I've perfected the sprung saddle!!

Perfected? That's a big claim. Maybe I'm going too far. Perhaps there's room for improvement.

But I doubt it!

But, in any case, I'll lay out the parts needed here. In case anyone wants one for themselves.

I'd recommend this particular saddle. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003RLDQBE?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00

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I've experimented also with the Cloud 9. And it works. But this saddle seems much more apt to this job. The front hairpin spring certainly helps. Plus, on this model the 'seat pan' is also suspended by a criss-cross of narrow extension springs. Almost hammock fashion. So this saddle already has some 'bounce' to it. IMHO, it's superior to the Cloud 9.

Remove the rear springs plus the posts that mount them.

Detach the main undercarriage from the front hairpin spring and flip it over.

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The bolts that held the old springs on are not going to be long enough for you. I replaced them with these.

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Memory tells me that they're 5/16 x 7 in. But they look longer in this pic. I should have measured them. But you'll have some wiggle room on this project anyway.

Your new main rear springs will be two hairpin style springs. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007KPUW92?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00

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Those hairpin springs don't have the reach needed for this job. So supplement them with coil springs.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002P4VQF2?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00

These particular ones are cheap and easy to work with. You can experiment all you want with length.

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Then thread your new springs into the mount holes for the old springs and re-attach the front mount of that undercarriage.

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I've been riding for more than a month now, I guess, on a saddle that's almost identical to this one. The only difference is that I also put coil springs into the space between the jaws of those hairpin springs. I've eliminated those on this build because it didn't seem as though they were doing anything for me. And maybe they were making the ride harder than need be. Probably not much difference since they're pretty weak springs. (For referrence; it takes 94 lbs to compress two of them one inch.)

My results. There are two seams in the pavement on my work commute which are about 5 inches tall x about 5 inches in the direction of travel. They are not 'jagged', they're pretty rounded. Still, that's not the sort of bump that I'd go over carelessly with no suspension at all. But I can do it with this saddle with no feeling that I'm shocking my axle, my frame, dropouts or spine. I still, usually, lift myself off the saddle on these bumps since it feels as though I'm pushing the limit of what this saddle can absorb. I'm 190 lb. And I can go over these bumps at any speed without worry.

As far as those 1 or 2 inch seams, patches, etc., in the pavement go, they're simply not a matter of concern anymore at all. I ride over them without feeling them in any meaningful way. And I've no concern for the bike on stuff like that anymore. Same with rough, gravel shoulders. The springs in the front suspension and the saddle are absorbing that sort of shocks sucessfully.

I still wouldn't want to crash through a pothole, of course. But this saddle absorbs at least 90% of the road 'roughness' that I encounter. And, by the way, the roads in these parts are not very good. I hate driving my car over them, for instance. They're that bad.
 
No, no!.......I live in Illinois.

And we are believed by many to have the worst state government in the union. I'll testify; they're right.

Those monkeys in Springfield simply refuse to do their jobs and taxes are disappearing into a black hole. There are plenty of places this lack is showing itself. And our poor roads are only one of those places.
 
I saved a link to this thread for further reference bluegoatwoods. I have a sprung seatpost on my Huffy Davidson.
It's ok, but you have gone the extra mile. I have been on the look-out for a better sprung saddle for my Sportsman Flyer build, and yours is the best solution to date.
I had looked at Schwinn's sprung seat post of 1936 but the Worksman Flyer seat post tube angle seems a bit too steep for free movement. Thanks for sharing.
Tom
 
bluegoatwoods, I am working on sourcing the various parts of your saddle.
The seat itself appears to be out of stock, bummer. I am thinking of using spring buckets for the coil spring instead of washers.
Tom
 
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