350 SEAT LOGO MYSTERY

[coxy]

hey moonpup i just got back from working away for a few days i will send some better pics this afternoon

[steve]

Moonpup...I'm interested in the logo colour differences that you mention. Could you please enlighten me a little more...thanks!

Steve

[rocketman]

 I've done a good bit of dealing with TC at Pit Replica, He offers 5 covers that were patterned from worn and torn samples that I sent him. If someone who can send him a used cover with the proper font you wish duplicated, he can reproduce the cover correctly in the first place. If you contact him and indicate that you already have just a few pre sold thru our little group here, he will most likeky make the first one for free to its supplier. He pays the reverse shipping on the first cover, asking only that you fit it and return a picture of it to him upon completion. He will also pay the return to him and back to you as many times as it takes to perfect the end product. (only one returned for adjustment on a Yamaha JT1). First step is to contact him with the need and see if he is interested in adding it to his line. If he knows its popular he will most likely do it for the first cover anyway, saying you need several right off the go just helps to grease the wheels.       Thanks, Mark. 

[moonpup]

Steve,

First let me say, that when I spoke of color differences for the 350 seat logo, I was comparing the color PitReplica was using (white) to the color on my 3 original seats (light silver). All the original covers that I've seen to this point have had the silver logo.

However, John (whitegto) has now mentioned that he has seen a few original 350 covers that had white lettering used for the logo. That kinda throws a kink in things and is something I think will need some follow up questions asked such as..... Were these white logos all found on seats with the small font lettering, all on the large font or on both? Could these have just been older reproduction covers that have now aged and look original? Has anyone else made note of the color white being used for 350 logos?

Hopefully, as this discussion continues, we'll all learn more and can feel comfortable knowing what is "correct" for each of our bikes.

[rocketman]

 Hey Moonpup.  I'm thinkin the possibility of any mass produced reproduction that would have looked factory is probably slim. I've seen few "old" truly repro covers for Jap bikes. The one complete repro seat for a 90 Bridgestone filled the void, but did not have Bridgestone on it, and really didn't much resemble the original. I think it was JC Whitney or something. Color should be no more than specifying white or silver when ordering once you figure out what font goes where on which cover. I havn't looked at Pits listings yet to determine if he already offers a smooth cover like my GTR. Smooth vinyl top and sides, no inset. Its the liitle things!  Mark.

[coxy]

i have never had  silver on any bridgestone they all have been white .i dont think i have ever seen a silver one

[rocketman]

I looked at mine earlier this afternoon.  Smooth top and sides, light grey/silver letters.

[rocketman]

Moonpup, Coxy, It looks like the letters are positioned more toward the rear also.  mark

[moonpup]

I looked at mine earlier this afternoon.  Smooth top and sides, light grey/silver letters.

Mark,

Can you confirm your cover is original to the bike? I ask only because I've never heard of a 350 cover having anything other than the "suede" top and it'd be interesting to see a smooth insert.

An additional plus, is that it would bring more questions & mystery to the discussion!    

Mike

EDIT.... Mark, I looked at your pics in your gallery and it appears to me that maybe sometime in the past the suede was replaced with the smooth insert. What do you think?

[Sno Jet]

Pretty common occurrence to see the tops having been replaced on vintage bikes.

[steve]

I too have three original seats and the colours are as follows:

GTR seat - small logo towards rear (silver)
GTO seat - small logo further forwards (off white)....I need to recheck this in the daylight tomorrow rather than under the kitchen light!
GTO seat - large logo (white)

I'll post some pictures tomorrow if I can.

Steve

[moonpup]

That'd be great Steve, the more pic's the better.

What I'd also like to see are some good shots of the 1971 painted tank GTR & GTO seats. If any members have original seats on their bikes and would share photos of them with us, I'd really appreciate it. I've never seen one of those in person and on all the pic's I find it appears they have white logos. I'd like to confirm the colors on them.

Mike

[rocketman]

 Know what your saying, Moonpup. This bike was 3 years old and had 300 miles on it before it was raced, and all the street stock parts including the seat were removed and not put back on for well over thirty years. Then it sat in the tractor shed for another 10 or so. After cleaning it up, I thought it looked pretty good and didn't notice any difference in the vinyl sections. Just looks a little thread bare at all the seams. The top section fits like its perfectly molded in shape. The best shot of this is on the picture where it just came out of the barn. Its still dirty, but the lighting highlights the top section. So now I am curious. A lot can happen in 300 miles. I will get a closer look at it in the morning, maybe some pics and let you know. Thanks, Mark.

[rocketman]

 After looking closer at it this morning, I'm still a little troubled about a few things regarding the smooth inset. Its a smoother grain of material than the sides, or maybe worn smoother. The top of the raised rear section is smoother in appearance too, but not everywhere. Closer to the seams it looks more grainy like the sides. All the threads color and wear looks consistent throughout. The seams where the two side sections meet the top rear section is real flat compared to the insets seams. But, the front flap, and the bottom inside seams seam to match. Also the rivets and the pointed tabs that hold the cover underneath look to be undisturbed. The cover could be pretty easily be repositioned back on the tabs with out further ripping or stretching the cover, but the rivets leave permanent scars and ripping to the material and would be almost impossible to get every one back where it came from without leaving some evidence. However, The 2 outlying factors to me at the moment are 1) No one else seems to have one! And 2) It looks like from other members pics etc, that the pattern of the inset is slightly wider and longer than the others. Neccessary to be able to reuse the rest of the original seat after ripping out the original seam to remove the original inset. I'ts hard to tell exactly from pics, but I think I'm going to consider it to have been repaired until it can be verified one way or the other. Thanks Mark.

[steve]

Finally got round to taking a few pictures today of the logos on the three original seats I have. Hopefully, these might be of some use to anyone who may want to change theirs. It would also be interesting to see if anyone has seats with a different colour / size logo from those I've shown.

Firstly, a GTR seat but I'm not sure from which year exactly as I bought this a couple of years ago as a NOS seat. Colour of logo looks white in photo but is actually a light silver.



Next is a GTO seat from 1969...logo colour is darker than the GTR and can best be described as silver/grey.



Lastly, here's a GTO seat from 1970...logo colour is white.

[moonpup]

Thanks everyone for your input.

Now unless additional information comes in to the contrary, I think this is how seat logos fall in to place....

GTR - (RED & CHROME)... Light silver in color/small font/positioned closer to back of the seat
GTO - (GOLD & CHROME)... Light silver in color/small font/positioned closer to front of the seat
GTR & GTO - (PAINTED TANKS)... White in color/large font/positioned closer to front of the seat

Hope this helps the die-hard purists out there! 

[moonpup]

Here's a little follow up for the GTO folks out there.

This weekend I emailed TC @ PitReplica and pointed out the logo placement differences between the GTR & GTO seats, and asked if he might consider putting a more accurate product out for the GTO. His reply was.......

"Hi Mike,

Thanks for contacting. I can custom make 1 for you at the same price of $99.90 + 10days production period. Airmail is FREE. Shipping duration is 7-21days.

If you are interested to proceed, I will send paypal invoice for your custom order.

Thank you
Best Regards, TC"

So I guess at the moment, he's not looking to make a batch of these, but is willing to do "customs" at the same price if you email him and ask for it.