Anyone have one of these on their Scouts? I found one on eBay and ordered it, but it'll be delivered to NH and have to wait in the garage until Spring before I get back from FL and install & ride it. Wondering if it's any more comfortable for a larger guy than the OEM Indian seat? I think these have been discontinued, but I still see them for sale online. Thanks to anyone who can add their thoughts. Cross posted on the other forum too, because there's never enough info available!
I have tried several seats and two modified rear shocks on the Scout and found that in the very end that the only way to get a good ride on a Scout is to buy a motorcycle with an engineered rear suspension.. I have owned motorcycles since I was 12 years old (1952) and could easily have owned WAY more than a dozen bikes in my life and my Scout was the worst suspension I've ever had on any bike, a Cushman on a gravel road would be a winner compared to a Scout. YMMV Sad but true!
I'll be conferring with Traxxion Dynamics on the rears in addition to the front. Apparently, Indian changed over to a cartridge system in the front but kept the same performance.
Wow!, steady on there RB, We were Dark Scout's guinea pigs when it came to Scout suspension. Yes the suspension on the first Scouts was shocking, which is why Dark Scout developed his rear shocks and sorted out more suitable springs for the front, depending on the rider's weight. The travel on the rear shocks was shorter than my willy and the front springs when tested were only suitable for a rider who weighed 35kgs! True! Koni Shocks Australia did the testing. I come in at 65kgs so they were way too weak even for me and I'm fairly sure you weigh a bit more than me Ronnie. Any wonder you were not happy with the resulting ride. So we both fitted Dark Scouts rear shocks and I fitted the front springs recommended by Dark Scout. The difference was noticeable straight away. The improvement was such that when I bought my second First Run Scout after the horse incident I immediately ordered another set of front springs and @Rodd kindly sold me a set of Dark Scout's rear shocks that he was not using. Thus my second Scout had the same smooth ride as did my first Scout. But you didn't follow that same path. You elected not to change the front springs thereby increasing the imbalance between the front and the rear of the Scout. The Scout's suspension was never a balanced affair as most First Run Scout owners can verify. Hence Dark Scout's modifications. But the mods had to be done front and rear together in order to achieve that better ride. By improving the ride at the rear and not upgrading the front you increased the imbalance between front and rear suspension resulting in an even worse ride than before. Add the rider's weight into the equation and the matter only gets worse. I am sure you recall the many conversations we had on this point Ronnie,..... you, me and Dark Scout. Yes Ronnie, as you say above, the First Run Scouts had terrible suspension but there were ways to fix it but you only did half the job. Had you fitted the front springs as advised by Dark Scout I am sure you would have sold the Cushman and been very happy with the Scout. Regards, Alpal
It's been a good couple of days down here for shed jobs too, 3 inches of rain so far and more heavy stuff coming down as I tap the keyboard,..... Alpal
YMMV Absolutely! Have put over 90,000km on my Scout and still going strong. About 60,000 of that touring 2 up. A few changes to the suspension was definitely reguired but I'm pretty happy with the way it rides now. Nitron R1s on the back, and DS upgrade to the front but with Ricors dropped in there as well. I also put adjusters into the fork caps to allow quick preload adjustment between solo and 2 up. The scout is a great bike.
ScotD, here's the review of the RSD seat. 1st off, it looks incredible on the bike! The ride was good, although I only went for a short ride, I can tell that the RSD seat would give you a nice option to change positions and stretch out on a longer ride. The RSD seat put's me about 1/2 inch further back than the stock seat. With my 28 inch inseam, and my alligator arms, I need to be at least 1-2 inches forward of the stock seat. I've included some pictures of the Roland Sands Design seat.
Definitely for someone of taller stature than me. I'm currently working with Nash Motorcycle to create another set of Scout Smart Gimps, bent to be super reduced reach.
Yeah I agree, it was comfy, but I needed to be way forward. I found a Corbin seat from the other forum, and it moves me forward & up a couple inches. Very good for me personally. Now that the seat has pushed me up higher, my windshield is useless, but whadda you gonna do right? I threw it on the classifies, if it sells I'll get a taller one. It's a long process getting everything right, when I finally do, I'll probably be too old to ride it!! That's okay though, I have a contingency plan. When that day comes Me and @Alpal will be riding 3 wheelers!
WRONG!!!!!,......COME 106 I WILL STILL BE GETTING A LEG OVER!!,.......The power of positive thinking is everything!!,.....( even though I'll be too weak to get it off the side stand,..,......) Alpal
Get a Freedom Shields 24in or custom taller. It'll save you headache and prolly $$$ in the long run. I went this route, and I tried every size offering from both Indian and Freedom Shields.
I can second that. Fitted some after my 'horse' incident and they work wonders, for me, keeping the wind off my two crook knees. Alpal
Hi Scot. I bought a 24" Freedom windshield, but it's actually an inch or two too tall for me, so right now I'm using the 20" Freedom that I bought from @JonScout, and it's working pretty well I would say! I put the 24" Freedom in the classifieds at a good price and haven't even got an offer, LOL! Anyway, it's live & learn as usual. Hope you are all having a great Spring!