| Author | Message | ||
     Rubysdaddy |
I recently picked up a used 06 Ulysses. It was dealer bought with just shy of 6,000 miles. It has been an absolute blast to ride with no problems or issues. Rides well and smooth, good power, normal sounds...until yesterday. Mid Sunday ride and I notice a somewhat loud racket/knocking at idle. It went away while riding, but came back at stops as the revs dropped back towards 1,000. As I headed home, I checked for it again and (of course) it hadn't magically disappeared. I did note that when slowly revving the bike in neutral, once past 2,000 rpm's, the clatter would cease. No loss of oil, no leaks, no smoke. Just clatter. I dropped it at the nearest Buell dealer this morning and hope to hear the cause of the (hopefully) small or large problem in the next day or two. Anyone have the pleasure of experiencing this kind of racket? Oh, and "Hello" and thanks in advance as I'm new here. | ||
| Firstbatch |
Can't be sure on the level of sound you are reporting, but the the buell/sporty motor is noisy machine and the valve train is working quite well when it is clattering away...particularly at idle YOur situation may be difernt but most likely it is a classic "they all do that". Put synthetic in my Uly and it increased the idle clatter quite a bit. Enjoy! | ||
| Froggy |
Without hearing the bike it would be hard to say wither its normal or not, the engines do make a lot of weird noises | ||
| Rubysdaddy |
I understand that the motor makes noise. And these more than some, but I have put over 1,000 miles on it so I'm somewhat familiar with what I've been hearing. This is very different. Even my wife heard it as I approached the house. Now that's saying something. This is more like something has come loose and is banging around, or whatever it had been holding tight was now sloppy and moving around until under load. I'll post when I get some news. | ||
| Black_buelly |
It sounds like maybe your primary is very loose. Have them check the adjustment and the torque on the flywheel nut holding on the front primary gear. | ||
| Rubysdaddy |
Black_buelly- That was exactly what the Buell tech suggested. He said he has seen them loose before. | ||
| Johnnylunchbox |
+1 on primary chain as an easy thing to check first. | ||
| Davo |
There are many interesting noises that find their way out of HD engines. The long valve train, a quartet of cams and a primary full of spirit. I have made numerous sound files of different parts of the HD engines that I work with in order to document healthy sounds and compare them to engines that have questionable sound issues. I use a digital sound recorder with a suction cup type microphone in order to record the engines. I use a program called Audacity to slow down and review the files. It is a great diagnostic tool. | ||
| Blk_uly |
I'll have to agree with ya'll for sure. these motors sound like two skeletons trying to *@$% their way out of a tin can!  (Message edited by blk_uly on August 12, 2008) | ||
| Dick_stilton |
Like they used to say about the old Colt.45 Auto... 'If it don't rattle, it don't work'!  | ||
| 4cammer |
I had a Ninja 250 before I got my XB9R, and the first time I started her in my garage I thought the factory might have forgotten the oil....mind that I did not even test ride her (March in NW IL at the time) and had my bike delivered. What a racket. Still amazed they pass EPA sound laws. | ||
| Buelldualsport |
Rock and Roll is here to stay  | ||
| Seanp |
Davo, Any chance you could share those sound clips with us? My bike makes lots of noises too, and I pretty much just chalk it up to it being a tweaked tractor engine, and ride on. But it would be interesting to hear the "right" sound. If you could post them somewhere, or email them, that would be awesome. | ||
| Thunderbox |
Primary chain may be contacting the case. That makes for a very noisy engine. Did you by chance just change your oil to Synthetic. | ||
| Rubysdaddy |
I changed the oil to synthetic nearly 1,000 miles ago. Is there a connection I'm missing? | ||
| Blk_uly |
there's a connection for sure seems that synthetic oils have a very low impact absorbsion rate. To me it seems quite thin and "runny" when up to temp. For example, If you have even the slightest leak synthetic oils could make it worse. I'm sure others would agree. On the other hand, they say the superior lubrication makes up for it. Who the hell really knows it's all snake oil anyway.  (Message edited by blk_uly on August 13, 2008) (Message edited by blk_uly on August 13, 2008) | ||
| Rubysdaddy |
I spoke to the dealer this afternoon. The bike is ready to go. I'm told it was the engine sprocket nut (I think that was what he said) that had come somewhat loose, about two full turns. What could cause this to loosen up? Isn't it torqued to some really big number? And wouldn't the engine rotation keep it from backing off? I am, obviously, a little confused. (Message edited by rubysdaddy on August 15, 2008) | ||
| Motomania425 |
Rubysdaddy, I thank you for the feedback about a loose engine sprocket nut. I have an '06 (w/11,000mi.) also and am amazed at the amount of engine noise. I also have an '83 FXWG which has typical Harley engine noise. I'm not really used to it, but can tell if the engine noise changes. Using earplugs on long trips alleviates the engine noise. Hah! Welcome new Bueller. | ||
| Crusty |
Rubysdaddy; having a sprocket nut back off is not unheard of, but it is uncommon. Buell increases the torque spec for the nut a couple of years ago to address the issue, and it has mostly eliminated the problem. If your dealer re-torqued the nut, it should be fine and remain trouble free. The plus side of this is that you now know what the source of that noise is, should you hear it again, and know that it's an easy fix. | ||
| Xb12lp |
I had the same problem with my '06. I removed the cover and retorqued the nut. So far so good. About 6000 miles since repair....... | ||
| Rubysdaddy |
Finally picked up the bike this afternoon. Fixed. End of story. Now it sounds, well, normal I guess. I did have a good dealership experience, not that I expected anything else. Except their speculation as to why the nut came a little loose in the first place.....they suggested that it was because of how the bike was ridden.....as in, ridden too hard. I mean, COME ON!!! Are you kidding me? This bike is ridden just like every bike I've ever owned. The way I want. How else am I going to ride it? Like I'm driving a minivan? | ||
| Tootal |
I had this happen on my 91 Electra Glide. I cleaned the threads with a wire wheel and brake cleaner. Then I used red loctite and torqued to spec. 100,000 miles later it's still going. Let the loctite dry before you fill with oil. I agree, it ain't no minivan!! | ||
| Ulyranger |
Ridden too hard? You've got to be kidding me. It's Buell, ride it like you stole it. Oh yeah, welcome aboard. | ||
| Froggy |
Like Crusty said before, they increased the torque spec to prevent it from happening. Odds are yours was done with the old spec. Nothing to do with you. |
