[JimB]

A couple of months ago, I had been struggling with making myself really comfortable, as I was feeling a bit cramped in the seat (I'm 6'3"). I'd extending the brake pedal and installed swingwing floorboards that allowed my knees to be angled out wider, but the pitch of the seat didn't seem to let me settle back into it.

An aftermarket seat maker informed my that the CTX1300 was on their schedule for early 2015, so I went on the hunt on how to "re-sculpt" my seat now so I could sit more deeply into it.

YouTube is terrific for stuff like this. I learned how to be a seat re-upholstery guy...here goes...

First, removed the staples that hold the cover onto the pan:

Then, like any good foam surgeon, I outlined where I wanted to sculpt away.

Then, using an electric carving knife, you approach from the side to reshape the foam (I included the knife in the photo just because I was so proud of it).

The almost finished sculpting (I laid a real thin sheet of foam over this to smooooth it out)

Then you use a kick-ass staple gun to re-adapt the cover. (that's the part I was most nervous about, but it turned out to be a piece of cake)

Final look. Although not a perfectly smooth looking out come, it has been absolutely perfect in how it feels!

Now that I am a Board Certified Seat Surgeon, I'll post the installation of the Utopia backrest next...

 

[JimB]

Uptopia Backrest Installation

My wife and I just finished a 750 mile trip up the California coastline. I had purchased special Saddlemen luggage that would double as backrests along the way...

...but I was really looking forward to installing our Utopia backrests upon our return (they had just arrived before our departure, so it's all I could think about everytime I strapped our our luggage).

Unlike the approach from the front (as I did with my Foam Surgery), the cover is removed from the back end of the seat:

Then you lift off the foam:

You simply drill two holes through the pan and seat the bracket and screw the bolts through:

Here's the underside, that faces the bike frame:

You then attempt to lay the foam back over the bracket, which will show you where you make a through-and-through knife cut in the foam, so that the top of the bracket can be pushed through to the foam's surface.

Then re-staple the cover with your kick-ass staple gun.

You'll see/feel where the top of the bracket now is, and that's where you make an incision right over the top of it, and then place the adhesive boot over that.

Now you just bolt on the backrest!
(dang, it's appearing that these images are loading "sideways").

Looks and feels great!

I did the same for my wife's CTX700, too.
(I ordered a new CTX700 seat and had it shipped directly to Utopia, as they hadn't made one for the CTX700 yet).

Bob (the owner) at Utopia provides an outstanding service! Get yourself one! (here's the link).

 

[JimB]

Utopia Backrest pouch

Before I'd installed the Utopia Backrest, I was searching for some kind of handlebar pouch for sunglasses, etc.
No need for that anymore.
The Utopia Backrest comes with a nice zippered pouch!

 

[ctxcited]

Hi Jim, great pictures! Just received my Utopia backrest for my CTX1300. I have a couple of questions, do you feel the bolts at all through the foam or are they definitely short enough? Also, what do you consider a kick-ass stapler, can you post a picture of what you used? When you said "attempt" to put the foam back down did this go easily or did you wind up cutting a larger hole than needed or was it easy to get pretty accurate where to cut? Are you seeing any unraveling of the seat cover where you cut into it and put the sticky boot? How difficult was it to stretch the fabric back over the pad to staple it and was it easy to keep it from getting wrinkles? Did you have to stretch it very hard? Looks like you did this pretty well so I just wanted to pick your brain a bit. Thanks for any additional assistance you can offer.

Ctxcited

 

[ctxcited]

One more question Jim, how did the passenger hand strap go on and off? @JimB Thanks

Ctxcited

 

[Kevinnugent]

following......

 

[krhenrie]

Thanks for the pictures @JimB! I will be following your instructions this weekend!

 

[balou]

I just did this. It was very easy. The passenger will not feel the bolt heads. I did not have an electric or air staple gun so just used my cheap spring loaded gun and it worked great. It helped that my wife stretched the seat fabric tight while I did the stapling. Hold the edge of the seat on a short 2x4 chunk of wood to get a better drive in to the plastic.

 

[strawhat1]

I took the knife to a Corbin which cost much more than the stock seat.

 

[Mark Ashby]

another seat mod

Here is a good seat mod that I did that I just love. Cardboard yes a old amazon box works just fine. I took the seat cover off cut a piece of cardboard to fit on top of the foam refit the cover and away you go! If your spectacle try cutting the cardboard and riding on it before you put it under the seat cover.The stock seat was just too soft for my butt with the cardboard it's more Corbin like for a very reasonable price

 

[Emil Makin]

How do you get on bike with backrest

Just wondering how you get your legs up that high if you are an old dude like myself.

 

[psullam]

Just wondering how you get your legs up that high if you are an old dude like myself.

Don't stand on the ground, put your left feet on the peg before crossing your right leg over the seat.

 

[bob]

Kick your right heel straight across the seat rather than swinging over the pillion. Be careful standing on only one peg if the bike is on the side stand. I was doing that on my old ST1100 and then noted that the side stand mounting started to get very loose and the stand would slide out farther than normal due to the extra weight on it. Center stand can handle that better but even that is designed just for the weight of the bike.

BTW- when I had a bike with a center stand (don't now) I always could stand next to the bike to put it on or off the center stand. Tried once or twice with the rocking and push-off method mentioned in this forum but found that I was not as in control then. Hard on the center stand mount but even more hard on the transmission if that is in gear.