Xlrrp
Junior Member
Hi,
There are plenty of other threads on these items so I am not going to post pics or how to install anything. Just my two cents after having put both on my bike.
The stock seat sucked for me. Instead of spending $350-$400 on a new aftermarket seat, I decided to order a Yamaha Comfort Gel seat from Ebay. The seat arrived and I immediately liked the look, fit and finish. The seat seems to be very well made.
Is the seat more comfortable? Yes, a little. I can ride over an hour without a sore butt but....... the seat does slope downward meaning you slide towards the tank. For me, being 5'7" with short arms and legs, that's where I normally ride anyway but I could see it being a pain for others. While it does work for me, I would prefer a more flat platform to sit on and may end up sending it off to have it modified.
Other than that, I like the seat. It is not the magic cure I was looking for, but it's better than stock!
Next is the handlebars. I've had a lot of bikes over the years and have never had a problem with my hands going numb after 30 minutes or so of riding..... until I got this bike (04 FZ6). I tried adjusting the angle of the stock bars, put risers on, adjusted the lever angles and put on grip puppies. Didn't fix the problem.
After looking at all my options, I reluctantly went with FZ1 bars due to the price and the fact that many riders reported an improvement. My concern was the riding position would be less comfortable, but if my hands stopped going numb it would be worth it.
Putting on the bars only took about 45 minutes. No issues. I decided not to drill a hole in the bars and ended up removing the raised nub on the throttle housing.
I left on the 1.25" up and back risers. I had to adjust the bars carefully to avoid hitting the tank when the bars were turned fully left or right. I also had to spend some time getting the lever angles where I wanted them.
First impressions were my bike felt really weird. I didn't like the feel at all and it seemed I was more over the top of the bars (hard to explain). It sort of felt like a dirt bike in a way.
After going for a ride, I realized it was more comfortable. Both on my wrists/hands as well as my entire body position. I also noticed it felt like I had more control in the turns. The big surprise was I did not think my old bars had any vibration to speak of, but they did. I discovered this when I noticed the new bars had no vibration.
After a few hundred miles of commuting to work on both I-5 and some twisty stuff near my house, I am very happy I made this change. While my hand guards no longer fit with the FZ1 bars, that's a small sacrifice to make to keep my hands from going numb and having a more comfortable riding position.
The other thing I noticed is my new bars no longer feel weird. I think that was simply my first impression because they were different than what I was used to. I think if I now put the stock bars back on, they would feel weird at first. These new bars now feel normal and I am very comfortable with them.
Anyway, that's my experience with these two changes. Your results may vary
Chris
There are plenty of other threads on these items so I am not going to post pics or how to install anything. Just my two cents after having put both on my bike.
The stock seat sucked for me. Instead of spending $350-$400 on a new aftermarket seat, I decided to order a Yamaha Comfort Gel seat from Ebay. The seat arrived and I immediately liked the look, fit and finish. The seat seems to be very well made.
Is the seat more comfortable? Yes, a little. I can ride over an hour without a sore butt but....... the seat does slope downward meaning you slide towards the tank. For me, being 5'7" with short arms and legs, that's where I normally ride anyway but I could see it being a pain for others. While it does work for me, I would prefer a more flat platform to sit on and may end up sending it off to have it modified.
Other than that, I like the seat. It is not the magic cure I was looking for, but it's better than stock!
Next is the handlebars. I've had a lot of bikes over the years and have never had a problem with my hands going numb after 30 minutes or so of riding..... until I got this bike (04 FZ6). I tried adjusting the angle of the stock bars, put risers on, adjusted the lever angles and put on grip puppies. Didn't fix the problem.
After looking at all my options, I reluctantly went with FZ1 bars due to the price and the fact that many riders reported an improvement. My concern was the riding position would be less comfortable, but if my hands stopped going numb it would be worth it.
Putting on the bars only took about 45 minutes. No issues. I decided not to drill a hole in the bars and ended up removing the raised nub on the throttle housing.
I left on the 1.25" up and back risers. I had to adjust the bars carefully to avoid hitting the tank when the bars were turned fully left or right. I also had to spend some time getting the lever angles where I wanted them.
First impressions were my bike felt really weird. I didn't like the feel at all and it seemed I was more over the top of the bars (hard to explain). It sort of felt like a dirt bike in a way.
After going for a ride, I realized it was more comfortable. Both on my wrists/hands as well as my entire body position. I also noticed it felt like I had more control in the turns. The big surprise was I did not think my old bars had any vibration to speak of, but they did. I discovered this when I noticed the new bars had no vibration.
After a few hundred miles of commuting to work on both I-5 and some twisty stuff near my house, I am very happy I made this change. While my hand guards no longer fit with the FZ1 bars, that's a small sacrifice to make to keep my hands from going numb and having a more comfortable riding position.
The other thing I noticed is my new bars no longer feel weird. I think that was simply my first impression because they were different than what I was used to. I think if I now put the stock bars back on, they would feel weird at first. These new bars now feel normal and I am very comfortable with them.
Anyway, that's my experience with these two changes. Your results may vary
Chris
