Thought I'd join the conversation. I was the first one to ever put a Bill
Mayer saddle on a GTS. (The late Bill Mayer was Rick's dad.) I did it because
it was cheaper than a Corbin and looked interesting. It took two tries. The
first one had a spot that quickly ripped. I returned it and true to Bill's
lifetime warranty, he quickly repaired it and sent it back. After a long
ride, I was so convinced, I sold the Corbin on my ST1100 and order a Mayer
saddle for that too. (A fellow GTSer whose bike was in repair borrowed my
ST1100 and gave me a chance to do a back-to-back test of Corbin vs. Mayer.)
That said, it was an easy decision because I still managed to sell the
Corbin for more than enough to pay for the Mayer. (Doubt you could as easily
do that with the Mayer.) I am ver happy with the comfort of the Mayer saddle.
I can't speak as much for the durability because I don't ride one bike enough
miles. However, it seems to be doing fine and the warranty is there again (I
believe) with the Mayer family still in the business.
I still have Corbin saddles on two of my bikes, a Ducati and a Honda
TransAlp. I am very pleased with them. I've also heard nothing but favorable
comments about Corbin from those who actually go to the factory to be fitted.
Everybody's butt is different. (Let me show you my collection of bicycle
seats some time!) I have been reasonably happy with Corbin, some of their
seats work better than others. The Mayer seat is built specifically for you
and I found it easy to send one back for minor modifications to make it more
to my liking. Smaller, more personal operation.
The Corbin is heavier because they use a heavy pan. The Mayer builds it
on your old seat pan. Corbin has a big advantage in that you don't have to
give up your stock seat to buy one.
So as a guy who has two Corbins and two Mayer saddles, I am happy with
all of them. The Mayer's were built specifically to my needs and are the
better long-distance mounts.
Hope that helps somewhat.
Jay
