Custom Backrest
 

After a few rides my girlfriend starting telling me that she felt a little insecure on the back--she always holds on tightly but said she was worried that if we hit a bump she might just bounce right off the back. We agreed that it seemed unlikely, but I want for her to feel as safe and secure as possible. I looked into aftermarket rear seats and wasn't too impressed with their bulkiness--both in design and expense.

I'm always up for a design challenge and have a good selection of random materials/tools in the garage, so I went for it. This is a more complex DIY than many, but certanly possible for those with the desire to do it! The collection of photos I have to show the process isn't the greatest. Sorry!

I jumped on ebay and picked up a used rear seat with torn vinyl for 40 bucks or so. I stripped it down, notched the back and reinforced the back portion (where the backrest would mount) with bondo. It conforms to the exact shape of the inside of the seat and is easy to work with and hardens like plastic. In it, I embedded two t-nuts for the mounting screws to eventually sink in to.

http://jjbcreations.com/images/bondo.jpg

The backrest portion is made of a UHMD (ultra-high-molecular-density) plastic, available at many, but not all hardware stores. It's rigid, but with heat from heat gun or oven it becomes pliable. This allowed me to bend it to the right shape to give enough clearance for comfort but still allow it to fit into the stock location. On top of the UHMD is a layer of MDF (fiberboard), foam and the vinyl upholstery--the same vinyl I reupholstered the front seat in awhile back (GREAT STUFF)--available at Joanne's Fabric stores. I did the sewing myself, but I'm sure any upholstery shop could do the same for not too much $$.

http://jjbcreations.com/images/backresting.jpg
(I later found better hardware and replaced the knobby allen screws here with ones you'll see later)

After hollowing out a bit of foam to leave space for the bondo applied to the sub-structure, I gave it a test fit. It fits perfectly within the same spot as the factory seat. This means it pops on and off in seconds and required no change whatsoever to the bike.

http://jjbcreations.com/images/foamy.jpg

It all seemed to fit well so I upholstered it up, made a new grab handle to match the new vinyl and called it done! (also pictured is the red color-matched seat made the same weekend)

http://jjbcreations.com/images/seats.jpg

After our next ride, my girlfriend was quite pleased. She said she felt wayyy more comfortable and relaxed. Just having that little backrest to slide back against was enough to make a huge difference!

http://jjbcreations.com/images/twoup2.jpg
http://jjbcreations.com/images/fourup1.jpg

RE: Custom Backrest
 

Thats awsome. Have you checked how strong it is? By that I mean try and push it away from the front of the seat like she was sliding off the back? That looks awsome and profesionally done.

RE: Custom Backrest
 

Thanks--

About strength--yeah, that was the primary goal of the backrest, so we checked it out pretty well. The UHMD is 1/2" thick, so it's rather sturdy and the sort of stuff that bends rather than breaking. It flexes a little more than I had hoped for, but she tells me that when she's actually sitting against it, it doesn't feel like it flexes at all. I had her sit on it and apply the sort of pressure she feels like she puts on it when we ride while I stood to the side and watched and sure enough, it barely moved at all-- way less than when I yanked and tugged with my hand.

all in all, it probably cost $50 and is simple, clean, and most importantly, effective!

RE: Custom Backrest
 

Just make sure you test this when bike is not in motion.

RE: Custom Backrest
 

That's what I did.

RE: Custom Backrest
 

You outta start making these. Have a person send you money with their back seat and just make them to order. If I can find a cheap back seat I might consider it.

RE: Custom Backrest
 

I think I'd be open to that. Just a couple of concerns come to mind--

Matching the upholstery of the front seat. Unless you wanted me to upholster both or found matching material yourself, it would be difficult to have matching seats. Of course, this might be desirable for some.

My labor is free for me but I'd have to charge someone else. Perhaps if I had a few lined up I could save time on them, but doing them one at a time is a little more time consuming. Add to that the cost of buying an extra seat and the total might come to $100+... I'd have to see how long it actually takes to make one from start to finish to give you a better idea of what I'd have to charge.

Please let me know if you're interested!

Thanks!

RE: Custom Backrest
 

That was awesome. Next time around can you post pics of the process of re-doning the foam and vinyl on the seat?

RE: Custom Backrest
 

WOW! Very nice. Great write up and pictures. Thanks for sharing!
-D

RE: Custom Backrest
 

If someone wants to commission me to make another for them I'd be happy to take more pictures. You know how it is when you get going on a project you just forget to take all the pictures. I wasn't really thinking of writing a how-to as I was doing it, so like I said, the collection wasn't the greatest.

Next time 'round I'll be sure to get a complete set and I'll insert them in the original post.