I too thought that a seat cover with an integrated chamber to contain an
inner tube might work assuming some of the design logistics could be
worked out. It's worth consideration I think. The component approach I
took was chosen primarily because of its simplicity and easy integration
into several different seat covers. Also, using only two pieces of
material cut together from one pattern saved sewing time. As you know,
individual air pillows can be stacked allowing various levels of
cushioning to suit both Coker and MUni riding styles. Here are some
additional thoughts on the Roach seat cover and cushioning. The Roach
seat cover offers four immediate advantages in one design. First, it's
light in weight. Second, it offers additional height to accommodate more
cushioning. Three, the nylon material requires minimal forces to conform
it to body curves. Four, the nylon material has a low coefficient of
friction which reduces its tendency to bind, grab or pinch. No other
commercial seat or seat cover I've used offers the potential for comfort
equaling that afforded by the Roach cover. With some minor
improvements/changes, the Roach seat cover would become a much better
product. Surprisingly, my suggested improvements don't include an air
pillow chamber(s). In its current offering, the Roach cover holds itself
in place with an elastic strap in front of the seat post and a buckle
strap aft of the seat post. This strapping arrangement doesn't keep the
cover tight with the seat plate. Also, since nylon offers no bumpering
action, repeated collisions with mother earth causes the nylon to abrade
and expose the seat plate over time. To improve attachment, replace the
straps with a series of punched perimeter holes with brass eyelets to
allow the seat to be laced under the seat plate with a leather thong.
This allows varying amounts of cushioning to be snugged down to desired
comfort. Some extra nylon should be added or sewn in the perimeter seam
to resist abrasion allowing for greater service life. This extra
material would also strengthen the eyelet zone as well preventing tear
out. With those changes I think the cover would be a better product
serving a greater riding population. Like all designs there are trade
offs. The Roach cover's additional height can create a sloppy rider to
seat joint for some riders saddling less padding. For riders whose
riding style requires being close to the seat plate, the Roach cover
might not offer any perks. For MUni riders on mellow trail or big wheel
street riders the Roach cover, with proper cushioning, will offer an
improvement in comfort. Here are some thoughts on cushioning the Roach
seat cover. I've found that adding additional foam cushioning under a
seat is not a linear relationship with comfort. Too much foam cushioning
causes the seat to become over stuffed and tends to crown the cover down
the middle. Your crotch center is what must compress this crowned area
which gets unpleasant after a while. Too little padding and you either
bottom out on the seat plate or feel inflexible high spots causing heat
buildup and/or numbness in and about the crotch. Inner tube padding is
an improvement over foam but inner tubes tend to dribble out the sides
of a non-rubber cover like the Roach. A simple air pillow arrangement as
described in my previous posting prevents this from happening. Also it
creates a relieved center section down the middle owing to the doughnut
style support. The biggest advantage to using an air pillow, aside from
preventing inner tube spill over, is it allows stacking of two inner
tubes. The stacked air pillows won't provide twice the comfort but this
cushion is the most comfortable thing I've sat on. A small improvement
in comfort does make a big improvement in enjoyment though. In summary,
I'd leave the Roach cover alone (except for those suggestions noted
above) and provide a simple air pillow cover that could be loaded with a
tube. Nylon might not be the best material for the air pillow since
internal friction or stick helps hold things in place and prevent
sliding. I used duct canvas during my R&D and found that a pretty good
material. A simple set of instruction should also come with the air
pillow to help people with setup. A thin piece of foam or nylon might
need to be put over seat plates that have hardware protruding so as not
to puncture the air pillow. I think the biggest advantage of the air
pillow is the ability to stack two together. Hope this helps. Later.
PS: I rode the air pillow seat for 8 hours (on/off) on Friday and 6 hours
(on/off) on Monday during MUni weekend and the comfort level was excellent.
At 9K feet the tubes did inflate a bit.
I’ll chime in and say that even though I haven’t put my new double air seat
together yet, test riding a couple of them last weekend showed me that it is
“the way”. Thanks for the R&D Scott, and thank-you Chris Reeder for the pair of
air pillows. I agree that the Roach cover is basically just what’s needed,
although the brass grommets would be much better than the current little piece
of elastic. Maybe Unicycle Source could offer a package: the carbon seat frame,
the Roach cover, two 12" tubes and two air pillows, discounted if you buy them
all together for the low price of …
Here’s to greater comfort while unicycling.
