Wenglish

Standard buggy seat

Seems slighly longer / deeper than the original flexi seat, had to adjust the down tube so I could reach the pegs and still apply full lock.

The backrest is very comfortable and the height is good offering good support even when the seat is dropped right down and back.The corners of the seat don’t dig in the kidneys like it does on the flexi however there was a slight issue I had with the plastic support in the backrest, it seemed a bit too big and I trimmed it by 5mm across the bottom and rounded the corners off and this felt much better and allowed the top flap to close much better on the Velcro.
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Buggybags comment: Back rest support not finalised for the Prototype seat, sizing of the back pad stiffner will be correct for the production seats.
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The webbing straps on the back of the seat:
I found I preferred the upper straps as this gave the back of the seat a more sold feel when I was leaning back into the points for pulling the seat back I really like the strap that comes o ver the top of the seat as you can really tighten it up and it pulls the whole seat taught at the back the lower points attached to the back of the backrest didn’t give the same feel and especially when dropping the seat right down didn’t hold the seat as well I think the lower webbing strap that connects to the side rails and the two connecting points on the back of the backrest could be removed saving work , materials and costs.
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Buggybags Comment: Extra rings added to the prototype seats only to allow to test all options to determine correct setting for production seat.
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The metal rings give a good connection point for the front splash guard, not really a design feature but much better than where the splash guard connects to the flexi seat.

Having the seat lifted fully up and brought forward gave a really good position in the buggy, jumping like this felt fine. The padding coming over the side rails was great and nice to have (I don’t have side rail pads normally) and it was nice to be able to really lean into them and not feel any discomfort the fit around the side rails is good . lifting the seat I went for a run around the common and parts where I normally grounded the buggy with the flexi seat the extra ground clearance meant this only happened once or twice. The material on the under side of the seat doesn’t look any worse for wear after going over nettles, a thorn bush of sorts and a load of long grass and ferns and other twiggy small plants. I gather its water resistant however perhaps a second drain hole or moving the drain hole further back as its quite far forward on the red seat.

Jumping the buggy in this position felt good the seat didn’t move about on landing or feel like it was going to give in any places, the webbing support under the seat could barely be noticed especially with a harness on and even without a harness I didn’t notice it. It didn’t feel like I was sat on webbing or like it was trying to push me into certain areas of the seat.
On two wheels the whole thing felt solid and gave a good platform to sit on. On my flexi seat the seat moves quite a bit when you go onto two wheels and gives you the platform, this seat didn’t but it didn’t feel like it needed to there was plenty of material there and the padding that comes over the side rail makes landing on two wheels nicer when it doesn’t go as smooth as it should.

When you drop the seat back and lower it right down allowing the backrest to sit at about 45 degrees the buggy instantly feels very solid, I found I was able to ride with y weight over the back corner of the buggy very easily and this meant the kite could be kept powered up and put almost anywhere as balance point was very low and it was quite hard to tip the buggy like this (I managed it though lol, though ill blame a tuft of grass that I hit as the buggy was sliding round the turn), you do lose some of the responsiveness of the buggy like this though and its not as easy to flick the back end out, a bit of practice should sort this out but for going round a course I can see this beading my preferred seating position as you can defiantly hold more power and it feels nicer going in a straight line (there is very little ground clearance like this a razor shell wont do much harm with all the webbing and padding but a sand steak might give you a few stitches, just the same as any bug with a low seating position.) when ridden like this there is no padding on the side rails but you don’t notice its missing because of how far down in the seat your sat. sitting like this is almost like lying down and with the blue and red seat you don’t notice the cut outs here.

Ill get some pictures of me actually riding in the buggy next time I get out as there wasn’t anyone about to take pictures today.
Oh the red seat would look great on the new flexi buggy. It would set the white frame off nicely and match the forks.

Stu

Ps seat is now CAT1 approved.
As I get more time on the seat ill give you more information and feed back but so far so good, just the above points.

