is easier to set up.
“johnfoss” <johnfoss@NoEmail.Message.Poster.at.Unicyclist.com> wrote in
message news:johnfoss.1806c3@NoEmail.Message.Poster.at.Unicyclist.com…
>
> Sounds like you replaced your Viscount with a Schwinn/Semcycle seat. The
> Viscounts were designed to replace those. I find both to be about equal
> in the comfort department, depending on quality of the foam. Neither is
> a great comfort design for me personally, but seat comfort is a very
> personal thing.
Yes, I replaced the seat. I started tearing apart the Viscount, and saw it
was glued together, and figured it would be difficult to put back together
and experiment.
>
> 1. If you’re not wearing cycling shorts, you’re torturing yourself for
> no reason. Invest in a decent pair and you’ll find they make a world of
> difference.
Yes I have cycling shorts with chamous. They are 30 years old, from when I
used to bicycle a lot.
>
> 2. You can experiment with the shape of the foam to try to improve
> comfort. You don’t want to lower the part where your sit bones are,
> though. That’s the weight-bearing area. I did a little experimenting
> years ago, and put a pair of ridges where the sit bones go, and cut a
> channel in the foam down the center where your soft tissues and nerves
> go. That was an improvement over the basic Miyata seat.
>
Thanks.
> 3. But today I prefer either a KH/Velo seat off the shelf, or a Miyata
> seat with air. The Miyata air has the edge on comfort, but the KH is
> easier to set up.
>
I got sticker shock when I saw the price of a KH seat. ($90)
>
> –
> johnfoss - Walkin’ on the edge
>
> John Foss, the Uni-Cyclone
> “jfoss” at “unicycling.com”
> www.unicycling.com
>
> “That sucks.” – Ryan Atkins, at the bottom of a 10’ cliff he just
> jumped off at the 2003 California MUni Weekend, looking at his bent
> seat.
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> johnfoss’s Profile: http://www.unicyclist.com/profile/832
> View this thread: http://www.unicyclist.com/thread/33271
>
I’m not an expert on 30 year old shorts, but they may be past their best days. I notice today’s shorts use all sorts of synthetic materials, but I haven’t noticed any natural chamois in a long time. Try a more recent pair. If you ride a lot, you’ll need multiple pairs anyway.
KH seats are $48 from Unicycle.com. Were you referring to a pre-built air seat ($99 or so)?
Tim converted his viscount to an amazingly simple and comfortable seat. It gives a lot of support all over and is really soft. He did the LBI unithon (19 miles) on it without any trouble.
What he did was take all the foam off his viscount. Then he bought a 12’’ innertube. He then sewed a cover that would fit rather loosely over the seat, drilled the seat for a stem and put the tube inside the cover.
As I said before, the seat is extremely comfortable. My only concern is durability.