Index | Seats | ||||||||||||||||
Home Rider Specifications Trike Stuff Drivetrain Rolling Stuff Accessories Places to Ride Cool Trike Links
|
About Trike Seats In the Rider Measurements page we discussed the critical dimensions of the rider, here we cover the variety of seats and how to best fit the rider. In the Seat Padding page we showed you how to tailor fit a Hardshell Seat to the rider with foam padding. Trike Seats come in different sizes & configurations depending on the model. Some like the Catrike models are actually integrated into the frame design while other models host a removable seat. Some seats are fixed where others are adjustable. Seats may be constructed of a tube frame seat frame with mesh material strapped to the seat frame or they may be a fiber reinforced composite (fiberglass or carbon fiber) Hardshell type. Other materials including plywood and aluminum sheet metal have been used on Trike Seats. About Seats
Mesh Seat Mounts have 3 different designs:
Bucket Seats allow swapping between a Mesh or Hardshell. As the Integrated seats are not adjustable the only option to fit the seat is by padding. Some riders learned after buying their trike that the seat angle was too reclined for their comfort and resorted to propping their backs up with the use of a special back pillow. The most common instance of this is on the Catrike Expedition using Lumbar Contour cushion from Relax-the-Back mounted upside down - the thick hump end is at shoulder level. When using that option, the lumbar isn't supported very well so its recommended to also add the Self Inflating Back Rest. In some cases on a Catrike 700 riders have fabricated adapter mounts for the Catrike 700 to install a Hardshell Seat that has less recline. Typically this turns into a $500 modification so bear that in mind if you're not sure that the recline angle is right for you. Catrike patented the design of an Integrated Seat as a lightweight and strong structure, however a buyer is strongly encouraged to test ride any trike to be sure they will feel comfortable given the range of adjustment options offered. Hinged Back seats are found on some later Catrike models like the Villager, Trail, Road along with the HPV Gekko FX. Most Hinged Back seats have no "lumbar bump" with straight rails. As the seat pan is fixed the seat angle does not change with the recline angle. This is probably the easiest design to accommodate a rider particularly when augmented with a Self Inflating Back Rest for lumbar support. Bucket seats have 2 or 3 mounting points with the bottom point being the swivel axis of adjustment. As the seat back is reclined, so is the seat pan. Conversely when the seat is set more upright the seat pan also levels out which tends to allow the rider to slide forward a bit.
For shorter riders adding Tubular Padding to just the Seat Pan region can position the Lumbar hump in the Seat Rail at a lower position that may make the seat much more comfortable on longer rides. Tubular Padding also helps cushion the ride a little however adds a very small tradeoff in climbing steep hills. One drawback with Tubular Padding is its not permanent; after 500-1000 miles it will crush and will need replacement. Typically that's not too inconvenient as most Mesh Seat Straps needs to be tightened about every 100 miles or so, and after a few times of most owners can remove & replace the Mesh in just a few minutes.
Hardshell Seats may be made of fiberglass, carbon fiber, wood, molded plastic, even formed aluminum. While carbon fiber offers the lowest weight (about 25 ounces) fiberglass is generally only about 6-8 ounces heavier, often at half the price. Adding about 1 Lb of padding, a typical Hardshell seat is still roughly 2 lbs lighter then most Mesh Seats. Seats made from plywood are generally under 3 lbs in weight and for those with wood crafting skills there are fabrication guides on the web. As seats are mounted to the frame, mounting provisions are often the most overlooked items. Not all Hardshell seats will fit on the same mounts for the same trike. As Hardshell seats are compound curve shapes with reinforcing ribs it may take some bracket/mount engineering & fabrication to retrofit an alternate seat. Moreover if a flat bracket area is attached to a curved section of seat it will almost certainly begin cracking the seat without a flat surface fiberglassed on to distribute the load. As the seat is angled more upright, hardshell seats tend to require a thicker and wider seat pan to maintain comfort on longer rides for most people. A general rule of "rump" is the width of the seat pan should be at least 75% of Thigh Width (see Rider Specs). However as the seat angle begins to approach 40° you may want to add an inch and up to 2" at 50°. Reason being that the less reclined the seat is, the more weight is concentrated on your rump.
About 1" thick 3D spacer fabric will provide excellent ventilation and good seat compliance. Filter Foam (30 Pores/Inch) is a budget breathable foam that's often used although has a scratchy feeling against bare skin. Closed cell foams are best used under a breathable layer to provide a custom tailored support. 1/2" Camping Mat from Walmart can be cut into 1-2" wide strips and stuck down to the seat with a low adhesion double sided tape for custom fitting purposes. Strips are recommended as they are easiest to conform to the compound curves and placement isn't limited to one direction. For example, you can build a row of diagonal strips that meet in the center in a chevron ^ pattern, or place them vertically or horizontally. You can build them up more then one layer in low support areas such as lumbar region. After placing the padding strips, install the breathable pad and see how it feels. Its not usual to make a dozen little changes over 200-500 miles of riding to find the perfect fit.
About Seat Components & General Fitting Tips Short Rider Stature applies to riders under about 5'5" in height; this is more of a generalization as no two people may be proportionately the same but you get the idea. Trike designers tend to optimize a design to fit a range of adults between the average size of a man/woman allowing some compromise in comfort for those falling outside that range. That puts most trikes as optimally fitting those between about 5'5" to 6'1". Accommodations to fit taller riders are a little easier then to fit shorter riders. Shorter riders can still be fitted on most trikes down to about 5'1" when attention is paid to the critical points that need alteration.
Seat Recline Angle on models with removable seat frames the entire seat will lean forward or back hinged on the bottom seat mount. As the seat back is angled up the seat pan is also angled up. Most riders need about 5° tilt in the set pan to avoid sliding forward as they ride. While you would think the pedal pressure should push you back, part of what's happening as you flex your gluteus muscles they literally walk you forward slightly in the seat.
Seat Pan Width is generally sized for those with a belt size up to 46". If you're larger then that you may want to consider an XL seat. Back Height is generally sized for someone between 64" to 75" tall. Torso lengths may vary but for the average person the stock seats are usually in that height range. Ride Height can affect the ease in which the rider mounts on the seat. Tadpole Sport Trikes may have seats as low as 6" while Delta Trikes may be as tall as 18". Some seats have Ride Height Adjustment built in. Padding can be used to tweak regions of limited support, raise a seat as much as 1 inch and move a rider forward 1". Neckrests prop the neck with increasing support as the angle of the seat is more reclined. Most are adjustable in fore/aft up/down positions. |
||||||||||||||||