| Author | Message | ||
     Gearheaderiko |
Fast, The wheels are too soft to worry about the bearings being too tight, but freezing the bearings could make it even easier. Pulling the bearings into the hub with the axle works much easier and more 'true' than driving them in with a hammer (which could easily damage the soft wheels). (Message edited by GearheadErikO on September 17, 2008) | ||
| Sking1973 |
Reuel, I've got around 13,000 on my blast. I'm going through the same thing it sounds like. I had my bearings changed, rode approx. 300 miles and the darn thing started making all kinds of noise. Not squeaks, but clicking noises from the rear end. My local shop couldn't figure it out, so they put new bearings in AGAIN. That didn't help. Finally, they said I needed a new belt and both sprockets replaced AND it would cost me 330 bucks. Needless to say, I'm scouring the web for the parts and I'm going to try to do it myself. | ||
| Reuel |
That's your belt making noise as it scrapes against that outer plastic. Annoying, but not at all harmful. Every time I change my bearings, that noise changes. You can either ignore it, or try that belt centering trick. | ||
| Sking1973 |
Next question: Why is it that when I first get on the bike and ride it doesn't make the noise? It's not until I've ridden a little bit (maybe 15 minutes) that it starts (and this is morning riding). Time for the belt to heat up and stretch a little? Yes, it is very annoying, especially when you pull up to a stoplight and everyone turns to see what all the racket is! | ||
| Swampy |
Check for wheel bearing loosness in the hub, as some times that clicking noise will occur | ||
| Sking1973 |
Thanks for all the advice to everyone. Once I get settled into my new house, I will tear into this thing and see if I can fix the problem. | ||
| Robi |
JB Weld broke loose. It's not as much play as originally because the JB Weld is still sort of filling. But I did a wheel wiggle check, and there is wiggle. A bit of JB Weld "flaked" off from around the bearing/hub. Should I just ride it until I can afford a new wheel? Or can I JB Weld it up again for another couple months of temporary fix? | ||
| Swampy |
JB Weld it again, it has worked multiple times for me, just scuff it up and clean it well. Don't be suprised if you find the seal still JB Welded inside the hub, fill the bearing with grease and re-J B Weld it in place! One of these days I might get another wheel. Hopefully a wrecked one will come through the Big Kids Shop. | ||
| Robi |
I'm glad this is the answer. What should I use to clean it? A chemical? Or just scuff then wet rag, then dry? | ||
| Robi |
(bump) When you say clean it, am I using break cleaner again? When you say scuff, I'm assuming sand paper or steel wool. | ||
| Reuel |
Rough sandpaper, then whatever you normally use to clean your wheel. If you use any solvents, a final cleaning with soap and water might be a good idea. | ||
| Swampy |
Sorry Robi, I was away from civilization for the last two days. Sand paper, then some brake clean. | ||
| Robi |
No apologies required. Thought I was going to be able to do it this weekend, but didn't get the neighbor's rear wheel stand, so I'll probably do it next weekend. I'm guessing I can ride another week on it, unless you think that's a bad idea. I know it's not optimum, but with school/work, weekends are best. | ||
| Robi |
Here's what I've done. Bearing came right out, no problems with the seal getting stuck in there. Cleaned out the flaking portions of of JB Weld in the hub and break cleaned rest, sanded, then break cleaned. I roughed up the outer race of the bearing also, thinking this might help it hold tight. Remembered the spacer this time, but it was close. Right now it's just resting. Plan to put it back on tomorrow evening. By then it will have set for over 36 hours. | ||
| Baggermike |
Hey Guy's are Buells noted to have wheel bearing problems? with in less than two weeks all three of my buells wheel bearings went and all three where the same wheel same side one the ulysses 3 miles from home then the Blast and then the 1125R with only 4500, thinking about it thought it was because of the drive side but the 1125R has the drive on the other side and only had 4500 miles on it and same highway as the ulysses with only 8700 miles on it, and the 1125R went just a few miles further away than the ulysses did on the highway cruising, maybe its got something to do with living next to Salem Mass? anyway not why I am here, does anyone know if the 2002 blast is a wasted spark system or fires once per every rotation? this guy makes a mini tach but will not work if the bike only fires on the power stroke. after the trouble the bikes gave us my son bought me a harley and traded in the ulysses and 1125R, I took the blast the other night to go shopping and it was a blast, more fun than riding the Harley, I am now thinking of going back to buell or maybe customizing the blast would be good for short rides but riding the harley with forward controls hurts my tail bone so can not tour on this bike and the blast is the most uncomfortable bike to ride to, so I have to find or make a bike that is comfortable to ride far and the blast is not a bike I can ride far. Mike | ||
