Blokes,
I notice that one of the 'must have' options for a touring ZX14 seems to be a concourse 14 seat.

Is this the same beast as the GTR 1400 sold in OZ ? If so, what is involved in changing the seat over.

Following a 687.5 mile (1100km) day in the saddle recently I thought it might be a good idea to get one.

That way I can have the zx14 seat for commuting/sports riding, and a more comfortable seat for touring......

Cheers

OZ

Odd, Connie owners wants to use the zx14 seat

Hey OZ man...yep,same seat(GTR1400).Direct swap except for your mid-seat latch mechanism,which you'll need to switch from your stock seat over to the connie seat.(The latch on the PAN,not the frame section).

Hey Blue, is the rear latch a direct swap?

Yep...straight swap...except...you MAY have to slightly bend the latch ring.The very tip of it forward just a tad.Maybe not.You'll just have to see IF it locks down in back okay.Minor adjustment...no big deal.

blue, judging by your pic, the cowl fits well over the Connie seat? Never sat on a Connie but I assume the seat is much softer. Is it the same seat height and angle? I find the stock seat too hard and gradually slides me into the tank. Trying to decide if I want to try Sargent's or the '10 all black Connie seat.
Thanks.

* Last updated by: KAK on 6/17/2010 @ 3:42 PM *

Well..that Sargeant's a bit o' cash.You can get a nice new connie seat for around 125,150 range shipped to your door IF ya check around on e-bay or the connie forums...just a little patience and searching.Probably won't find an all black one yet,but maybe?Also....NO....the cowl DOES NOT AUTOMATICALLY FIT over the pillion.I shaved my seat down in the rear there to "custom" fit er on there.I don't ride two up....so doing that was just for that one time.You could get an uphosterer to do it for ya,just have to outline the foam under the vinyl and talk to the person about HOW you want it to fit.Anyone with any "imagination"and semi stapling skills(?)could pull it off.Quite easy to shave er down correctly.You could take yer stock seat,and have the person match the rear shape,then apply that to the rear pillion,you'd be good to go!She's extremely comfy...best seat I ever had on a bike.I have to say now....the tabs on the cowl that "screw" into the seat pan...you MAY have to put some rubber spacers in there between the tab itself and the seat pan attachment point(on the sides there).This will effectively "close" the gap that MAY occur at the very rear of the bodywork above the taillight and cowl interface.MAYBE.So that means a bit of trial and error as far as how much spacing you might need.Maybe none.IDK...but I had to install some spacing of about 1/2 inch in there to get my cowl to sit "almost" flush with the rear top plastic landing(just above the tailight).

A possible easier fix for that would be...that little rear metal hoop(latch ring) on the seat pan.If you could carefully fashion one that instead of having such a long area of latching hole,something that would have the hole "further up" the piece,so the latch mechanism(on the frame) would grab it "closer" to the pan.Maybe somehow "block off" about a quarter of an inch at the tip some way,or make a new hook?I didn't have any tools to do that with.But it's possible to do it that way also to bring that cowl down closer to the body.

You'd have to make sure the "latch" was narrow enough to fit down in the opening on the frame mechanism,but that would be easy.

* Last updated by: blue07 on 6/17/2010 @ 4:16 PM *

Thanks blue. I returned early from my planned trip through Utah and was surprised how sore I was...everywhere.
I've been holding out but if I want to enjoy this bike on any kind of long ride I've got to make it more comfortable. I'm searching the site for seat and LSL bar kit info. Posting questions and sometimes finding the answer as I keep searching. The bar kit installation sounds a bit of a PITA but oh well. Ignition security screws, cable/wiring routing, bar inserts...
Bit bummed I couldn't complete my ride. Weather was the main reason. No rain forecast for the week but an "unseasonable" low front came in. I wanted to keep going so much I almost rode into 30-45 mph winds with gusts of 65 around Caliente, Nev to Torrey, Utah. That would be over a few hundred miles of my route. Once in awhile I make a good call. That stuff would've probably slammed me down.
Besides weather my pack was too heavy and with the poor ergo's I was getting numb in too many places to enjoy things.
Maybe if I do these mod's it will work out well. I may just go with Sargent's changing my seat a little. Main thing is I need the seat softer.

That LSL install "sounds" a lot more brutal than it really is...ya just need to be patient and take yer time when doin it so ya don't get anything wrong the FIRST time.Can't really go wrong with yer LSL's,and a soft seat,whichever ya go with.Take a look at Ninjamaster's bike pics.He's got the stock connie on there.it doesn't look goofy or anything...and he's not going with the cowl.It looks okay IMO.If yer goin on a trip like you did,ya might not want that cowl gettin in the way of loading the rear pillion anyhow?Glad you're okay...weather is strange here as well....June...and it's raining!(snowing in a couple close by places).Glad ya didn't get caught in somethin dangerously serious!My bike's a blast....but the weather is MUCH BIGGER!!!!

* Last updated by: blue07 on 6/17/2010 @ 8:28 PM *