—Nathan
“Scott Bridgman” <scott@enduco.com> wrote in message news:4.2.2.20000928192525.00a1a470@pop.mindspring.com… > Kris, > > I too thought that a seat cover with an integrated chamber to contain an inner > tube might work assuming some of the design logistics could be
worked > out. It’s worth consideration I think. The component approach I took was > chosen primarily because of its simplicity and easy integration into several > different seat covers. Also, using only two pieces of material
cut > together from one pattern saved sewing time. As you know, individual air > pillows can be stacked allowing various levels of cushioning to suit both > Coker and MUni riding styles. Here are some additional thoughts on the Roach > seat cover and cushioning. The Roach seat cover offers four immediate > advantages in one design. First, it’s light in weight. Second, it offers > additional height to accommodate more cushioning. Three, the nylon material > requires
minimal > forces to conform it to body curves. Four, the nylon material has a low > coefficient of friction which reduces its tendency to bind, grab or pinch. No > other commercial seat or seat cover I’ve used offers the potential for comfort > equaling that afforded by the Roach cover. With
some > minor improvements/changes, the Roach seat cover would become a much
better > product. Surprisingly, my suggested improvements don’t include an air pillow > chamber(s). In its current offering, the Roach cover holds itself in place > with an elastic strap in front of the seat post and a buckle strap aft of the > seat post. This strapping arrangement doesn’t keep the cover tight with the > seat plate. Also, since nylon offers no bumpering action, repeated collisions > with mother earth causes the nylon to abrade and expose the
seat > plate over time. To improve attachment, replace the straps with a series of > punched perimeter holes with brass eyelets to allow the seat to be
laced > under the seat plate with a leather thong. This allows varying amounts of > cushioning to be snugged down to desired comfort. Some extra nylon should be > added or sewn in the perimeter seam to resist abrasion allowing for greater > service life. This extra material would also strengthen the
eyelet > zone as well preventing tear out. With those changes I think the cover would > be a better product serving a greater riding population. Like all designs > there are trade offs. The Roach cover’s additional height can create a sloppy > rider to seat joint for some riders saddling less padding. For riders whose > riding style requires being close to the seat plate, the Roach cover might not > offer any perks. For MUni riders on mellow trail or big wheel street riders > the Roach cover, with proper cushioning, will offer an improvement in comfort. > Here are some thoughts on cushioning the Roach seat cover. I’ve found that > adding additional foam cushioning under a seat is not a linear relationship > with comfort. Too much foam cushioning causes the seat to become over stuffed > and tends to crown the cover down the middle. Your crotch center is what must > compress this crowned area which gets
unpleasant > after a while. Too little padding and you either bottom out on the seat plate > or feel inflexible high spots causing heat buildup and/or numbness
in > and about the crotch. Inner tube padding is an improvement over foam but inner > tubes tend to dribble out the sides of a non-rubber cover like the Roach. A > simple air pillow arrangement as described in my previous
posting > prevents this from happening. Also it creates a relieved center section down > the middle owing to the doughnut style support. The biggest
advantage > to using an air pillow, aside from preventing inner tube spill over, is it > allows stacking of two inner tubes. The stacked air pillows won’t provide > twice the comfort but this cushion is the most comfortable thing I’ve sat on. > A small improvement in comfort does make a big improvement in enjoyment > though. In summary, I’d leave the Roach cover alone (except for those > suggestions noted above) and provide a simple air pillow cover that could be > loaded with a tube. Nylon might not be the best material for the air pillow > since internal friction or stick helps hold things in place and prevent > sliding. I used duct canvas during my R&D and found that a pretty good > material. A simple set of instruction should also come with the air pillow to > help people with setup. A thin piece of foam or nylon might
need > to be put over seat plates that have hardware protruding so as not to puncture > the air pillow. I think the biggest advantage of the air pillow is the ability > to stack two together. Hope this helps. Later. > > PS: I rode the air pillow seat for 8 hours (on/off) on Friday and 6 hours > (on/off) on Monday during MUni weekend and the comfort level was > excellent. At 9K feet the tubes did inflate a bit. > > “The Muniac” (Scott Bridgman) > > e-mail: scott@muniac.com web visit: www.muniac.com > > Mountain UNIcycling ACtion