Seat Mystery

[jsthomps]

Does you seat lock work? Does the tang slide all the way in and secure?

Yes the seat lock works perfectly

[jsthomps]

One thing I can tell you up front is that those pads on the very back of the seat that rest on the frame are about twice as thick as they are on my 850s. It looks like somebody has fashioned them using electrical tape. Remove that pad altogether and see what the space is between the bottom of the bracket and the frame. Then fashion pads that size.

Check to see where the intial contact is when you close.

Hi,
This is true. I actually added blocks to the back pads as a temporary measure so no strain is put on the seat when I have a passenger. The gap between the frame and the rear pads is 3/4 inch. Middle and front pads seat on the frame perfectly

[chef1366]

Has to be the wrong seat then.?:shock:

[rphillips]

My vote also, wrong seat, but from what???????

[robsGS850]

I have the same seat issue on my 81 850G, the rear rubber pads are now about a 1/2 inch off the frame when the seat's down. So maybe it's a recurring thing? (it was about as bad a bend as yours when I first tried fixing it)

I always figured it was my fault for jamming a set of "throw over" saddlebags between the seat and the frame one year, trying to make 'em less theft-prone. (kinda worked, actually...)

I've tried bending the seat pan with my knee (not so much)
resting it on a step and standing on it, (wrap a towel around the handrail or it'll get scratched, or better yet take it off...) That worked alright... but the amount the seat foam compresses and those easily-snapped-off silver trim pieces make it tricky to exert much pressure. (again, probably worth taking them off, but mine are on there more or less permanently)

I even wedged two wooden blocks under the centre rubber pads and balanced on top, pressing down front and back. Again, worked ok, nothing miraculous. every little bit helped though.

My next step'll be to take it to a shop that does a lot of body work to bend it back properly when i order a new seat cover.

good luck with yours.

[dpep]

This is a strange one. G model seats for any given year are interchangeable. Actually all before 1982 have the same pan as do those 82 and later. Not L models though, obviously.

That sure does look like an original G-model seat and pan. And it certainly looks like the ones in my garage. I will try to get some pics of mine up tomorrow.

A couple of suggestions. Remove the hinges from the seat and see if it sits more evenly on the frame that way. If it does you know it has something to do with the hinges and their placement. And if you are around someone with an 81 or earlier 850/1000 G model, ask if you can swap seats with them briefly. It only takes a few seconds to pull the pins. If the other person's seat fits correctly on your bike it confirms the problem is somehow in the seat. If the problem remains you know it is somewhere else, particularly if your seat fits fine on their bike.

[rphillips]

Very strange. The first pics show the seat from the back. If the hinge was the problem, the left side would be up & the right side down, It sits level. The passenger & the rider sections of the seat are both level, If the pan were bent up, in the back, the passenger area would be sloped toward the rider, it isn't. The chrome strips, along the bottom of the seat, are straight as an arrow. If the pan were bent, these strips would surely show it. Rekon a "GK" seat may be made to fit a little different from the "G" models???

[dpep]

Rekon a "GK" seat may be made to fit a little different from the "G" models???

Nope. In any case it could not be a GK seat. '82 was the first model year for the GK and that was the year the G models went to the removeable seat; different pan, no hinges.

[jsthomps]

Remove the hinges from the seat and see if it sits more evenly on the frame that way. If it does you know it has something to do with the hinges and their placement.

Thanks for everyone's help and suggestions. I will try dpep's suggestion and see how the seat sits on the frame unrestricted by hinges.

[jsthomps]

Thanks for everyone's help and suggestions. I will try dpep's suggestion and see how the seat sits on the frame unrestricted by hinges.

It must be the wrong seat for the bike. It does not rest properly on the frame with hinges removed. As the pics show the pan is not bent and the seat appears to be suited to a frame that rises up toward the back of the bike. I think the mystery is solved damn it. Once again thanks for everyone's help.

[relic-rider]

I think the rear of your frame IS supposed to be higher. I was looking at the Suzuki supplemental service manual for the 1000G and GL and was saw the frame side view on the wiring routing page. Laying a straight edge on the frame diagram shown, the rear end of the frame is shown to rise. I put a straight edge on my monitor looking at your frame picture and it is straight. That seat looks exactly like the one in several pictures and parts diagrams I have looked at, so don't dismiss it as the wrong one yet. What is the history of the bike? Ever been in a crash or been down? Maybe the rear of the frame was straightened, but Actually should have been left upswept a little, or the rear of your frame is slightly bent down from something.

[Dave8338]

I'm throwing .02 cents at the mystery...I'll bet, that at some point, the bike got tapped "lightly" in the rear or had a HEAVY passenger on it while bottoming out the rear suspension, causing the rear sub frame to tip down slightly. Is there an adjustment to the lock? The seat does not look bent to me. Just a guess...

[rustybronco]

To drop 3/4" you would have to notice a bend somewhere past the rear seat hinge.
and if you followed the seat angle with the tail piece it would be pointing up to much.

[Dave8338]

To drop 3/4" you would have to notice a bend somewhere past the rear seat hinge.

One would think so...:?

[Calvin Blackmore]

I was looking at manuals and fiche.
The L model 1000 has a mount on it that would seem to conform perfectly to the angle and location of the blocks on our seat pan.

An L pan on a G seat foam\vinyl