Wooden motorcycle seat build, resources needed.

[KustomKreation]

So i have had a request to make a make a wooden motorcycle seat for a biker biddy of mine to be the crown on his custom bike. I have spent most of today trying to find pictures and other resources about wooden motorcycle seats....and haven't come up with much...

 

Can anyone throw any links my way or any information about making one?

 

Appreciated.

[wdwerker]

I would find a leather seat the shape he wants and copy it. Glue up a thick enough block, bandsaw the basic contours , then grab an angle grinder and free hand it down to shape.

Trace the vertical and horizontal shapes and draw them on the sides of your block . As you cut it down on the bandsaw tape the scraps back on. This lets you see the full drawing on the other faces when you turn the block to cut a different side.

[dwacker]

And buy him a box or three of preparation H

[Dave H]

I watched A biker build off episode, this bike builder made a wooden frame for the seat than had it cained (wicker seat) that gave the seat a little more give as I recall it looked pretty sharp. I agree with PB solid wood would be very uncomfortable on a ride of any distance. Good luck 

[EdgewaterWW]

What kind of bike is the seat for? Cruiser, bagger, crotch rocket, cafe racer, etc? Show bike, bar hopper, long haul, etc.? Wood Cafe Racer Seat http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsfSbL8cElk

lots of photos and info on the internet and the shop I use to work at. a good search term is "motorcycle seat pan"

[Dave H]

found a pic of the cained seat

 

[KustomKreation]

Yeah i was also thinking that a wooden seat is gonna be...uncomfortable.... But anyway the guy wants what he wants! I'm still waiting on him sending me pictures of his bike and the seat shape he wants.

 

All i know at the moment is that he wanted the seat to be alternated laminated up strips of mahogany and Birch (national Finnish tree)... My first suggestion was to change the woods... i can think of two less boring woods to use that won't do a crowing piece justice. So i'm thinking of using something like Koa and and contrasting lighter figured wood, flamed maple or something...

[Dave]

Do you know what his intentions are for the bike - if it is a show bike that will not be ridden or a bar bike that will be ridden to bike nights?  I'm pretty sure he won't be doing any long Sunday afternoon rides on a wood seat.  If it is a bar bike I would consider adding a steel or aluminum backing plate that you could add seat springs or gas shock (depending on the bike style), reinforce the mounting bolts and help against splitting the seat when bouncing across pot holes or speed bumps.  Dropping your cheeks on the battery posts could be more of ride than you anticipated... 

[Tpt life]

Rode in a metal pan tractor bucket seat for days at a time with 6-8 hours break on an old Farmall. Some trikes and big bikes use these pan style buckets. +1 for asking the customer exactly what he envisions.

[calblacksmith]

The kind of bike will make a huge difference in design. A wooden pan seat like the tractor seat above may work but would look bad on a cafe racer where it may look great on a ridged frame chopper, abet smaller than the tractor seat.

 

Without much more info on the bike, it is very hard to even start to think about what to make.

[jHop]

Check out some older leather patterns.  Sometimes, they include instructions on how to make the forms for the leather to be wrapped around.  Usually, these forms are made from wood (not always).  

 

And +1 on asking what the client has and wants to do.  (Maybe it's a show bike in the Finnish national colors, which explains the wood.)

[Byrdie]

Rode in a metal pan tractor bucket seat for days at a time with 6-8 hours break on an old Farmall. Some trikes and big bikes use these pan style buckets. +1 for asking the customer exactly what he envisions.

I've also spent more than a few hours cutting hay on a steel implement seat on a 1949 Farmall M.  You'd think a hard seat like that would be uncomfortable but it's the hardware underneath, namely a spring and shock absorber, that do the most to make the ride comfortable.  And there are aftermarket padded seat covers that can be used if it doesn't fit just right.  I'd find the style that the end user wants and just go for it.