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I'm embarking on a recover job this weekend on my 71 /5 seat and have a couple questions. I bought the replacement cover from NW Moto-seat Covers or something like that, and the cover is very well made - matches the stock set up with regards to piping and the vinyl is nice, supple and of good quality. I have no idea of the condition of my stock foam, although I have no reason to think it's trashed beyond reuse, but who knows until I remove it, right? But I did buy a 1/4 piece of topper foam to glue to the existing foam in order to take up any slack in the cover.

I loosened and checked a couple of the trim retaining bolts and they appear to be reusable and I've reviewed the various sources (5 United, etc.) for lessons learned. But I cannot find replacements for the two Brads that affix the nose of the saddle to the pan. Does anyone have experience removing and reusing the Brads, and if so, are there any tricks? If they can't be or aren't reusable, does anyone have a suggestion for something to use in there place? Lastly, do any of you have any last words of advice/warning, etc.?

Thx in advance.

Those front Brads or rivets should be reusable. The ones on my /5 had fold over tabs which where easy to straigten with needle nose pliers.

I had my cover installed by a professonal for about $40. He did a better job than I would have. You are on the right track using the topper foam, and don't pull the cover down too tight (my mistake).

Use good contact cement to hold the cover in place around the lip. The trim is cosmetic only. My upholsterer sugested that I cover the edge of the pan with door edge molding so that the pan does not cut the cover with age. It does leave a little buldge after the trim is reistalled........ but my bike is a rider, not sure what a Conours judge would have to say.

Can't think of anything else other than take your time and have fun.

Yeah, probably the main reason a professional will do a better job is because of the tension issue. It's very hard to know just how hard to pull on the cover until you've done it a few times, and a pro does it all the time.

So, odds are that you will not get the tension and the alignment as perfect as a pro will, but that doesn't mean it isn't worth doing yourself, as that will be a learning experience for you, and has that "I did it myself" pride factor too. You might try doing it with duct or Gorilla tape first, so that you can get the feel for how much tension to put on it, then do it with the contact cement. That would have a greater chance of coming out just right.