| Author | Message | ||
     Roysbuell |
I have an 09 SCG and was out enjoying a spirited ride this past weekend. At what point should the bike start feeling jittery? | ||
| Froggy |
Depends on many factors including your suspension settings and road conditions, but you should be able to pull 130 fine, after that its the wind that gets you. | ||
| 4cammer |
Hmmm.....interesting question. I have a XB9R and I have yet to top her out (nothing I really want or should do on public streets) but I have done over the ton and she never, ever gets jittery. | ||
| Iamarchangel |
Define jittery. | ||
| Roysbuell |
Suspension is set to my weight 170lbs. Road was smooth. It was pretty windy (which I think is what caused it). Just over 100 the front started to feel a little wiggly. | ||
| Froggy |
Sounds like combination of the wind pushing against you and a death grip on the bars. Loosen up a bit, tuck in, and giver all shes got!  | ||
| Roysbuell |
Froggy, when you mentioned death grip it might have been just that. Front tire felt like it wanted to track back and forth a little so I put more pressure on the bars. Took it up a bit and thats when she started to wiggle a little. | ||
| Kustomklassix |
130 on my '03 XB9 with a blown fork seal and the suspension way out of whack for my weight is no problem, rock solid almost. The wind though does play a HUGE part on our nekkid bikes  | ||
| Iamarchangel |
Relax your grip and trust Newton's laws. Also, find a sort of rough road. Take the tools and a copy of set-up from the manual. Do a couple of runs until you get the set up you like. Mine ended up being softer than recommended. | ||
| Deanbush |
I have been up to 130 on speedo on my XB12ss and around 100 on some long sweeping turns on my testing routes and I have never had any head shaking at all and I do not have a steering damper. Maybe the longer wheelbase of the XB12ss, could also be caused by the upright handle bars. I have clipons welded onto the top triple clamp,super quick responce,solid feel,minimal vibrations and the steering is not hard nor to easy. | ||
| Srwitt |
My bike rides like a caddilac all the way till it quits pulling any more. 145 indicated on a 08 12R. | ||
| Fast1075 |
Nothing but rock solid with my 12s so far..but I have only gone maybe 125 so far. But she tracks real well in long sweepers at 100+... | ||
| Greg_e |
Just for a point of comparison... My old 1990 Katana 600 never really felt good until it hit 90 up to the max. Can't wait to get my 9R out on the road  (hopefully this week). | ||
| Nextcorner |
I've had my 2003 XB9R maxed on country roads and on track. About 134-136 mph. No "jitters" felt. Make sure you have proper air pressure at all times. Nothing worse than having your front tire cup. | ||
| Brumbear |
relax tour grip and for Petes sake don't open tour mouth your ass will start to whistle | ||
| Fahren |
"and for Petes sake don't open tour mouth your ass will start to whistle" But at least the deer will be scared away! | ||
| Nillaice |
+1 to everything above... good stuff but also: you could try dropping your shock pre-load a notch or two. or re-balance your tires. | ||
| Jraice |
Never had any trouble on my bike. One day I topped it out several times on a nice smooth road, Highway 25 for those of you that know it. I have had buddies who wouldnt go over 70mph on most backroads do 150+ (BMW's equivelent of a 'Busa) on this road, its just that safe feeling. Also done mid 120's on some much bumpier roads. Also been to the track at similar speeds. Never had any problems with stability, even with bumps, cresting hills etc... Did occasionally get a minor wobble when shifting into 5th at redline, but I was goofing around, shifting pretty quickly (power shifting) and it wasn't an oh shit moment, even at triple digit speeds. It was more of a slight twitch, made me feel like John McGuiness riding the Isle of Man (those guys get a lot of head shake). Its an XB12Ss though, longer wheelbase. | ||
| Xbmacon |
I had 3 factors building my wiggle. 1. death grip. 2. wind 3. jacket too big. (moved me around quite a bit) Jacket was easily fixed, wind isnt, Death grip is letting the bike do its job and enjoying the ride (that was probably the hardest to overcome for me). | ||
| Mnbueller |
What were you wearing. It could have been your gear. You need a nice form fitting jacket to go that fast. A loose sleeve at 70 mph can get jittery if the cross wind is right. Sorry if this was covered already, but i'm being lazy and didn't feel like reading all the responses. | ||
| Roysbuell |
Heading out to Vegas tomorrow will go through the checklist when I get back and go riding. Thanks for the help, I think my death grip was a major contributing factor. I will try and trust the bike and loosen up next time. | ||
| Barker |
XB9R, 5th gear, redline @ Nashville Super speedway on the high back Indy front stretch. Somewhere in the neighborhood of 140 mph. Passsed an XB12 with a race kit. Solid as a rock. Just like highway speeds, only difference is the landscape seemed blurrier. (Message edited by barker on October 20, 2009) | ||
| Jraice |
Barker, you had the race kit or the 12? Did you pass truly on straight line power or did you exit the last corner harder? Thats impressive, my bike did 139 indicated (stock XB12Ss) but that was with leaking intake valve seals, aka, low compression. Need to get back out and do another run, probably will after I get the RSS, fresh oil and catch can. Then again after a dyno tune. | ||
| Jraice |
Oh and RoysBuell, loosening up will help a lot. When I know I am going to be going way fast I scoot back in the seat to get better airflow, drop my helmet down to the front of the airbox and relax my hands like crazy. I could literally just place my pointer fingers on the bar, thats how light I stay. As I said, I get a little headshake sometimes shifting into 5th but its never scary, its fun . | ||
| Luisemilio25r |
So what you guys are saying is that you could let the grips loose at 100mph+ and nothing bad will happen? | ||
| Jraice |
Exactly! Its nice to lightly hold them obviously incase you hit something, but what happens is you hit a bump, the wheel moves, the bike self adjusts at the same time you adjust which makes you over adjust. This repeats over and over, and grows into a head shake or a full blown tank slapper. | ||
| Iamarchangel |
Yes. Trust Newton. Samurai principle: a stiff hand is a dead hand. Learn to ride open hand, and wiggling your fingers. Your wrist will appreciate it.. | ||
| Brumbear |
absolutely don't sit up suddenly or newtons other law might kick in the head at 139 mph and for Petes sake do not open your mouth see above | ||
| Greg_e |
If you think about what you really need to do to turn the bike, you do not even need to wrap your fingers around the grips. As long as you can push on the bar, it will steer. Normally I have one or two fingers resting on the levers while I ride, never know when something will jump out in front of you and you need the brake. | ||
| Fast1075 |
In 1972 I saw a rider at Daytona sit up too soon at the end of the back straight...lets say he did a little gliding before he moved on to a little sliding....the bike didn't fall down until it was part of the way around the turn...that was at maybe 175 or so..dude walked away on his own. | ||
| Brumbear |
I cover the front brake too but this year during a rather spirited afternoon I was in a rather nasty right hander and hit a small pot hole just after setting in before I hit the wick and I involintarily snatched a bit of the old ZTL and very quickly I was reciting the buell prayer OHSHIT OHSHIT OHSHIT Thank you GOD for Erik Buell and his fine machine so I don't like to cover the brake to much you see |
