yea, i am a 38 waist, 248 lbs, and have only 2 inches clearance with mine. i did have my seat redone recently, so maybe they put thicker padding in ? i also have the gas tank behind the seat, and the seat is all the way back.
longbox, i see you have the flatter early steering wheel, unlike the 57 wheel, so thats maybe why you have so much free room ?
svwilbur, as red58 suggested, maybe you could use the early wheel with your longer column ? just me, but i do like the 57 wheel a bit more.
leonard