When I built my S30 in Feb this year I commented that I was a bit disappointed with the seat. As an older rider who is not interested in riding at warp speed I found the standard seat to be too reclined to allow easy forward vision without having to have the head pressed forward by the headrest and lacking lumbar support. On very smooth surfaces I found the seat to be comfortable enough but in the real world of uneven bike paths/roads the constant pressure of the headrest became a pain in the neck (literally). Luckily I had made a seat modification to my MK1 Q 559 by fitting a performer recumbent hard shell seat (perversely for more recline), so decided to try this seat on the S30.
As it turned out, it was a simple modification. The front of the seat was fitted to the existing fixing points on the Silvio frame and by removing the headrest tube and scissor clamp I was able to secure the performer seat with a simple bracket attached to the rear of the Silvio frame. The result is a seat with some lumbar support and support at the shoulders releasing pressure on the neck. While this seat is slightly heavier than the standard carbon fibre seat I compensated for this additional weight by also fitting Shimano Ultegra wheels with Schwalbe one tubeless tyres in place of the DT Swiss wheels and Schwalbe Durano Plus tyres fitted during the build (this saved some 740 g in weight). An additional bonus to the mod was that I was able to fit a seat back bag (radical design aero) another contentious issue with the standard seat.
While I appreciate that the mod has lost me some aerodynamic advantage, a test ride round a familiar route actually resulted in a slightly faster average speed. I can only put this down to the fact that I was able to travel faster on uneven surfaces with the lower pressure tubeless tyres and the fact that I was a bit more relaxed in the seat. I am now extremely happy with my new purchase and still have a bike that is capable of speeds the motor isn't.
As it turned out, it was a simple modification. The front of the seat was fitted to the existing fixing points on the Silvio frame and by removing the headrest tube and scissor clamp I was able to secure the performer seat with a simple bracket attached to the rear of the Silvio frame. The result is a seat with some lumbar support and support at the shoulders releasing pressure on the neck. While this seat is slightly heavier than the standard carbon fibre seat I compensated for this additional weight by also fitting Shimano Ultegra wheels with Schwalbe one tubeless tyres in place of the DT Swiss wheels and Schwalbe Durano Plus tyres fitted during the build (this saved some 740 g in weight). An additional bonus to the mod was that I was able to fit a seat back bag (radical design aero) another contentious issue with the standard seat.
While I appreciate that the mod has lost me some aerodynamic advantage, a test ride round a familiar route actually resulted in a slightly faster average speed. I can only put this down to the fact that I was able to travel faster on uneven surfaces with the lower pressure tubeless tyres and the fact that I was a bit more relaxed in the seat. I am now extremely happy with my new purchase and still have a bike that is capable of speeds the motor isn't.