| Fast1075 |
After reading many posts on here, there seems to be a concensus that there are some bearing problems...here is my take on the issue...I had the drive side rear bearing go funky at 4K miles...being a single, the Blast engine hammers the drivetrain a bit, possibly contributing to the issue...but my failed bearing died from lack of lubrication or so it appears..most bikes I have dealt with have the rear wheel/axle designed with seals to keep the dirt and water away from the bearing...not so on a Blast. A harley tech I know says he thinks that washing the bike gets water into the bearing...which is fully exposed on the outer side...also the bearing size is considerably smaller than one would expect...in any case, they are very easy to change out, and I will just consider it a regular maintenance item in the future. As for the comfort issue...I changed the bars, built rearsets and added a Corbin seat...which is considerably more comfortable than the stocker...hopefully it will break in a bit softer than it is now (new).. We will have a club ride this weekend which usually is between 150 and 200 miles...we will see then how the seat works out...the stock seats (both kinds) gave me severe monkey-butt after about 20 miles. | ||
| Baggermike |
Fast1098 you might be right I rode the 1125R through the winter and wash it at the car wash but did not get close to the bearing but still water could have been the problem being high pressure even if I did not hit it directly I did wash the wheels especially it was on the right side of the bike not the drive side like the ulysses and blast the 1125R has the drive side on the left, what is strange is all went on the three bikes, my son and I share the blast, he had the ulysses and I had the 1125R I had to get the 1125r picked up from a dealership and on the way home on the highway about three miles from home I started hearing bad noises and it was the drive side wheel bearing so the dealership had to pick it up then recieved a call about it taking a while to fix, this happen last october and did not get it back till December so my son said he did not want the bike because of all the problems it had and drove him to the dealership so he could look at bikes, then on the way home about six or seven miles from home I started feeling vibrations, same highway the ulysses broke on and just a few miles more from home so I had had it with my bike and he had had it with his bike so he bought himself and me Harleys and I am not happy with it and just want a buell that gives me no trouble and can power my heated gear which the Harley does quite well, but now I do not have the corner taking abilities along with braking, now I have a question can the blast hopped up with head work, big bore kit, cams, and ignition module, with other parts will it give me what I want, the bike is in poor shape but runs, I did have fun on it the other night. I think maybe there is a company that makes superior bearings and replacing the stock ones with heavy duty ones might be the answer so if I find a company that sells them I will post it. I liked the ulysses but the oil pump broke and the newer ones have the new type oil pump so I am thinking of buying a XBSs, will have to look through the forums to see what others are saying about the new bikes. Mike | ||
| Ezblast |
Except for mapping issues - now reported to be a thing of the past - 08 and above XB's should be bullet proof - I think Erik addressed every issue he could think of - probably part of the deal to get the 1125 motor going - maybe a bigger oil cooler - but that would be for very hot climates only - maybe a SE product for Racing only type of thing - lol - heck they finally fixed the XBR's light problem as well making them a very nice ride - A Blast - with some good aftermarket pieces, and a few inexpensive custom pieces can be recreated into being very fun bikes - super bike - naw, however, the bike is aptly named - and even if you went full on with everything but the cam - keeping that in the 550 range - stage 3 - netting between 40 and 44 hp, 38 ft lbs, do up the suspension a bit and the bike really comes into its own as a fun machine - eat up some goat trails! EZ | ||
| Reuel |
ONE spark per ignition cycle. No extra sparks. Have my own design for a digital tach, but I haven't had time to put it together yet. I just have to sit down and do it. Should take 3 days (not continuous--most of that is waiting for coating to cure and such) from start to finish. | ||
| Baggermike |
