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Old 11-28-2008, 03:17 PM   #1
Richard and Rhonda
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Default Seat Wars

Michael and Tom have already been privy to my personal war with the drivers seat, mostly through my wife's poking fun at me for the endless pursuit of comfort. I thought I might share the journey with you and some of my learnings.

First the seat is a bucket style ISRI with air suspension. Looking down on the seat is a seam that runs halfway across the seat surface, and the seat was upholstered in such a way that that seam actually divided the seating foam into a fore and aft section.

That seat was a torture device for me. I am not exaggerating. There was something about my anatomy and that configuration that was not compatible. Also the seat at it's lowest setting was too high for my short legs. The only way I could take the pressure off my fat little thighs was to tilt the back way up so that I was actually pointed downhill. Well tilting the seat like that, guess what, put even more pressure between my behind and the afore mentioned seam.

Round one-remove seat by removing seat back, removing ISRI air controls for the lumbar, removing the electric controls for adjustment. It's about an hour process now that I'm practiced. So I removed the seat cover and found a one piece molded foam base for the seat. Since it's a 95, it like me, had lost some of it's resiliency. So using a serrated knife, I carved out the seat section and replaced it with some new foam I had sourced from an upholstery supply house.

This was better on the next drive, however the seam and two part bottom still was not comfy.

Round two - repeat removal process and add a layer of 'memory' foam to the top of the seat. Better but after a 1000 mile trip, the conclusion is that the seam has to go !!!

Round three - repeat removal process. Now remove center seam from seat cover by doing some major seat covering tailoring, also reconfigure seat foam so the bottom is continuously smooth. Better still, but another thousand miles and I am convinced that I have too much padding in the seat, and it's actually too hard.

So my journey began for alternative seating material. I looked into viscoelastic seats that wheelchair users use, air cushions that truckers use, fabricating air bladders that I could remotely adjust, fabricating bladders and filling them with high viscosity silicone. All of the research I did indicated the best comfort for sitting for long periods was to eliminate any hot spots or areas of high pressure. That's what the bladders do. They conform to your bottom and equally distribute the pressure.

I was in the process of custom fabricating some bladders when I stumbled across this.
http://www.therohostore.com/Products...HTRUCKSTD.aspx Don't confuse it with the cheaper version because they are not the same. The high end version actually has three separate sets of air chambers, to truly conform to your tushie, and the lower end one is a mono chamber. Not as comfy. It's a long story but I bought both, take my word for it.

Anyway, I flopped the cushion down on said torture device and the transformation was wonderful. However, with an air cushion on top of a seat that was already too high, I was really off the floor. I felt like a 4 year old sitting in a grown up chair.

On our last camping trip, I removed the seat AGAIN, removed the cover, took out some of the added memory foam and installed the Roho cushion on top of the foam. I had to make a slit in some of the stitching to allow the air valve and control to exit the side of the seat, but it wasn't a big deal.

Also, my seat had two sets of one inch spacers, plus a rotary table that allowed it to rotate. That rotary table was almost two inches vertically. So I removed the rotary table and one set of spacers. while I had the seat off. I had to remove the left arm of the seat to prevent interference with the left console, but it was a small price to pay for comfort.

Finally, after a 400 mile blast back to town this week, I prononce the seat down right comfy.

Moral of the story, if your seat is similar to mine and unfriendly to your derriere, then buy one of the Roho cushions. You don't have to go wild like I did and mutilate the original seat. If the seat is too tall, then lift up the skirt and look under there, for there may be ways of getting it closer to the floor.
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Old 02-15-2010, 09:11 PM   #2
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I have a similar problem with my seats. I have 2 Flexsteel ultraleather seats. The problem is that they are extra-large seats! The seat bottom is too long and puts pressure on the back of my knees cutting off circulation. And they are just too soft. I removed the swivel on the driver's seat which helped a little. I did find that I have ISRI air ride bases on both seats and was able to adjust mine to lower it some. I've tried using cushions, pillows, etc. to put me sitting more forward on the seat, but it's just not comfortable. I thought about removing some of the foam but the seat is just too darn big (or my butt's just too small- never had that problem before!)
Anyway I think I'll just have to replace them, I just need to find a dealer that has some in stock so that I can sit in a few to see which one feels best. Any suggestions for dealer's that may have stock? I plan to be in northern Alabama in May and may travel around a few weeks so I'd like to change them out before then.
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Old 02-15-2010, 10:49 PM   #3
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forest, there is another solution.....get bigger....you i mean, not the seats.

