I purchased a Corbin Gunfighter and Lady saddle plus the removable backrest for our 1999 VFR800 at the insistence of my wife - we've never had a bike without some sort of backrest for her. We ordered it through our local Honda dealer who, after pressing it a bit, gave us 15% off Corbin's list prices (saddle $359. list, backrest $199) plus tax - no shipping charges! Just added sales tax. The saddle is leather but just on the seating surfaces only - the sides are a matching vinyl which still looks fine. We ordered ours with the red accent piping on both the seat and the backrest - the recommendation for a matching red was "Ninja Red", according to the dealer. Not a perfect color match but looks great.
Quality is excellent, in my opinion. The seat base itself doesn't have all the support points under it that the stock seat seems to have - just the front clip and the rear "catch". Doesn't seems to pose any issues in execution, though. Installation was a no-brainer though the rear "catch" took a bit of leaning to get it to lock in (it bolts to the bottom of the seat pan thus would be adjustable). You can still use the stock rear cowling (haven't even taken ours out of the box from the factory yet so can't attest to fit) and the grab handles are still intact. The backrest attaches through a permanent hole in the rear of the seat top with one allen head bolt. You have to remove the seat to remove/install the backrest. There is no provision (i.e. flap/plug) to cover the hole when the backrest is removed. The backrest "pole" is aluminum but could be painted if the silver soesnt suit your taste. I'd suggest a dab of Loc-Tite on the bolt threads for the backrest lock as ours loosened up after a bit of riding. The instruction sheet was so generic it was useless. It also professed the allen wrench for the backrest bolt was provided - never found it.
Overall, we're very pleased with the product. Like a new pair of shoes, the seat takes a bit of "break-in time". Firm but comfortable. Still a great ride! bwright_2@yahoo.com (Bill Wright)
Chapter One - Instead of ordering directly from Corbin as I have with my prior two purchases, I gave the business to my favorite tire and accessory guy. He gave me a few bucks off list price, but I gave up control over the delivery process. It took 4 weeks longer than originally estimated to receive the seat. This one is for a 94 VFR, 93's and earlier have a different shape up front. The backrest is fine, that's the only good news. The bad news is the seat doesn't fit the bike and can't be used in its current condition. First fit problem is the shape of their seat pan isn't long enough in the lower front corners, this leaves a gap between the bodywork and where the seat starts (a gap large enough to present a black hole into the bike's innards). Another fit problem is how it sits on the frame rails. The right side sits comparably to the stock seat, but the left side rides right on the fairing panels. All this is made worse because the latch loop isn't long enough to catch, rendering the seat useless at this point. I was not hopeful for the best of service when I called Corbin, based on rumors of sometimes arrogant attitude. I was pleasantly surprised by Jack's suggestions. His first hope/question was that I was riding distance from them, he would have had me bring it in and they'd get it right. The approach we are taking is that I will take pictures and send them with the seat to Corbin, and they will provide 2-week turnaround to fix the problems or supply a new seat. I'll send another message when I get the repaired/replaced seat back from Corbin. chris.schlieter@smc.com (Chris Schlieter)
I purchased this saddle for my '94VFR in Jan. '95. When I received the saddle from the factory it was misadjusted, and did not contain adjustment instructions. After analyzing the situation for a few sec I adjusted the height of the two rubber grommets on the bottom of the seat. Presto, a perfect fit. As far as the fit of the saddle to the plastic parts forward of the seat, or anywhere else for that matter: no problem. The fit is excellent, the latch bar is located in precisely the right location, and the quality of material and workmanship are superb. Incidentally, it looks good too. My only complaint is about the seam that runs across the width of the saddle in the center of the seat. During a one or two day trip the seam is unnoticeable. However, when doing some serious touring (measured in the KMi's) the seam is the first thing (other than the reach to the stock handlebars if you aren't fortunate enough to own Heli Bars) that stands out as a singular contributor to discomfort. But this is a minor discomfort, and I only mention it because it is the only thing that I could think of to complain about after spending 14 days in the saddle, and covering 5200 miles on a trip from L.A. to Banff last summer. DG93063@msn.com (David Geddes)
Have had my 2000 VFR for just over a year now and to get my wife to ride with me ordered a Corbin gunfighter & lady saddle with backrest last month. I must admit to some anxiety for several reasons: first, all the complaints that I've read on websites about poor fit and customer service and secondly that once the seat is ordered, I'm stuck with something that may or may not fit me. All my fears were unfounded. The customer service at Corbin was great. The rep. who took my order was patient and helped customize the seat for my short legs, doing what they call a "nose job" and even putting the Irish flag colors into a motosport emblem on the side of the saddle. When the saddle arrived it not only looked great, but fit easily on the bike on the first try with no extra effort. It is 100% more comfortable than the stock seat, with my getting low on fuel and needing to stop and never getting to the point of "numb butt." Some friends had said that they didn't like the Corbin seat as they couldn't move around on it. Not true. It's in fact even easier to hang off from then the stock seat. My wife is now secure and enjoys riding and having let go of her old death grip, is free to lean with me and the bike into corners. I'm one happy rider and would recommend Corbin saddles to anyone. The VFR is great and my Corbin only made it better. (Fr. David Hussey - uminusd@dtgnet.com)