Hi Ezblast I like the XBSs allot all black with a little over 5.5" travel front and rear, on my ulysses I had a D&D and gave more ground clearance than the other pipes so if I was to get the XBSs the D&D with the right map should give me everything I could ask for, I also liked the 1125R and have a bunch of parts left over so getting the new 1125R all black would be another choice, I really want to buy American even though allot of the parts are not American on the bikes. I have no need for over 100 mph speeds and want to keep my license, I love the belt drive and no maintanance, I have always hated chains needing to be oiled and then it gets all over the place and needs constant adjustments. Any way still looking and looked at some jap bikes over the weekend and did not like them, they felt cheap and more of a race bike feeling and I am more of a supermoto rider and want to jump curbs in boston. The blast is something I bought to teach my son to ride, I have a new Piston, S E cams, the ones for the blast and will send the head out with the piston to get fitted for the new cylinder, I can get the big bore cylinder for 150 and the piston is new so they will fit it to the big bore cylinder for me, I got new voltage regulator, and coil that I picked up cheap, got a few carbs lying around, so all I need is the ingnition module and some custom pieces, along with some advice on how to get the bike to handle and lean way over, the rear sets are one of the problems to find or make and a good seat would be nice because the seats suck and tried both the standard and low and they are torture. I have always liked singles so I hope my son does not wipe it out this winter, I got universal tires and studs from aerostich they are self tapping and come with the tool so will be getting it ready for the winter and then when spring hit a total tear down powder coating and rebuilding. Does anyone know if a triple clamps off of one of the other Buells fit the blast, I have forks and the stock triple clamps looks like the weak link being so small. Anyway I know I am keeping the blast, my Harley I am not sure, I do not like it and got a seat pad to see if it makes a difference but I am not the bad ass Harley guy or a RUB just someone who's life is motorcycles. Mike | ||
| Ezblast |
The beauty of the new XBs - no remapping once the factory one is correct - it learns and adjusts within certain parameters - in extreme circumstances - like a Ti-Force or other extreme mod - you may need larger injectors and then need custom mapping - but just swapping out a can or opening the intake a bit or even both should not seriously challenge their new system - and I hear they finally got that below 30 glitch worked out as well. The Blast is a perfect errand bike, back up, local commuting type bike - with slight mods it can do wonders more. The perfect bike to experiment on - though you'll reach a point when you say - should I and then you usually fall into the Dark side! - lol EZ | ||
| Tortoise |
The seal has come off my rear wheel bearing assembly. I don't know how long it has been like this as I just noticed it today. After reading some of the posts here it seems like this problem is common. What is the cause of this? I've never heard of sealed bearings coming apart after only 10,000 miles until I started reading here (except maybe on a bicycle). Is this common on XB's as well? | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Some factors that can contribute to this. If the bike sits they dry out. Pressure washers are very hard on bearings. Low mileage bikes sitting for years hardly being ridden. Improper wheel replacement. These things make it more common and unfortunately it is. Epidemic? no. I dont think the 'big bikes' have this problem (they'd better not!), but you could check on the XB side for an answer. | ||
| Froggy |
My 03 Blast ate the belt side rear bearing today on my way to work, 9250ish miles. Fun  | ||
| Buellistic |
On the BLAST MODELS it is very important to TORQUE the axle's to proper torque specifications, IF YOU DO NOT YOU WILL GET WHEEL BEARING FAILURES !!! Being a single it is hard on the drive belt side wheel bearing being there is only one !!! You can re-pack sealed wheel bearings ... It is better to have grease weeping past the dust cover seal than not to have enough grease in the bearing ... All that seal does is keep what ever grease is in the bearing in and road grit out ... | ||
| Froggy |
Thats interesting to know, I had bearings fail on my XB due to being over torqued. I bought my 03 Blast last summer with 1500 miles on it, and last month had the original Dunflop tires swapped out at just under 8000 miles at a dealer. The bike is used roughly 4 or 5 days a week here in upstate NY, even in the winter, I ride it through snow, do some light off roading, and once in a while hang with others on 1125's just to show them that HP isn't everything. She lives outside and is exposed to all the elements including harsh storms. | ||
| Swampy |
I'm calling you on the stock Dunlops going 8,000 miles, You Sir are a LIAR! JK....Whatever! | ||
| Froggy |
I get 15k miles out of the Scorpion Syncs on a XB, 7000 miles on a Corsa III on my 1125CR. Getting twice the average tire life is normal, 8K on a scooter tire is cake walk for me  | ||
| Swampy |
Well, don't just sit there and smirk, tell us how you do it.... | ||
| Froggy |
Might have something to do with getting the 85mpg on the Blast, 75 on the XB and 54 on the 1125. I am light, aerodynamic, and hypermile http://ecomodder.com/forum/EM-hypermiling-driving- tips-ecodriving.php |
