Best Bucket Seat For Simracing?

[callumjtc]

I am looking for a new seat and would like some sort of racing bucket seat, I have a good idea of which ones I'd go for but I'd like to hear some recommendations first?

Thanks in advance!

 

[JohnnyV]

This is incredibly hard to recommend a bucket seat.
That depends on many factors, and you should really try and fit some of them for yourself before purchasing one.

That being said I had a QSP drift at first (which I didnt try myself before buying...) and my back would start to hurt..
Since then I have tried many Sparco seats, and settled for a Sparco Circuit LF II.
Dont care too much for the 'ears' but it was the best to sit in.

Good luck!

 

[Deleted member 197115]

If you have money, go for Sparco.
I got impressed by more fairly priced Corbeu FX1, serves me well for 3 years already, very comfy.

 

[callumjtc]

Your support for Sparco is reassuring as I was eyeing up the Sparco Sprint with the steel frame, I am on a bit of a budget with the requirement being a side mount bucket. I am also looking at the Cobra Monaco and the OMP TRS-X.

 

[Emery]

Rather than suggest a specific brand or model, I'm going to suggest you look for specific features:
1) fabric that will hold up to getting in/out of the seat. Cheaper race seats have very thin fabric because they're kind of considered as something that gets used only on half the weekends of a year rather than nearly every day like a simracer uses their seat.
2) side bolsters that are not so tall that getting in/out of the seat becomes a chore. Yeah, older folks like myself really notice it
3) reinforcement of the side bolsters and other wear spots, usually with leather patches, so the fabric doesn't prematurely wear through in the obvious locations. You can add this yourself, but rarely does it look as good as the factory's work.

 

[callumjtc]

Rather than suggest a specific brand or model, I'm going to suggest you look for specific features:
1) fabric that will hold up to getting in/out of the seat. Cheaper race seats have very thin fabric because they're kind of considered as something that gets used only on half the weekends of a year rather than nearly every day like a simracer uses their seat.
2) side bolsters that are not so tall that getting in/out of the seat becomes a chore. Yeah, older folks like myself really notice it
3) reinforcement of the side bolsters and other wear spots, usually with leather patches, so the fabric doesn't prematurely wear through in the obvious locations. You can add this yourself, but rarely does it look as good as the factory's work.

Cheers Emery! The ease of getting in and out for me is not an issue, I'm only a student so still nice and flexible . But the other tips really are helpful, I will keep an eye out for that

 

[Jan Larsen]

Try before you buy is all I can say. I've had numerous of the things and they're incredibly uncomfortable for everything other than an actual race car. I've found much more comfortable (and cheaper) road car seats from scrapped cars. Race car bucket seats are designed to handle forces and keep the driver pinned to it at all times, no matter the forces presented. Simracers dont have that issue. Also, most bucket seats are narrow in width, perfect for fit racecar drivers, terrible for normal (read: slightly overweight) people. Do have that in mind also. Some bucket seats also dont recline, avoid those at all cost.

 

[Deleted member 197115]

Try before you buy is all I can say. I've had numerous of the things and they're incredibly uncomfortable for everything other than an actual race car. I've found much more comfortable (and cheaper) road car seats from scrapped cars. Race car bucket seats are designed to handle forces and keep the driver pinned to it at all times, no matter the forces presented. Simracers dont have that issue. Also, most bucket seats are narrow in width, perfect for fit racecar drivers, terrible for normal (read: slightly overweight) people. Do have that in mind also. Some bucket seats also dont recline, avoid those at all cost.

Reclining racing bucket seats with side mount, not even sure those exist.
Tight side bolster hugging can be an issue in a long term, for husky guys I don't think you can find anything bigger than Corbeu FX1 Wide
The quote from site

- FX1 Pro racing seat will fit up to a 36 inch waist,
- FX1 (cloth only) will fit up to a 38 inch waist and the
- FX1 Wide (black cloth only) will fit up to a 42 inch waist.

I got Wide myself, while it has some exta wiggle room around, glad I did as my racing rig is essentially my office, and I spend countless hours in it.
Mounting posts at the bottom got handy for buttkickers placement too.

