| Author | Message | ||
     Cadhopper |
Anybody on here in the Richmond VA area have an XB12XT that I can sit on to see what the height is like. I don't want to ride the bike just park my butt on the seat to see if I'm comfortable with it. I was under the impression that the low seat would drop the height by 1.5" until I started doing a search an realized that was only for the 06 model seat. My local dealer does not have any in stock and I really want to sit on one before I drive out of state to buy a bike. Thanks for the help. | ||
| Missin44 |
Anything X or XT these days comes standard with the low seat. In other words they both have the same seat. | ||
| Ratbuell |
...but the XT has a lower suspension than the original (and current, for that matter) X. It's a couple-hour-hike, but we (Frederick MD, 40 mins north of DC) rent an '09 XT. Come take it for a day, or a half day (only $50), and see what you think. jgoetz@hdoffrederick.com www.buelloffrederick.com or see our sponsor page here on badweb  | ||
| Itileman |
I'm 5'9"/160# with a bony ass and can flat foot my 09 XT on level ground. Last big ride was 14 hours through the Rockies and I was ready to turn around and do it again. | ||
| Cadhopper |
I'm only 5'6" with a 29" inseam and about 160 lbs. I have a XB9SX with the low seat and I'm on the balls of my feet which is fine with me. According to the Buell website the XB12XT laden height is 30.7" and the XB9SX with the stock seat is 30.1 but I run the low seat which would make it about 29.1"-29.5". I had originally thought the low seat for the XT would bring it down to 29" or a little lower but it looks like I was wrong. At 30.7 I would barely be able to touch my toes with the proper suspension setup. I will be riding dirt and fire roads so being able to plant my feet is important (at least to me) on a bike as heavy as the XT. Ratbuell, I appreciate the offer but at this point that's a bit of a drive for me and getting the time would be hard. If it turns out that I don't feel comfortable on the XT I will probably keep my XB9SX for commuting and around town and buy another pre 08 BMW F650GS for weekend offroad trips. I'm still kicking myself for selling the GS I had. It saw many miles on dirt trails and creek crossings in West Virginia. Thanks for the help. | ||
| Dcc46 |
the height is really more of a non issue than you think 5'8 with a 30 inseam and i was fine on a 06 x and i can get both feet down on the xt. the bike is so ,hmmm how do i put this? it's light and well balanced. and a couple of days with one and you wonder what the big deal was. | ||
| Jimmy_in_nc |
the height is really more of a non issue than you think 5'8 with a 30 inseam and i was fine on a 06 x and i can get both feet down on the xt. the bike is so ,hmmm how do i put this? it's light and well balanced. and a couple of days with one and you wonder what the big deal was. That's well put. Most people look at it and say no way can I ride that. After a few days I couldn't imagine anything else. I also don't know much about GS's.. but if it has a lower first gear, that would be my choice for an off highway bike. My 07 X idles at ~8 mph in low. I can't imagine off highway with it and I grew up riding off road and motor cross. I LOVE my Buell but these are my observations. It would well be worth the ride to test drive one before hand. Just my $ .02 | ||
| Svh |
}Anything X or XT these days comes standard with the low seat. In other words they both have the same seat. That is not the case as there is a low seat that will drop the height about an inch. 3 seats- 06 standard(high), 07+ standard(mid) and low. All 3 seats fit all years. The current seat on the XT and X is the mid seat. Froggy has a great comparison of the seats on here. Do a search to see the differences. | ||
| Cadhopper |
I think this is the thread your talking about and the conclusion was the is no real height difference between the 07 seat and the low seat. http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/142 838/233920.html?1161390464 Hopefully I can find one locally that I can sit on to see how it feels. | ||
| Ratbuell |
Tripod-ing an X or XT is easy. I was riding less than three months after I shattered both my legs last year - I was WEAK, but I didn't have any problem holding up my Uly. Another option is, get some UlyX wheels for your XB (same dimensions, but with the strengthening strip) and just have at those trails | ||
| Svh |
My personal opinion with a low seat on my XT now I can flat foot much easier than before. My low seat is beat on and needs to be replaced or restuffed but I no longer have the original seat to use until then but when I had used someone elses newer low seat it was still lower than the stock XT seat. My 2cents | ||
| Cadhopper |
Ratbuell, The previous owner did the change for me....ain't she cute....  It's funny when people look at it and try to figure out what it is.  I just not sure if the XB9 can handle this. My idea of a bike wash.  A nice ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway on my way to the Dragon.  (Message edited by cadhopper on September 21, 2009) | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Hope to be seeing you soon! | ||
| Ratbuell |
Awesome! Worst thing, you blow some fork seals. Check out / get in touch with cityxslicker here. He's got a "normal" XB that's probably seen more dirt than just about all of the Uly's combined. | ||
| Froggy |
Duh, its a CityX! | ||
| Cadhopper |
The good news is I found someone in Richmond with an XT so hopefully I can park my butt on it this weekend and see how it feels. Buells are rare in this area so I got lucky. The bad news is when I got to work this morning and checked my email I found out that one of our top VP's has been let go and we are going through another reorganization.  In the past three years our staff has been reduced by at least 50%. Hopefully they won't hit the engineering department again because there ain't many of us left so wish me luck. | ||
| Cadhopper |
Well after much debating and a few test rides on each bike I decided to go with the a 2010 BMW F650GS. My main reason was the softer longer travel suspension than the XT with a lower seat height than the Uly. If this thing can take the abuse I fed my old F650GS thumper it should be a good bike and after two lower disk surgeries I think my spine will thank me. I do miss the torque of the V-Twin but I can always hop on the XB9SX if I feel the inner hooligan in me wanting to come out. I wasn't thrilled about the color but it was all they had in stock with the regular suspension and the next bike wasn't due in for another month.  (Message edited by cadhopper on October 10, 2009) |