I have had a Corbin seat on my bike since Christmas and can say with great confidence that it's a worthwhile accessory for a couple of reasons. First, the seat places me a little lower and farther rearward than the stock seat. This is nice since I am 6'5" tall. Also, the padding in the seat is firmer and doesn't "sink" after an hour on a hot day, providing much better comfort on extended rides. My girlfriend rides on the back and says it is more comfortable as well.The seat was $230 from Corbin. My girlfriend had some problems getting Corbin to ship the seat on time, but after getting a little nasty with them, it was delivered and under the tree on time.I don't have Corbin's # with me, but they are located in Daytona Beach, FL and somewhere in California. (editor: the Corbin number is: 800-538-7035) They will mail you a full-color catalog free of charge. mullery@evolving.com (Matt Ullery)
I bought a Corbin seat (Gunfighter and Lady, with backrest) for my '91 VFR through mailorder. Stock, the seat didn't fit very well on the bike and was a pain to install. The seat was lower and wider than stock. Craftsmanship was decent, but not great. I made an appointment to go to the Corbin shop near Monterey, CA to have the seat custom fitted. I HIGHLY recommend this option if you can manage it. They build up the seat for you, you ride your bike with the seat on, give them feedback, they change, and keep iterating until you're happy, when they cover the seat and give it to you. Craftsmanship was excellent, and no problems getting it delivered. It was very well worth the 800-mile trip from Seattle to Monterey.patl@onpmomma.isc-br.com (Pat Loughery)
I have owned Pat's bike since mile 11,600. It now has 28K+ on it and the Corbin is holding up very nicely. The stiching is still very tight and has only compressed a little bit. No need for replacement in the near future. scottav@microsoft.com (Scott Avery).
I just purchased a Corbin saddle for my 1994 VFR750. Had the same fitment problems as everyone else but it was easy to solve. Solution: Remove your entire rear body panel (easy, its only 4 bolts & 1 switch). Then from behind you can see exactly how many spacers to put or remove into the seat. I had to put one spacer on the left side & none on the right side. After that the seat fit great. It's a well made product. I found it really comforable on the highway, but only marginally better than stock in the city (I'm 6.0'). I also purchased the bump pad for the rear cowl. Corbin says they include a template to drill the screws into it, but it was NOT in the package. (I ordered from their Canadian distributer Bike Rider) Regrets: >if I was buying it over again I would custom order the fake leather instead of the vinyl for the siding (now its naughhyde vinyl with red piping). The vinyl on the sides & nose piece is too shiny. tnina@noisemedia.com (Tony Nina)
I have '92 VFR that required a new seat after a failed theft attempt. I ordered the Corbin through a local dealer in St. Augustine and recieved the seat within days. That was 25,000 miles ago and my seat has not fared well. The seam the runs across the seat in the actual seating area has come apart and so has the seam at the front of the seating area. I attribute this to a poor design. Once the seat was broke in there was a large bubble present at the previously mentioned seam which has caused a lot of stress on that seam. The seat is also a tad on the hard side now, when new it was very comfortable. The seat is also very good looking!! I will be getting it recovered soon by Sargents here in Jacksonville since Corbin wants to charge a whole bunch of money plus shipping and handling to get it recovered, plus two to three weeks down time! No thank you! I'll let you know how the Sargent reskinned but-rest fares. Randy Kalski@mediaone.net
I have a Corbin gunfighter and lady leather seat for my '96 VFR. It's a good thing that it came with the bike because if I had paid the $500 bucks for it I would have been pissed. First off it's about 10 lbs. heavier than the stock seat. It's not nearly as comfortable either. Also if you leave the bike outside and some dew collects on it (or it rains a little) you can wipe the seat as much as you like but when you sit on it all the water squishes up through the little holes in it and SOAKS YOUR ASS! I think it's crap and it sits on a shelf in my room. It's a good thing he gave me the stock seat with the bike. I would have had to buy a new one! chizzler@optonline.net (Nick Chiechi)
My VFR is an '87 700 with (now) 34K on the clock. I searched for a corbin with no luck for several months hoping to find a replacement seat before a planned trip from Texas to Colorado and back. I found Sargent Cycles homepage and discovered the alternative of recovering my existing seat with the same gelfoam that corbin uses as well as any custom color of my choice. After talking with them and shipping my seat, I discovered that I had more options than I could have believed. They were very patient in helping me make decisions and did the job in only two days to be certain I had the seat back by departure time. Three thousand miles later, I can't believe what a difference it made. What was once a three to four hour seat is now fourteen hours- no worries. The price was about half, and fitment was obviously no problem. Thank you Sandy and Mark for helping my vacation turn out to be an absolute pleasure- after eight days on the road I only wanted to keep going! robertsc@tlpdal.com (Chris Roberts)
