Seat makers

[maclariz]

I have a GS400 here that is almost ready to go after its rebuild, but I am still without a useable seat. The original has had the pan rust to pieces, and is even missing one of the two hinges. Does anyone know someone who can make a new seat from scratch? I have not had much luck yet. A couple of people I have spoken to would be happy to help in making a seat with a fibreglass pan given a GS400 seat pan in good condition to take a mould from, but this doesn't help me much.

Any ideas????

[Planecrazy]

If somebody stateside is willing to take a mold of their GS400 and send THAT to you it might be useful to a custom seat maker in your area. I have no idea what that might cost, but I suspect it wouldn't be too expensive (compared to having somebody fabricate a seat from scratch without a mold). Make sure you provide the exact year and model so that somebody here sends you EXACTLY the seat mold you need.

Good luck with it!

[Nessism]

Might be a whole lot easier to call some junkyards to find a good used pan.

[gsgeezer]

Get a used pan, then have a local upholstery shop make the rest.

[rkubik]

Twin or four?

Do you have the twin or four-cylinder GS400? There's a new old stock seat on eBay for the twin, I think?

http://cgi.ebay.ca/Genuine-Suzuki-GS450-GS400-Seat-NOS-BRAND-NEW-GS-SEAT_W0QQitemZ300169859029QQihZ020QQcategoryZ35589QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Either way, stuff for these bikes turns up all the time. There's a lot of parts for the GS400, even NOS stuff.

[maclariz]

Get a used pan, then have a local upholstery shop make the rest.

Easier said than done. I keep trying the junkyards and ebay, but I haven't found one in several months of looking. In the British weather, 70s metal seatpans just tend to rot. My local bike breaker doesn't rate my chances of finding a single original seatpan in the UK, and thought my only chance of getting an original was somewhere drier (e.g. USA, Australia). So, if you know anyone who's trashed their GS400 (or 425), but still has seat pan in one piece, then drop me a line.

[Dave8338]

Give these guys a call, they most likely have one of the best collections of used bike parts in the world. Now, if they would only have everything inside...it get's tough to spend hours out there in the winter months, though I still do. \\/

http://www.sportwheel.com/

[maclariz]

Do you have the twin or four-cylinder GS400? There's a new old stock seat on eBay for the twin, I think?

http://cgi.ebay.ca/Genuine-Suzuki-GS450-GS400-Seat-NOS-BRAND-NEW-GS-SEAT_W0QQitemZ300169859029QQihZ020QQcategoryZ35589QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Either way, stuff for these bikes turns up all the time. There's a lot of parts for the GS400, even NOS stuff.

If it fits a GS400, then it's not the 1977-78 one, and probably not the 1991 version either. Looks like it would fit several of the 80s GS450s, though. Thanks for the link, though, I'll try a few more ebay searches in the US and Canada.

[ironb12s]

Take that old rusted seat pan and patch it up so it can be used as a mold for a new one. Auto body putty can work wonders, with a bit of fiberglass drywall mesh to cover gaps. Just remove any flaking rust, maybe treat the pan with phosphoric acid, and lather on the filler. Sand away any excess, and you have what is needed for a keylar/fiberglass mold. You only need one surface to be straight/complete for the mold, so work from the top side doing the repair/filling. :-D

In fact, shoot and post a picture or two of your rusted pan so we can see what you have to work with...

[maclariz]

Give these guys a call, they most likely have one of the best collections of used bike parts in the world. Now, if they would only have everything inside...it get's tough to spend hours out there in the winter months, though I still do. \\/

http://www.sportwheel.com/

Thanks for the link. I've emailed them and let's see if they have anything.

[gert du prez]

GS seat

Thanks for the link. I've emailed them and let's see if they have anything.

Hi Maclariz,

If you would find a seat in Belgium somewhere, I could probably go and collect it for you or so... I know a very good seat maker (not from scratch but to fill it up and cover it) that is always willing to help me out cheaply, so...let me know what happens

gert

[maclariz]

Hi Maclariz,

If you would find a seat in Belgium somewhere, I could probably go and collect it for you or so... I know a very good seat maker (not from scratch but to fill it up and cover it) that is always willing to help me out cheaply, so...let me know what happens

gert

Thanks for the offer. Does anyone know if it possible to take a mould from an existing good seat and make a copy without damaging the original? If so, then if I could track down someone with a GS400 in good condition, then one possibility would be to do this.

[tone]

Hey maclariz

if you do manage to get a mould made off a seat pan give me a shout & i'll knock out as many as you like :-D

i'm uk based as well & although i haven't got time to mould make atm making the part will only take 10 mins & cost just a few quid each

tone

[Planecrazy]

Thanks for the offer. Does anyone know if it possible to take a mould from an existing good seat and make a copy without damaging the original? If so, then if I could track down someone with a GS400 in good condition, then one possibility would be to do this.

That's exactly what I had suggested doing on the first page. Of course this depends upon you finding somebody with a good seat who doesn't mind making the mold for you.

Good Luck!

[maclariz]

That's exactly what I had suggested doing on the first page. Of course this depends upon you finding somebody with a good seat who doesn't mind making the mold for you.

Good Luck!

What do you take the mould with? Plaster of Paris?