 

[Jan Larsen]

Forgot to say; a racing office chair will be much better. Reclines, goes up and down, is comfortable and can be had in different sizes.

 

[Ceolmor]

Forgot to say; a racing office chair will be much better. Reclines, goes up and down, is comfortable and can be had in different sizes.

A racing bucket seat is designed for a driver to sit in whilst driving a race car fast, often for long periods. A racing office chair is designed for sitting at a desk. So there is no reason why a racing office seat should be more comfortable for sim racing than a bucket seat. Seat choice is very subjective, like bicycle saddles. It may also depend on whether you have a dedicated sim rig or are sitting at a desk.

My bucket seat (GP Race Pro) attached to my sim rig is by far the most comfortable seat in my house. I sometimes just sit in it to relax. By using the side brackets I can recline it and move it up and down a little if I wanted.

Bucket seats do come in different sizes. Check the model or seat measurements. One tip: You don't need an FIA approved seat for sim racing! If you can find one, non-FIA approved seats will be cheaper.

 

[callumjtc]

Forgot to mention, this is to go on a rig! I eill DIY mounting beyond the standard side brackets.

 

[bavomeister]

I'm soon building a DIY 8020 rig myself, I've set my eyes on an OMP Champ-R. Seems that one is cushioned well enough for long sessions.

 

[DaVeX↯]

I would go for a plastic bucket seat...

Very light and durable, can be washed, you can buy soft cover for it and wash it if needed, use it without cover during summer, use the drilled holes for butkicker and vibrating motors mod, you can mount sliders, etc, etc...
Also CHEAP!!!

 

[Gustavo da Silva]

I'm going to say, lots of solid feedback from fellow RaceDepartment users. I bought at the time an unbranded bucket seat for my Simetik K2, it looks really cool, but as a very **** construction, well for the price i have no idea what I was expecting (65€ with the sliders included). At the time i thought that i made a good buy, 8 months later im regretting it, makes a lot of noise while braking (I have CSV v3 Pedals with performance kit with the hard rubbers). When i can safely say at the moment it is the "weakest link" of my RIG. I will defenetly upgrade to a proper bucket seat in the future.

So take your time choosing your seat, if you can seat on it, makes it even better. One of the reasons im affraid of ordering mine online, is that i can't seat on it and see how I would feel sitting on it.

 

[REDRANGERPWNZ]

I don't want to create a new thread so a quick question for you guys: is anyone here using Sparco Sprint bucket for their rig? I am looking for a seat for an alu rig, I am 183cm and skinny with no back aches
(yet ). I wonder how are the materials and is it comfortable enough for lets say 2 hour session.

 

[DaVeX↯]

Unless you aren't on a 2/3/9/whatever dof rig I suggest you something more comfy...

 

[anton_Chez]

Sparco Rev II bucket user here, love the seat. I'm 166cm and 70 odd kg so I got the smaller 'II' option as opposed to the larger "I" seat.

 

[RCHeliguy]

If you are a college student on a budget, I would seriously consider looking at your local import car junk yard.

I got a 2006 Volkswagon Passat seat out of a wrecked car for $40. It's very comfortable, is all manual on a slider, it reclines has lumbar support and even height adjustment. It weighs 45lbs and is very comfortable cloth.

I used a dremel with a cutting disk to remove a couple tabs and the base slider bolted right up to 8020. I should also mention that I pressure washed it at home. However I bet that on a sunny day that you could find a car wash with pressure washer and give a seat a good cleaning.

There is a lot more value in a car seat out of a wrecked car. Keep in mind that in many cases the replacement cost is well above a top of the line racing seat and these are mass produced in much larger volume and have more engineering in them.

 

[tlsmikey]

Sparco R100 here. It isn't cheap, but the back angle is adjustable and it has a slider on the bottom.

 

[REDRANGERPWNZ]

Thanks for all the answers. I love the design of Sparco Rev II but it costs too much for me, its over 100 dollars more then Sprint. As for a road car seats, I don't like how bulky they look on a rig. I'm sure they are a lot more comfortable, but I'm not planning to sit there all day