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Wolfridgerider
| | Posted on Friday, June 03, 2011 - 07:53 am: | 
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the ecm made all the difference... the 9 primary just puts the bike in the meat of the rpm range if you ask me. |
Asdf
| | Posted on Saturday, June 04, 2011 - 02:35 am: |
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I appreciate that different folks will have different needs, so my thoughts cannot be construed as universal. YMMV.
I switched to the XB-9 gearing as soon as my dealer could get the parts after I bought my bike. The parts were ordered at the time of purchase. In retrospect, I should have insisted that the bike be delivered with the XB-9 gearing. But then, I would not be able to compare the differences.
Mileage: My bike is a toy. RANGE is somewhat important, but a couple of MPG is not important, even with today's fuel prices. If my bike gets such poor mileage that I cannot afford to drive it as a toy, or if RANGE is adversely affected to an unacceptable degree, THEN I will worry about mileage. The likely decrease in mileage was not noticed. Any change in mileage would not show up until I spend extended time cruising at higher speeds in top gear, which I seldom do.
Top speed: It goes fast enough that I would lose my Commercial Drivers License with one ticket. As a bonus, it gets to such an illegal speed about 10% quicker than if equipped with stock XB-12 gearing.
Compression Braking: Nobody ever talks about this. Compression braking is increased by about 10% in any given gear. I suppose hi-performance types will point out that BRAKES are more efficient than engine braking. I am an old geezer. I LIKE engine braking for street riding. The XB-9 gearing results in compression braking that is nearly perfect. YMMV.
Drive-ability at legal speeds, particularly at slow speeds: No comparison. XB-9 gearing beats stock XB-12 hands down, particularly at the slowest speeds, in-town, Stop & Go, parking lots, "unimproved" surfaces and other first gear situations. Slipping the clutch is almost eliminated in nearly all circumstances.
Wheelies: DUH!!!
Have fun! |
Jessemc
| | Posted on Saturday, June 04, 2011 - 05:52 am: |
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Asdf - Compression Braking: Nobody ever talks about this. Compression braking is increased by about 10% in any given gear. I suppose hi-performance types will point out that BRAKES are more efficient than engine braking. I am an old geezer. I LIKE engine braking for street riding. The XB-9 gearing results in compression braking that is nearly perfect. YMMV.
Good to hear that it's nearly perfect - I don't do a lot of offroad and avoid towns and traffic like the plague; engine braking is the only reason the XB9 primary swap is my to-do list. I've also got an '05 sv650, great engine with lots of compression braking, in comparison the XB12 engine has ZERO engine braking in anything above second gear. Much easier to ride the Pace if you can use throttle control to scrub off some speed. |
Itileman
| | Posted on Saturday, June 04, 2011 - 08:12 am: |
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+2 on compression braking. One of the other main reasons I made the change to the XB9 gearing. Couple that with the fact that the stock Uly rear brakes suck. I changed out the stock pads for Galfers and it made a noticeable difference. Between the two mods, it's better for me now.
Andy - a 6th gear and an extra gallon of fuel would make a huge difference to me. Come to Montana, you'd understand. |
Asdf
| | Posted on Saturday, June 04, 2011 - 12:25 pm: |
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A couple of more points:
When I first bought my Ulysses, with stock XB-12 gearing, I found that I seldom used 5th gear. (I'm a geezer with a valuable CDL) When I did use 5th gear, it was only for short periods of time.
After switching to XB-9 gearing, I now use 5th gear on a regular basis. I am now getting full use of all five gears.
Now, on those rare occasions when I am cruising on roads at higher speeds, I occasionally try to find the non-existent "Sixth Gear".
Ideally, the Ulysses would be geared with the XB-9 gearing and also have a sixth gear. Alas, that is not the case. Sometimes, life sucks. Get over it!
Everyone will have to make their own choices based on their driving style, driving environment and personal preferences.
Those who travel two-up and/or with luggage may also find the XB-9 gearing favorable to them, even if they do cruise at higher speeds. Those who travel at elevation, in hilly terrain or mountains will DEFINITELY appreciate XB-9 gearing, especially if loaded and/or 2-up.
Over the years, I have read about the experiences of others who have done this conversion. I am not aware of anyone, to include those who tour at highway speeds, who have complained about decreased mileage. A few have even claimed better mileage.
No bike, car, truck, airplane or boat is perfect for everything. Select them and set them up for what you do the most and/or enjoy the most. Then, live with the shortcomings when doing things that you usually do NOT do.
In other words, choose a system for what you do 90% of the time and do not sweat the other 10% of the time. If you are wealthy enough, you can buy multiple toys to suit different applications. I am not that wealthy. My Ulysses is my "Do-it-All" bike.
As to the concern about increased engine wear: Most of us will not keep our bikes long enough to ever need to rebuild an engine. Even those who do need to rebuild their engines may not (probably will not) notice an appreciable difference in their engine life.
I am reasonably confident that reduced engine life will not me MY problem. It MIGHT be the next owner's problem.
If I was REALLY worried about engine life, I would not drive like I currently drive! I did not buy this toy to see how long it would last by driving it "sensibly" (BTW: I AM a geezer)
Are the XB-9 guys complaining about short engine life?
If you do need to rebuild your engine, it will be an opportunity to install higher compression XB-9 pistons! My engine is FAR from needing a rebuild, but I am already considering "rebuilding" it to get the added performance of XB-9 pistons.
Life is short, eat your dessert first!
Have fun! |
Yjsrule
| | Posted on Saturday, June 04, 2011 - 01:20 pm: |
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Well I ordered the parts. Just waiting for them to get here. You know I was thinking my bike has 33k miles on it now and the tps has never been reset, probably a good thing to do since I have a cable and the program. Might make a difference in the way it runs. I know my TT has 17k on it and I had the valve cover gaskets replaced under warranty at about 11k or so and I could tell it ran better after they had it apart and did the reset.
Luckily I have other bikes or I'd be going crazy waiting for parts. |
Eulysses
| | Posted on Wednesday, June 08, 2011 - 07:14 pm: |
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I have noticed that those of us who switch to a lower overall gearing don't switch back (or at least I am not aware). |
Wolfridgerider
| | Posted on Wednesday, June 08, 2011 - 07:55 pm: |
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another thing about the mileage, for one thing doesn't matter that much.... if you are on a ride with someone that doesn't have a long frame, you will be stopping every 100 miles or so for fuell |
Yjsrule
| | Posted on Wednesday, June 08, 2011 - 10:38 pm: |
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I normally ride alone or with a guy with a 650 v-strom, he can almost skip every other fill up when we go riding. I wish the uly had 300 mile range.
Parts shipped today, I bought a low seat while I was at it, couldn't help myself for less than $100, it'll be nice to be able to get a little more foot on the ground. |
Yjsrule
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 14, 2011 - 09:41 am: |
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Well it's running again finally. New stator fixed it up. 9 primary installed, much nicer at low speed, seems fine at 80. I also got a low seat, I can touch the ground now. |
Andymnelson
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 14, 2011 - 10:09 am: |
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Wolfridgerider
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 14, 2011 - 10:10 am: |
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keep us updated on how you like it... |
Yjsrule
| | Posted on Tuesday, June 14, 2011 - 10:27 am: |
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Time to save money for that Erik Buell Racing ECM.  |
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