i think i have the same flexsteel seats that you do. and i am about twice your size. the drivers seat is just soft enough for me, and big enough and my legs stick out so they dont cut off any solution.

it is all a matter of perspective.

we love our flexsteel seats.

tom
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Old 02-15-2010, 11:34 PM   #4
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Forest...if you replace your seats I might be interested in them....Clarke
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Old 02-16-2010, 12:57 AM   #5
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I'll keep you first in line Clarke.
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Old 02-16-2010, 02:17 AM   #6
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Hmmmm, my driver seat is a Recaro.....Passenger seat is one of those extra wide..Flexsteel I think. The Recaro feels great when I sit in it and make motor-noises with my mouth (the best I can do until I get it worthy for long distance travel). I've not had the opportunity to do 1000 miles yet.
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Old 02-16-2010, 01:41 PM   #7
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Default Seat Wars

Guys,

I too have the Recaro seat. Really dislike it. It is 20 year old leather and quite stiff. I would never have another leather anything.

The seat belt buckle lays right across the Recaro controls and kept turning on the seat heater (design deficiency). I finally asked Newell to just disconnect the heater. I cannot imagine I would ever use it anyway.

Larry P
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Old 02-16-2010, 02:01 PM   #8
Richard and Rhonda
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In general, the Euro seats, Recaro and ISRI, tend to be a lot firmer than what the Americans are used to. Now, add time to that, and the foam that started out firm, is now like a brick. That is why I ended up rebuilding the seat I had.

I looked at new ISRI and Recaro seats, but I only found them on line. I never found a place locally that I could actually plant my butt in one. I didn't want to drop 1500 or so without the seat time experience. My local Freightliner dealer carries a few aftermarket seats.

There are a couple of ways you might think about going.

One is find a custom upholstery shop near you, one that specializes in custom car interiors. Have them rebuild the seat you have to fit your tastes.

Or, find some bucket seats you like in a junkyard, and have them covered to match your interior. The bus conversion DIY guys usually go this route. Their top line recommendation is seats from a Range Rover.

Or you might cruise the Truck junkyards to snag some nice seats out of a junked big truck.

The problem for us shorter guys is the length of the seat. It's not a problem to have a long seat when you are sitting close to the floor. The length actually supports your thigh, But when the seat is mounted in an upright position, then the length actually cuts into the back of the thigh.

Sorry, I don't have an easy answer for you.
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Old 02-16-2010, 03:24 PM   #9
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Exactly my problem Richard, the length really bothers me after 2 hours. Needing a break every 2 hours kinda defeats the fun of driving long distances.
I looked at removing some foam but the seat would still be too large. I have the same problem buying something, I want to try it out first. National seats look nice, but I need to plant my butt in it first.
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Old 02-16-2010, 09:39 PM   #10
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My first rig had a Flexsteel loveseat for the drivers side. I did couple of things to make if fit better. One I put some foam in the back rest which scooted me forward on the seat. I put a good inch and half back there. That solved the short thigh problem. I then put some foam in the seat bottom, but I did not place it evenly across the width. I built up the sides to make bolsters so that the flat seat was now more like a bucket.

I didn't have to lower it in that rig. But I did lower the seat in the Newell. The way I did that was to remove the turntable under the seat. Both front seats have a turn table so that you can rotate them. I never used the driver seat like that and that lowered the seat an additional two inches. But that created a new problem. The left arm was now hitting the window console. It was simple to remove the arm.
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1995 Newell # 390 DD Series 60, Allison World Trans
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CoMotion Tandem
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Rhonda's chronicle https://wersquared.wordpress.com/
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Old 02-16-2010, 10:46 PM   #11
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forest and richard, you are missing the solution entirely. you are trying to solve it like engineers and fix it guys.

i said it before. just figure out how to get 6 inches taller. then the seat fits good. add a few pounds on and now the superwide seat becomes a lot narrower as well.

i recommend a good stretching rack and a sack of doublecheeseburgers.

tom
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Old 02-16-2010, 11:08 PM   #12
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Down here we eat boudin instead!
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Old 03-20-2010, 09:22 PM   #13
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Just got the seat back from the upholsterer (thanks for the suggestion Richard). He removed a couple inches from the back of the cushion then pulled the cushion in. Now the front of the cushion is even with the front of the seat base. He did a great job and it still looks like the other seat. Fits me much better, need to take a trip soon to see how it works out. (sorry Clarke)
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2004 Chevy Silverado Z71
2013 RZR 570LE

"You don't have a soul. You are a soul, you have a body." C.S.Lewis


https://www.luxurycoachlifestyle.com/...php?albumid=14
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