How to Make a Motorcycle Seat!

While I'm waiting for parts to show up I decided it was time to get going on the seat cover.

I am by no means an expert, or even a little familiar with making seat covers. I've done it a time or two, but this is by far the most complex cover I've attempted. I think it turned out pretty darn nice!

It's not perfect, but if you're wanting perfect, you're in the wrong place. In these parts, we're rough around the edges!

I spent roughly $40 at Walmart on supplies, but I got enough material to make 2 seats. When I was shopping for seat foam and seat covers, it was going to cost a minimum of about $110 if I were to just order them- that means I've saved $90 by building it myself!!!

If you're into engines and motorcycles, please check out my other Instructables and YouTube channel!

Supplies (purchased from Walmart)

-seat cover material

-interfacing material (backing or Pellon)

-camping sleep pad foam

-upholstery thread

-heavy duty sewing machine needle

Tools

-sewing Machine

-good scissors

-ruler and/or sewing measuring tape

-marking utensils- pen, sharpie, upholstery pencil

-cutting board and cutter

-hot glue gun and glue

-angle grinder with sanding disk, belt sander, or other device to cut / grind foam

-seam ripper

-staple gun or flat bladed screwdriver and hammer, depending on seat pan type

Links to options for supplies:

Seat Foam: https://amzn.to/3PKHV6K

Alternative cheaper Seat Foam: https://amzn.to/3oK6dlG (looks the same, untested though)

Fusible Interfacing (one of many options): https://amzn.to/3OMj40X

Upholstery Thread: https://amzn.to/3cXaXRZ

Upholstery Sewing Needles: https://amzn.to/3Sr5x2a

Tailors Pencil: https://amzn.to/3JjqWpA

Seam Ripper kit: https://amzn.to/3QbsVOW

This step only applies if you don't have the seat foam, or you want to make a custom shape for your seat. It's pretty straight forward. Since I wanted to use the stock seat pan, I used it to trace the shape onto the foam, then cut enough layers out of the foam to get the height I wanted.

Once you have your layers, use the hot glue gun to glue them together tightly. The glue IS NOT structural, so it doesn't need to be super great. The only reason we glue the layers together is to hold them in place while we sand the block of foam into the shape we want! Grind / sand gently, checking the shape often. It's easier to go slow than it is to take too much off and have to start over.

When the block of foam is shaped, you can glue a layer of the backing material over it if you'd like. I've found that it helps to smooth the shape out and hides any bumps or small mistakes on the foam block. Again, this glue isn't structural, so you don't need a ton. Just enough to hold the material in place while we start making the cover!

With the seat pan and foam block shaped, we're now ready to start taking measurements for our seat cover. I would recommend looking at multiple different types of seat cover before you start so you have a good idea of what exactly you are hoping to accomplish. Covers can be made MANY different ways- including just wrapping the foam and pan with a sheet of material! I will include pics at the end of this Instructable of another seat I did for my WR450F. It was made by simply stretching fabric over the foam- no cutting or sewing!

Sketch out plans for your seat, take lots of measurements, and decide how its all going together.

REMEMBER to leave extra fabric for the hems, where the pieces are sewn together! I left 1/2" extra anywhere I was joining two pieces. I think most professionals do it with more like only 1/4", but I feel like I have fat fingers and need the extra space.

Take some time to PRACTICE!!! I found an old shirt, cut it up, and used it as practice fabric to test my measurements out. I'm glad I did- because I was a little off and needed to make a few changes!!! I didn't sew the pieces together for the test fit, I just used a bunch of pins to get an idea of how it was going to work.

ALSO- take some time to PRACTICE again with the material and sewing machine! Some materials can be very hard to sew- stretch materials can bunch up and become uneven, thicker materials require stronger sewing machines or "the soap trick"- rubbing bar soap along the seam area to lubricate the needle as it punctures the material.

Once your comfortable with your prototype and you've practiced with your sewing machine, it's time to lay things out for real!

This step is going to require some math skills... I'm not going to go into all of the ins and outs of using a ruler, but if you struggle with that you can check out my "How to Read a Ruler" Instructable and a few of my layout Instructables here:

How to read a ruler: https://www.instructables.com/How-to-Read-a-Ruler-and-other-simple-tricks/

Perfect Paper Cube: https://www.instructables.com/Perfect-Paper-Cube-Laying-out-a-project-using-pa/

Perfect Paper Pyramid: https://www.instructables.com/Perfect-Paper-Pyramid-More-practice-with-project-/

Perfect Paper Tray: https://www.instructables.com/Perfect-Paper-Tray/

Once you have a handle on using a ruler, it's time to start putting pen to paper, as it were!

Lay out the pattern on the BACK of the fabric. Remember that if you are making 2 opposite sides like I did on this one, you need to mirror image the patterns for those pieces.

LEAVE EXTRA FABRIC ALONG THE BOTTOM EDGE OF THE SEAT COVER!!! You will be stretching the cover over the foam and attaching it to the seat pan, and its easy to trim off extra but REALLY hard to sew more on if you're too short! I left an extra 4 inches or so, which was A LOT but I'm glad I had it.

The stressful part! Take your time, make sure everything is lined up, and don't be afraid to use the seam ripper to undo something if it just isn't sitting right. I had to do that a time or two on this cover! The hardest part for me was anywhere 3 pieces of fabric joined up. It takes some practice to get the corners to all line up. AGAIN, IF IT DOESN'T TURN OUT ON YOUR FIRST TRY, don't give up!!! It doesn't have to be perfect!

There are generally two common ways of attaching a seat cover to a motorcycle seat pan- if the pan is plastic, the cover is often stretched over and either stapled or glued to the the pan.

If the pan is metal, it will usually have metal spikes punched out around the lip of the pan. Bend all of the spikes so they are pointing straight out from the lip.

I like to set the cover on, get it as lined up as I can on top, then flip it over and about the middle on one side, stretch the material as far as I can get it and either staple the material to the pan or poke the spike through the material. Then I repeat the process on the other side. DOUBLE CHECK THE ALIGNMENT before you do more! If the cover got pulled crooked, flip it off of the spikes and try again. I like to work my way down the sides equally, then move to the ends of the seat and stretch them.

Once the cover is on and you are happy with the fit, use a flat bladed screwdriver to push all of the spikes down tight and trim any excess fabric off.

VIOLA! You're DONE!

It *always* feels better to me to see a completed project that I built, start to finish! It can be hard though, because I see all of my imperfections and flaws. Don't let it get to you. Sure, it's not perfect, but if you're looking for perfect, you've come to the wrong place!

Attached are also some pictures of the WR450 seat cover I made. It was made with a single piece of canvas, no sewing, and some camp pad foam. It made the seat wider, thicker, WAAYYYY more comfortable for a several day trip!

If you've enjoyed this, I'd love a follow on my YouTube channel- I *love* motorcycles and plan on doing TONS of how-to vids!