Cheap back rest

[B.D.F.]

A lot of us have been using the inexpensive Givi series of backrests for years. They are something like $80 and adapt easily to a C-14. The bike has to be modified slightly though to mount the backrest unless you are using a Phil's rack that is meant to hold this backrest.

http://www.twistedthrottle.com/imagecatalogue/imageview/4165/?RefererURL=/search/?SearchText=tb19

Once the rack is off, two holes have to be drilled through the ears of the lifting rails. This photo shows the backrest mounted to those two new holes in the rail system:



The holes are 9/32 and go right through the entire rail. The hardware that comes with the backrest can be used to fasten it to the bike. Do not overtighten the nuts on the bolts as the rails themselves are plastic. The backrest also has to have the ears bent or it will sit at a very forward angle. A vise is best to bend the ears although a large adjustable wrench can be used if you are careful. This is what it looks like mounted on the bike:



Brian

[556ALPHA]

Comfortable looking seat you have there...

[philipintexas]

Good post, another option is the Givi TB531 scooter backrest. Here's a comparison of the two back-rests from the side (TB531 Left, TB-19 Right):

[B.D.F.]

Yeah, you would think so but not so much. It is a Russell Day-Long dual saddle and neither my wife nor I could ride all day long on it. I had Russell adjust it once and it got better but it still did not quite fit us. A beautiful saddle, extremely well made, just not quite the right fit. That is an old photo; we currently use a Corbin with a pair of Airhawks over it. Kinda' ugly and expensive but it works for us.... at least until the air leaks out of the cushions (Airhawk). Then you cannot even believe the discomfort.

Corbins saddles are hard: sort of like concrete.... only harder.

Brian

Comfortable looking seat you have there...

[556ALPHA]

Yea the right seat is tremendously hard to find.  I am sending mine off for a Rick Mayer at the end of the month.  I know that a lot of people say his customer service is hit or miss but I took advantage of the April sale.  I have a Spencerized stock seat with a HT Moto cover at the present time as well as the stock seat.  It is good for about an hour and a half but I want some additional side support like the Russell or Mayer.  I am more concerned about my passenger than myself, if she cannot stay comfortable then the ride will be shortened.  If I can get 2 1/2 continuous hours then I will be satisfied.   If the Mayer does not work for me then I guess Russell is the next stop but the cost adds up quick even with resale.

[MrPepsi]

I don't recall which one I used, but here's my version.
Sad that thread is lost.
What I can say is this mount is not strong enough by itself. I use a stock rack cut down that puts quite a bit of forward pressure on the backrest to keep it from bending back, or breaking the lower rack it is bolted to.

[556ALPHA]

The old threads can be found with a Google advanced search.  You can find your old posts by just typing in your old user name and then searching.  Just click on the cached link. ie        MrPepsi site:forum.concours.org

[B.D.F.]

OFFTOPIC  (we could start another thread about this)

Two and a half hours wasn't much of a problem for us- we can do that on the stock seat with minimum discomfort. About 3 1/2 hours was the limit on the stock seat and by then it was painful and we were done for at least a day. The Russell would go about the same amount of time but the discomfort was less and after a short break could go about the same amount of time again.

The Airhawks are an all- day fix. I have gone 22 1/2 hours on mine without any butt pain. I plan to go a lot further than that in June and am counting on the Airhawk doing its job; I even have a spare in the event the original springs a leak (had that happen before).

Brian

Yea the right seat is tremendously hard to find.  I am sending mine off for a Rick Mayer at the end of the month.  I know that a lot of people say his customer service is hit or miss but I took advantage of the April sale.  I have a Spencerized stock seat with a HT Moto cover at the present time as well as the stock seat.  It is good for about an hour and a half but I want some additional side support like the Russell or Mayer.  I am more concerned about my passenger than myself, if she cannot stay comfortable then the ride will be shortened.  If I can get 2 1/2 continuous hours then I will be satisfied.   If the Mayer does not work for me then I guess Russell is the next stop but the cost adds up quick even with resale.

[B.D.F.]

Nice job on the backrest Brett, and great photos of the install.

I had to bend the backrest on my bike way back from the original angle or it drove my wife forward far too much. In the end, I think everyone is going to have to 'adjust' the position of the rest for his / her own personal needs.

I just got done mounting a Givi 55 in place of a smaller top box and my wife could not sit properly in front of the new top box. I ended up making a custom mounting plate to drive the Givi 2" further back than any stock mounting solution that I found. Motorcycles are kind of finicky as they fit us, cars are much more forgiving.

Brian

I don't recall which one I used, but here's my version.
Sad that thread is lost.
What I can say is this mount is not strong enough by itself. I use a stock rack cut down that puts quite a bit of forward pressure on the backrest to keep it from bending back, or breaking the lower rack it is bolted to.

<snipped photos>

[dras]

Brian / Brent -

Thanks for the excellent write ups. This is the kind of info that is so helpful to us that are new to the whole Concours 14 ownership thing. We lost a lot with the recent crash, I'm gald to see some of it gradually starting to filter back in. Those of us that are frugal and like to do things ourselves really benefit from this kind of solution. Keep the info coming.

Thanks again,
Dave

[B.D.F.]

