Hi folks,

Bit of an odd one here, I'm afraid. At the ripe old age of 37 I have been diagnosed as having a bad case of osteo-arthritis in the hips. While this doesn't seem to stop me getting about too badly, it does stop me riding my bike for more than an hour or so. It's essentially down to two things: Staying in a hunched seating position too long and having my knees forced apart by the tank.

I've sold my big Acerbis tank, but the standard unit isn't actually much narrower. My question is this: Is it possible to make my bike seat and tank narrower? Does anyone know if this has been done? I'm not supposing for a minute that anyone might have done this for the reasons I want to, but was wondering if anyone had done it for off-roading reasons?

I'm wondering if there are any narrower tanks off an older XT (mine is a 2003) that might be narrower and fit?

Maybe I could use the tank and seat off a TT? Although I have a feeling the oil tank is in a different position on the TT and might scupper the tank swap at least.

Secondly, anyone else had arthritic hip problems and discovered a way to overcome them?

I'd rather not sell my bike. We've been through a lot together and I'd never get what she was worth to me on ebay.

Cheers,

Matt

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*Disclaimer* - I am not saying my bike is better than your bike. I am not saying my way is better than your way. I am not mocking your religion/politics/other belief system. When reading my post imagine me sitting behind a frothing pint of ale, smiling and offering you a bag of peanuts. This is the sentiment in which my post is made. Please accept it as such!