Inexpencive seat!!!

[Nojokirk 75cl360]

Alright, bear with me on this one. I made it for literally under 20 bucks. I'm not sure if i should post this on the $50 thread or not so i'm posting it here. It started as an old skateboard deck, a dora the expolorer pillow, and a pair of old levi's. Here are the things u need:
-Pair of old jeans or leather
-Some sort of padding
-skateboard deck
-Staple gun & staples
Last pic is of the completed seat
I cut off the nose of the skateboard, sanded it and prepped it.
Cut out a section of jeans that fit on the deck.Stuffed it full of
pillow cushining and stapled it around. i tried for a brat style seat but
idk how it came out. Input would be great! -Von Kirk

 

[timbojim]

That certainly is inexpensive. Not sure how it would look on most bikes though...

 

[hurley209]

while i dig the creativity, seat looks kinda ghetto. sorry.

 

[Nojokirk 75cl360]

while i dig the creativity, seat looks kinda ghetto. sorry.

well its not entirely done yet. i need to repad and do some reshaping. im also thinking about going with leather.
At least i wasn't an idiot and spent 250+ dollars on a seat. No fucking point

 

[hurley209]

use some nice vinyl. its pretty cheap.
get some thin sturdy padding at the craft store, shape it to the sk8 deck, then stitch some design on it and bam. rad seat.

250$ gets you a damn nice seat though lol

 

[Nojokirk 75cl360]

Hey, thanks a hole bunch hurley. might i ad im brealy 16 so this was actually pretty hard. due to the fact im not an upholsterer lol

 

[hurley209]

dude, really.... dont even stitch it.
wrap the sucker in some vinyl, warm it with a hair dryer and stretch it then staple it to the bottom of the deck.
and we have a few other 15-18 years olds on here doing some pretty amazing stuff with little to no money and learning along the way..
if anything we are happy your trying, most teenagers wont even pickup a wrench these days let alone work on a bike. so please dont take any offense to my suggestions. i come in peace hahaha
i bet with like 20$ you can make a pretty awesome seat, you already have the idea of what you want so your good to go, hell if i could id even give ya a hand.

anyway, if you have any questions ever or need help feel free to pm me il be glad to help.

 

[VonYinzer]

Hey man. Ive made a skateboard seat before. You have the right idea, but the wrong materials.

1st. You want to keep the curved end. Looks much better when finished.

2nd. Use this as padding: http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-4-x-27-x-60-HiDense-CLOSED-CELL-Uphol-Foam-G-/200725534062?pt=US_Fabric&hash=item2ebc2c956e

Use two layers of that, than something softer (old carpet padding, or a few layers of sweatshirt material) on top.

3rd. The cover... Denim will work, but looks a bit horrid (in my opinion). You want something with a little give, like leather or upholstery vinyl. Cotton materials (like denim) will fall apart eventually. If you have a boat shop near ya, ask them for any "cut offs" of marine vinyl. It lasts forever on a bike.

1. Cut deck to shape.
2. Finalize your seat mounts.
3. Glue pad down. (Use a STRONG spray glue)
4. Cut cover material to size.
5. Wrap TIGHT and staple to underside of deck about 1" in from the edge.
6. Cut a piece of heavy material like canvas or vinyl to the shape of the deck, but about 1/2" smaller all around. Glue the material to the underside to hide all of the staples.

Ride.

 

[hurley209]

see, you can still do cool stuff on a budget

 

[Nojokirk 75cl360]

Hurley, im sorry, I took you first input the wrong way. i felt kinda like i was being put down but it's ridiculiously hard doing this shit with no experience. my dad has had bikes his whole life but he has never build a cafe racer so i can't really go to him. so its this website and whatever pictures i can find. I really like your idea VonYinzer. i think im going to try again. with those tips. Hurley im in sad diego if you are near lol jk

 

[hurley209]

hey man, no worries, the internet has a tendency of making people come off as jerks.
and i was most definitely not putting you down, you simply asked for imput and i gave it.
Dont worry about the help, just ask and one of us will reply with the help.
im actually in the valley, about 7 hours away lol... too bad we are not closer. lol

 

[DesmoBro]

Use the back pocket on top then you can put your Registration in there

 

[samsquantch]

The skateboard has a perfect shape WITH the tail on it. You're on to something there. I'd find another old deck and keep the tail on it. Then coat it/seal it up with some kind of polyurethane.

Then, layer on some carpet foam/yoga mat/whatever kind of foam, just cut to the same shape as the deck. Then cover it in any sort of vinyl.

As for attaching it, I'd bring the diameter of the frame rail and my imagination and go to Lowe's or some other chain and look for pipe hangers/pipe clamps. You need something that'll wrap around the frame rail (with rubber cushion) and pinch together with a hole to mount to the deck. I'm picturing in my head- I'll see if I can find out what it's called.

Found it: McMaster rules!

http://www.mcmaster.com/#pipe-routing-clamps/=gnd67o

Any one of the coated loop clamps in the right size should work well. Do like 3 per side.

I'd assume most home improvement stores would have something like that...

Wrap it around the frame rail with the flat side laying flat on the underside of your board and use a short, fat screw. I'd use the fattest screw that will fit, pre-drill the hole and bolt it into the wood to get the threads set, then go for the mount. The pre-drill size is important - don't go too big or the teeth won't have anything to grab too- especially if you're using fine threaded screws like machine screws.

It's be even better if you could locate your holes and sink in a nut from the top side of the deck. It'll be stronger and last longer that way- the wood won't hold threads well and will be easy to strip out.

 

[Nojokirk 75cl360]

hey everyone, i've decided to just start the fuck over. I'm going to keep the tail this time but shorten it up quiet a bit. I'll also be using an old leather jacket for the cover and hi-density foam. thanks for the help people, much appreciated. and Hurley, maybe once i get my permits all said and done, maybe we could ride

 

[JayNaga]

I just recently redid my seat on my 76 cj360t.
I used an old snowboard that was used as a rental at my local resort (picked out of the trash) for my seat pan.
A 1/2in thick exercise mat from walmart I like to use two layers. (cost $20 but I have made four seats from it so far)
Then I used some fake alligator skin vinyl (just a couple bucks a yard at the local fabrics store)

These are the results. Slim but still plenty comfortable. Looks okay too.

 

[JayNaga]

This is the exact mat that I used. Sites says its only 10mm thick whick means that i have less than a 1/2in of padding when I am using two layers. But I have never felt like a needed more padding. And I ride my bike almost everday spring, summer, and fall to go to work and town as well as a couple two hour rides for fun through out the week.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Gold-s-Gym-Fitness-and-Yoga-Mat/12321503

 

[JayNaga]

I also have always just used two cotter pins and two pieces of velcro to secure my seat to the frame. I drill two holes through the frame and seat pan and then run the cotter pins through the seat pan before adding foam and vinyl. I try to get my seats tucked up really nicely underneath my gas tank so that i dont have to secure the front down but I have in the past used velcro in the front to keep the seat lined up perfect.

 

[Nojokirk 75cl360]

thats pretty nice man but i think im going for mor of a bobber seat.

 

[Nojokirk 75cl360]

i gave up on trying a cafe seat
too hard with what i have.

 

[JayNaga]

Regardless of the style of seat you are going for you could use the same materials. Just a different shape. I would definately recommend that exercise mat for padding. It has performed alot better than other foams I have used in the past.