OFFTOPIC

Yes it really is unfortunate the amount of data that was lost. I have been around here since buying my C-14 in '07 and there have really been some impressive amounts of knowledge and specific C-14 learning posted here. In the early days, we all learned about the bike together but lately I would think this (the old one) forum would be invaluable to people new to the C-14. I got the idea of the cheap backrest right here on this forum- I can't remember who posted it but I had wanted a backrest for quite some time and simply didn't want to part with the cash that a Premier backrest / luggage rack combo costs ($550 at the time). There were some really clever, able people on the old forum and I hope most of them come back this way and contribute again.

The good news is that a lot of the debris has been cleaned out and things can now be presented directly without pages of speculation, discussion and testing. We can just cut to the chase.

And of course, the personal side of the old forum. I would have to say that I would call many of the frequent contributors 'friends' even without having met most of them in person. It really was a great collection of people and that too is why I hope it sort of reassembles in this new forum.

Back ON TOPIC:

Good luck with the backrest and let us know if you have any problems or questions as someone will surely try to help you out.

Brian

Brian / Brent -

Thanks for the excellent write ups. This is the kind of info that is so helpful to us that are new to the whole Concours 14 ownership thing. We lost a lot with the recent crash, I'm gald to see some of it gradually starting to filter back in. Those of us that are frugal and like to do things ourselves really benefit from this kind of solution. Keep the info coming.

Thanks again,
Dave

[tonedeaf]

I just got done mounting a Givi 55 in place of a smaller top box and my wife could not sit properly in front of the new top box. I ended up making a custom mounting plate to drive the Givi 2" further back than any stock mounting solution that I found. Motorcycles are kind of finicky as they fit us, cars are much more forgiving.

Brian

I have the same problem and I think a couple of other members have mentioned the Givi being too far forward to be comfortable for a passenger. I have been thinking about asking Phil if he would make a rack that sets the top case back 1 1/2" to 2" further back.

[B.D.F.]

I asked Phil about that very thing but he was not interested in making a one- off or custom. I don't blame him either- it is always better for everyone if you can use production things rather than specials.

I wonder how much of a market there is for a longer, stronger rack? Bear in mind that my rack requires drilling two holes in the lifting rails for the additional bolts and I would not consider using the longer rack without those additional mounting points.

Brian

I have the same problem and I think a couple of other members have mentioned the Givi being too far forward to be comfortable for a passenger. I have been thinking about asking Phil if he would make a rack that sets the top case back 1 1/2" to 2" further back.

[Jeremy Mitchell]

Does anyone have a GIVI TB-19 (or something else that would work) laying around that they would like to sell?  I am ready to install one of these instead of putting the trunk on every time I take my wife for a ride.

[SVonhof]

My suggestion to beef up the assembly would be to add spacers into the cast portion of the rack you are drilling through to strengthen it. Either have some made at a machine shop (shouldn't cost much as you simply need a set of blocks that are the correct height with a hole in them) or go to a hardware store that sells round spacers and grind them down to fit the correct height. Making that area the screws go through solid would REALLY help make the whole thing stronger.

[MrPepsi]

The stock rack that I cut slightly and put on behind the backrest does the job of taking all the torque off of the bolts. I have to muscle the rack onto the stock mounting points.

[koval68]

OFFTOPIC  (we could start another thread about this)
. The Airhawks are an all- day fix. I have gone 22 1/2 hours on mine without any butt pain. I plan to go a lot further than that in June and am counting on the Airhawk doing its job; I even have a spare in the event the original springs a leak (had that happen before).

Brian

Still off topic.....
Ok Brian. You have me convinced! I'll get one to go with my stock saddle. What size should I order? Medium cruiser looks like a good fit!?

[Sea Level]

I no longer know what's on topic and what's off in this thread, but as for the Airhawk: in my experience it does help for endurance in the saddle; the price is a level of connection to the bike itself. I keep the 'hawk in the luggage and use it for long highway miles. When traveling the twisties and aggressive riding, I don't want to be floating, even a little, above the seat.

The old forum had a thread in which someone had purchased the headrests from a late-model Volvo and fashioned one into a very attractive and inexpensive backrest. I bought a set for myself to do the same thing, but ended up getting a topcase with built-in backrest. It was a great idea however. Maybe the photos by whoever did it can be found....

[Armyguns]

I've got a Givi 55 with the integrated backrest.  Wife and I just completed a 3000 mile trip to Nova Scotia and back (to NJ).  She found the Givi rest to be too high on her back to be useful for long term comfort.  We ended up rolling a bathtowel and positioning it above the rear edge of the seat and below the Givi rest.  This provided her some much needed lumbar support and increased overall comfort.  I need something more permanent and weather resistant than a rolled up towel.  Any suggestions?

[waboose]

I no longer know what's on topic and what's off in this thread, but as for the Airhawk: in my experience it does help for endurance in the saddle; the price is a level of connection to the bike itself. I keep the 'hawk in the luggage and use it for long highway miles. When traveling the twisties and aggressive riding, I don't want to be floating, even a little, above the seat.

The old forum had a thread in which someone had purchased the headrests from a late-model Volvo and fashioned one into a very attractive and inexpensive backrest. I bought a set for myself to do the same thing, but ended up getting a topcase with built-in backrest. It was a great idea however. Maybe the photos by whoever did it can be found....

I am trying to find that post for 2 days now. I would appreciate whoever finds the link and posts it here. That was a great mod.