Comfortable (even custom?) banana seat?

[indianadave]

I definitely like yours with the longer seat. Is it any more padded than a Schwinn seat?

 

[patches]

I was thinking of doing one like an Ichi but more like a mini bike seat for a 26 Inch I was thought 2 inches of good foam on a flat bottom.. When I get around to it I will post a picture. Probably should have the couch re upholstered first to make the wife happy.

 

[Raoul Dude]

I definitely like yours with the longer seat. Is it any more padded than a Schwinn seat?

I don't think so -- but it's also been YEARS since I've really felt an original Schwinn banana seat. (I got to ride a vintage Pea Picker about two hundred feet two years ago, but was busier worrying about things like hitting my knees on the handlebars than I was about the seat -- those 20" bikes are smaller than I remembered. Then again I've also gotten taller. )

When I first joined this site, I do remember thinking that banana seats were more comfortable when I only weighed 60 or 70 pounds, but I also hadn't been riding ANY bicycles for a few years. Now that I've been riding hundreds of miles each summer on a variety of bikes, the banana seat doesn't seem much different than any of my other non-sprung saddles except for the riding position. I feel bumps more mostly because my legs can't absorb some of the shock when I'm sitting over the rear wheel.

If I ever have to recover the "new" seat I'll definitely try to add some more foam, but right now for five and ten mile rides it's not much of a problem.

 

[Indyjps]

Bump for more ideas. Got a MBBO coming right up.

 

[Wildcat]

Get a narrower motorcycle seat? This is from an old Honda 350.

 

[AndyA]

I believe that Dr. Tankenstein is on the right track. The thing is that you can add all the padding you want but it won't help if you don't have any support under your ischial tuberosities (sit bones). Those are the parts of your anatomy that are OK with the pressure of sitting, unlike other soft tissue. One possible design flaw here is that the forward part of the saddle may be too wide for comfortable pedaling.
Doc, please give us a report after more testing!

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

Here’s where it stands as of last week. I added the angular bits to make it easier to upholster and to give it an updated ‘Manta-RAY’ look

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[Chad T]

Have made a few comfy nanners. Tricky part is making them look decent.

This is my most comfortable and best looking seat.

Used gel pad for a motorcycle seat.

The gel pad has become a bit more visible as the cover has shrank but it still looks decent.

 

[Dr. Tankenstein]

That is an awesome idea for padding.
My gel pad comes from a ‘lace on’ topper I grabbed at Walmart or Target.

Yours look comfy!



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