| Author | Message | ||
     Ds_tiger |
Ref the thread EXCELLENT Lightning Review! So I have been riding- like a lot of you for a long time. I also like some of you have raced competitively for some time I like a few of you have finished on the podium at a National lever road race- hell I beat Josh Hays for the podium at a WERA National in September 1998. Where am I going here? Good question... The post referenced talks about a "moto journalist's" feeling opinions about riding the XBs and his comments on using the suspension set up recommended in the manual POSH- ptthhhhhhh I thought - I am a RACER by goodness- and quite honestly MOTO Journalists (with few exception) do little to impress me with their commentary. Well- this hit it right...until today I set up my XB12Ss according to the general rules of chassis set up (1" static sag rear, 1 1/4 " sag front and went up and down on the compression and rebound settings to try and find the right settings - you know stable corner entry, on and off the gas, no high speed oscillations, etc. Well- this bike (unlike any other) defies conventional wisdom. When I read the settings in my Buell manual- I thought NO WAY - the spring settings are way too soft (relative the amount of possible adjustments) as well as the damping settings being off SO I have been muscling my bike in ways I never did with any other to compensate for the ride that I set it up for Well, Today I set the bike up (on the recommendation of Mr. Cyber Journalist) HOLY Mackerel! He is right. The bike rides like..well- unbelievably- compliant responsive, eager to hold a line, less prone to stand up on the brakes, no choppiness over rough pavement- wow- I guess I have learned a few things here as counter intuitive the settings might seem- some one at Buell has done their homework- Try them and let us know what YOU think... Steve | ||
| Luckydevil |
I went through the same thing. so the journalist gets a bike. stops by the magazine garage and adjusts the suspension. Then sets everything by the traditional sportbike methods trying to get a neutral setting so they can compare to other bikes. This wont give you the best settings for an XB by a LONG shot, but they are trying to be "fair" and make all of the test rides the same. Then they complain that the Buell wants to "fall into corners",or "needs to be fed constant input on the bars", or "stands up on the brakes in corners". these are exactly the symptoms i had when i tried to set mine up without reading the manual. (then i read the manual) motorcycle journalists don't ususally read the manual. Heck they probably don't even get one to read. Well, it ends in so-so reviews, but we know better. | ||
| Pwnzor |
I have trouble understanding why anyone wouldn't at least start with the settings recommended by the manufacturer of the bike. Especially a bike as "different in every sense" as a Buell. $0.02 | ||
| Elff |
Yea Noooo Crap I learned that lesson Looooooon Ago. Being Small. 140lbs, it's almost a safety requirement for me to get the suspension settings for a bike before I drive it home for the first time. Most shops set the bike up for a rider of 180lbs. So I learned long ago that the owners manual is your friend and the people who created your bike do in fact know alot about it | ||
| Thespive |
Elff you are back - what happened? --Sean | ||
| Elff |
I didnt realize I ever left  |