KITEBOYSTU’S REVIEW OF BUGGYBAGMAN’S NEW AND
IMPROVED ALTERNATIVE SEAT FOR THE FLEXIFOIL BUGGY

INTRO
I've been kite buggying for nearly ten years now and have owned several different buggies over the years.
The buggy of choice for me though is the Flexifoil buggy as I'm now into 'buggy jumping'.
There are high stresses and loads placed upon a buggy when using large fixed-power kites: strapped in, holding down loads of power and then jumping and often landing hard. The frame of the buggy can withstand most abuse, but I have bent and snapped the odd bit here and there over the years.
For me, the weakest point on the buggy has always been the seat. The plastic buckles all broke and I ended up replacing them with metal 'd' rings just to get by. The stitching also came away in several places and the webbing frayed in other areas.
When it came time to buy a new Flexifoil buggy I was determined not to trash the seat of the new one so quickly.
I've ended up cross-bracing the underside of the seat with heavy duty webbing straps across the frame. These help take the loads of hard landings and so far have 'saved' the seat from failing...for now.
When I spoke to Jon at buggybags.co.uk about his thoughts on a replacement seat for the buggy I was excited at his ideas and he soon started work on a protoype.
Pretty soon it was ready to be tested and Jon popped one in the post to me to try out...
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
When I unwrapped the seat from it's packaging I was very pleased with what I saw. Straight away I could see that the build quality was exceptional and the craftsmanship was of a high standard.
The materials used were very heavy duty and hard wearing and I was impressed with the additional sewn in under-layer of wipe-clean material. It’s almost like a built-in splash guard.
The stitching was strong and neat and the webbing straps were of a higher grade of material than on other seats. The stainless steel double rings were a really good idea. They're so much stronger than plastic buckles and will NEVER break - even under the load of jumping.
The seat had padding sewn into it all over and it was wider so that it came up over the side rails to provide built in padding there. The back rest is also very sturdy and well padded.
I took the Flexifoil seat off and compared them side by side. The Flexifoil seat feels lighter in comparison, but that's because it uses thinner material, webbing straps and plastic buckles. Jon's new seat is a little heavier, but that's because it is slightly larger (as it covers the side rails) and will last and is made of much heavier-duty materials and stainless steel rings.
Once I'd fitted the seat I stood back and was pleased with the 'look' of it on the frame - really smart and stunning in the electric blue material Jon had chosen. It really stands out!
TEST TIME
I got set up and lowered myself into the new seat and thought - wow this is actually really comfy and supportive.
I strapped myself into my captive systems and launched the 8.5 Blade into the air.
As soon as I took off I knew the seat was great! It felt like I was actually sitting IN the buggy instead of ON it (which is a common complaint about the original Flexifoil seat - some people prefer to fit Peter Lynn XR seats to them).
I popped straight up onto two wheels and leant right over as I sped across the field at a fair old lick! I felt confident, comfortable, supported and safe. I just grinned from ear to ear for the whole session!
I immediately sent the kite over for a jump and went skyward. Again, everything felt strong and supportive in the air. I came down fast and a little hard - not one of my best landings. But immediately I thought, WOW that didn't hurt. That's a new experience for me. The seat was very forgiving and definitely soften the blow of a 'hot' landing. I was again IMPRESSED!
The original Flexifoil seat feels so much less forgiving, being stiffer and more taught across the frame. As a result, when you land hard you feel it! You get a jolt right up your spine - which is not good. This does not happen with Jon's new seat at all.
I cruised around for a good four hours - fully powered on the 8.5 Blade III. I soon realised I could hold down more power than before as the seat sat just that little bit lower than the original. The wind was much stronger than what I'd normally fly this size in. My boarding friends commented on the fact that they thought I was doing well with such a big kite in the strong, gusty conditions we had. You can also lower the seat even further for that real laid-back beach cruising style.
I performed all my usual flat-land tricks with ease and could move and turn freely within the new saddle. Aerial antics were also on the menu for the day. I just felt so much safer and supported that I had the extra confidence to really go for it and try bigger jumps.
I just kept wishing I'd had a seat like this a few years ago. Perhaps my back would be in better condition today if I had.
I did have to tighten up the straps on the back rest after about two hours of constant thrashing, but that's not surprising. And in a way, I'd rather that the straps gradually loosened than snapped or frayed under the loads I was imposing on them. I probably need to tighten them up before each session and they'll be fine. This to me is a good thing. If something's designed to give then it will last longer than something that's fixed, taught and under load. So top marks again on the straps and fixings.
I think there are probably a few too many rings on the back of the seat. We could probably do away with at least two if not even three of the rings there. I think the strap from the front of the seat that goes over and behind and round the axle is enough, combined with maybe one more coming from the base of the seat. But I suppose the more the merrier. You don't have to use them all and they may offer a different ride height if tinkered with, but I didn't think it needed all of them from a strength point of view myself.
I didn't find the need to fit either the home-made cross-bracing or the belly pan I usually use. The amazing cross-bracing sewn underneath the seat was doing a wonderful job of load-spreading and extending the lifetime of the seat all on its own. No need for extra straps underneath. The belly pan is also redundant now as the built-in wipe-clean underlay keeps you dry. Any hard or sharp objects would also struggle to get through to your precious behind (unless you buggy over steel spikes regularly).
CONCLUSION
Overall I'm very very impressed with the seat and would recommend it as an upgrade to anyone using a Flexifoil buggy – whether you're a freestyler, cruiser or jumper like myself. It suits all styles and creates BIG SMILES.
So all I can say is, well done Jon for creating a superior product. You really are a talented individual. To everyone else; get on the blower and order yourself one now - in whatever colour takes your fancy - and stand out from the crowd!
KiteBoyStu

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DISCLAIMER
The seat is NOT endorsed for use to jump the buggy, or for the buggy to leave the ground at any time. Using a Kite Buggy for Airborne Sports is
Dangerous and WILL result in injury to you, others or actual damage to YOUR buggy/seat. Buggybags cannot accept any liability for use of your equipment in this way
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Avoid Slippage of the buckles by double looping them back on themselves

ADJUSTABLE BACK REST

A great addition to the seat, which also makes it much easier to mount on the buggy.

Specifications

Stainless Steel Rings

Wide Heavy Duty Webbing

Stainless Steel Grommet(Drainage Hole)

Made from Heavy Weight Fabrics

Metric 12 Heavy Duty Thread for all areas

Unique Integral support that spreads the load over the whole seat

12mm Extra Thick High Density Water repelent Foam

Inner seat Pad Cordura

DISCLAIMER

The seat is NOT endorsed for use to jump the buggy, or for the buggy to leave the ground at any time.

Using a Kite Buggy for Airborne Sports is

Dangerous

and WILL

result in injury to

you, others or actual damage to YOUR buggy/seat.

Buggybags cannot accept any liability for use of your equipment in this way