| Author | Message | ||
     Brotherbuell |
It's seems to me that the Buell engineers have things really well sorted out on the Ulysses. The only thing that I want to do to this bike is to hear more of that great engine. Is there a muffler that works well and sounds great without adding a TFI or changing the ECM? | ||
| Thunderbox |
I am darn sure I am going to have Kevin Drum do a muffler for my Uly. Take a look at Drummers site and see the Dyno charts. Lots more at lower RPM where we spend the most time driving. The sound on the site is pretty good too. They do a comparison to the D & D and the Drummer is a much better performing muffler if you can trust the numbers. | ||
| Brotherbuell |
T, The Drummer is my first choice as well but it requires a TFI. I'm trying to avoid that if possible. If not, Kevin get's the can as soon as the snow flies. | ||
| Thunderbox |
What is a TFI? | ||
| Brotherbuell |
As I understand it, it's a $220 device that is inserted in line with the ECM (engine control module) that allows you to dial in various fuel mixtures. Kevin has settings for this device that are optimized on the dyno for the Drummer. If I don't have this right I hope someone who has TFI experience will chime in. | ||
| Thunderbox |
I don't recall Kevin saying the Uly would need anything other than just the Drummer muffler. Hey Kevin you around here at all????? | ||
| Opto |
If you run a standard Drummer no other mods will be required. If you run the Drummer SS then you will proly need at least a race ecm. I don't know if a race ecm is available for the Uly or if one from an XB12SS will plug straight in. Jerseyguy is running a Drummer SS on an XB12SS with a stock ecm but has a race ecm on order (check the Knowledge Vault). I've been running a standard Drummer on the Uly with stock ecm and it's fine, ran the same pipe on an 04 XB12S for over 18 months with a stock ecm and K&N airfilter and that was fine too, I had a wideband 02 sensor fitted and there was plenty of fuel, and had the ecm checked twice by the dealer workshop manager to make sure the ecm was handling the fuel department, and he was happy that all was OK. A lot of people who ran standard Drummers on XB12's also ran a race ecm, but I feel that that achieves little more than increasing the fuel consumption. There are heaps of threads on Drummers and other pipes in the XBoard. If you don't want to make any other mods then the Drummer is proly your only choice, but check the archives, there really is a lot of info there, or email Kev or Jerseyguy, they will respond quickly. (Message edited by opto on September 21, 2005) | ||
| Javadog |
I just talked to Kevin about this. Since I would be doing mostly touring type riding, he advised me to get the standard Drummer plus the TFI. Just call him up at the shop(number is on kdfab.com site). He loves to talk about mufflers, ecms, and electronic fuel injection management. A very sharp guy. | ||
| Brotherbuell |
Opto, Just to be clear, both you and Jerseyguy have run a Drummer without a TFI or modified ECM? (Message edited by brotherbuell on September 22, 2005) | ||
| Opto |
Brother, just to be clear, I have run a standard Drummer (as opposed to the higher performance Drummer SS) without a modified ECM or a TFI on an XB12S and the Uly. Jersey is running a Drummer SS without a modified ECM or a TFI on an XB12SS but is waiting delivery on a race ECM. Just ring Kevin, he knows what he is doing, and he knows a lot more than me. | ||
| Brotherbuell |
Thanks Opto. I did talk to Kevin. He's the one who told me that I needed the TFI. I'm just looking for options. | ||
| Opto |
Looks like you'll need the TFI then, no need for me to answer any more questions! (Message edited by opto on September 22, 2005) | ||
| Odie |
Duck has ran a Special O.P.S. pipe for around 5000 miles on his new Uly with no issues whatsoever. | ||
| Brotherbuell |
Thanks Odie. I was reading in the KV or XB thread on Ti Force that there is a Bad Web "Can Shootout" being planned soon. As I understand it they plan to do a baseline run with no mods and then comparison runs with TFI and ECM mods. That's worth waiting for. I hope they include the Micron. From what I have read that can provides the mix of performance enhancements and reasonable sound improvement that I am looking for. I hope it happens. | ||
| Lowflyer |
I went to the Drummer site and saw no mention anywhere of a Uly. It appears you send them your stock muffler and $400 in exchange for one they modify. Has anyone sent them a stock Uly muffler? | ||
| Opto |
Lowflyer, The Uly can I pulled off my bike looks identical to the stock can I pulled off my 04 XB12S, except the outlet is different and it's 2 years younger. You can send them any stock XB muffler you like and they'll send you back something to fit an XB12S/R/X, which is all the same muffler. Probably the same set-up with the OPS pipe. The Drummer and the OPS (sorry I forgot the OPS) are probably the only pipes capable of running properly on a stock ecm. To put a race ecm or other •••• on a Uly is beyond being stupid IMO. Brother, I put myself in between a rock and a hard place trying to give you good advice, you will need TFI, I will not  If you knew what Kevin said then why ask for others opinions? | ||
| Brotherbuell |
Opto, My post was a general question about which mufflers could run without any mods. Not specifically about the Drummer. My follow up with Kevin was consistent with your suggestion to do so. In any case, I think validating any suppliers suggestions with real world experience is good practice. I value your input and after a few more conversations on this subject at the Buell demos at Liberty yesterday, would say that your assessment regarding the Drummer and Special OPS pipes are right on. I did not intend to put you in a difficult position. Thanks for your help. (Message edited by brotherbuell on September 25, 2005) (Message edited by brotherbuell on September 25, 2005) | ||
| Lowflyer |
--To put a race ecm or other •••• on a Uly is beyond being stupid IMO.--  Not sure where the above came from. I am not interested in a race ECM or any other speed mods. However, since one opinion deserves another, I definitely don't agree that putting speed mods on a Uly is stupid. If opinions like yours prevailed, we would have no innovation in motorcycling at all. I think people should put all kinds of mods on the Uly. I hope that when they do, they take pictures and make detailed posts in here so we can all learn from it. Thanks for the info. Can you post a pic of your Drummer on the Uly? I would like to see the distance/relationship between the footpeg and the 'fatlet.' Cheers | ||
| Opto |
Lowflyer, My post was over the top, you make a very good point. I have been frustrated with a race ecm that I once put on the XB12S, and have seen little evidence of real HP gains on a 12 motor from fitting a race ecm or TFI with a muffler similar to a standard Drummer or Special OPS. These items can take up a lot of time and cause frustration if they don't work well, so that is where I was coming from. I run a stock ecm (and an aftermerket EFI unit) on the 12S with wideband 02 sensor K&N and Drummer and there is no way I can see the fuel delivery to be lacking as far as power is concerned when the stock ecm is controlling the injectors. The Uly ecm feels to have a good rideability improvement over the 04 ecm. However I'm sure if the race ecm fits the Uly then a lot of owners will go that way and like it very much, since this is common practice on the XB12's.. After you fit a K&N airfilter and a pipe, significant HP gains are not cheap. Photo with RHS exit on Drummer, recommend a LHS exit (I will be swapping it over soon), photo taken square on with footpeg.  edit: the LHS fatlet will look really hot on a Uly and will be more visible than on the other 12's. (Message edited by opto on September 26, 2005) |
