I bought my Uni with a Viscount seat knowing that the seat would be well abused while I learned to ride. The idea was that after learning, I would like to replace it with a Miyata air converted seat. Now I keep reading all these Miyata horror stories about uncomfortable bumper guards, cracked and broken bumper guards and cracked seats.
At around $100+freight per seat (with an air seat conversion) I am having a difficult time justifying the purchase of one of these seats, but I’m taking longer and longer rides and one of the evolving factors is my comfort- or discomfort as the case may be.
So… are these Miyata seats which have been reported broken, in that state due to heavy abuse such as MUni rides and trials activity, or are Miyata seats just prone to coming apart?
I am want a comfortable seat I can depend on. Whats the whole story on Miyata seats- the good, the bad, and the ugly?
I admit to my part in the miyata scare, guv’nor. My front bumper was wonky; this however was very easy to solve using a stanley knife and some basic carving. My thighs are no longer being sawn in half.
The crack is probably not helped by the fact that the weekend when my miyata came was the same weekend when I really learned how to jump, so I was jumping all over the place and falling around lots, putting a lot of strain on the handle, for most of the weekend.
It’s currently in a vice covered in superglue. Here’s hoping…
Had I been riding around normally I’d usually only grab the handle for very brief periods, so I think it would have lasted a lot better.
Mine’s not been converted into an airseat; even so it is much more comfortable than the old viscount, the handle is very handy when you need it, and it’s a prettier colour than my black viscount…
>I am want a comfortable seat I can depend on. Whats the whole story on
>Miyata seats- the good, the bad, and the ugly?
Why don’t you endure the Viscount for some more time and wait till the
Velo KH seat comes out? I suspect it will be about the same price as a
Miyata without air conversion, but more comfortable and (given the
recent horror stories) more durable.
>I am want a comfortable seat I can depend on. Whats the whole story on
>Miyata seats- the good, the bad, and the ugly?
Why don’t you endure the Viscount for some more time and wait till the
Velo KH seat comes out? I suspect it will be about the same price as a
Miyata without air conversion, but more comfortable and (given the
recent horror stories) more durable.
Unfortunately the new Miyata handles seem to be cracking under these conditions as well. At Unithon IV we compared the new handle with the old; the old is much much stronger and more rigid and can take a lot more abuse. The difference is obvious; how the companies involved will respond is not.
My experience with uni.com customer service shows so far that they are committed to quality. Personally I think that Miyata owes uni.com a completely new shipment of handles (at least) of original quality to allow them to replace the poor ones that have been going out at no charge to the customer.
The handle of my Miyata broke due to Muni and regular riding. I certainly didn’t think the handle would break in such a short amount of time (2 months).
One of the nuts being pulled through the rear bumper was due IMHO to the factory tightening the nut down too tight. The nut was more than half way through the bumper from day 1.
Having said that I will buy another Miyata seat ASAP. I like the fit, comfort and the handle. There are aftermarket handles available already (www.muniac.com) as well as someone else on this list making them.
Convert your viscount seat if you haven’t already and see how you like it.
At this point I am wondering whether the Miyata saddle, as it is being made
today, should continue to be recommended as much as it is. Look at all of the
breaking handles, the loose bolts, the cracking baseplates that people are
posting about lately… If you have to practically build another saddle around
the thing in order to make it sturdy enough for serious riding, what’s the
advantage of it? Especially when it can’t be mounted on a standard post anyway.
Joe
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If Teddy Grahams crackers
were shaped like goats instead of bears,
would they be Billy Grahams?
