| Author | Message | ||
     Twintalon |
Hey everyone. I've recently acquired a '98 S1 with a Bunch of tasty goodies on it, and I've gotta say.... I'm not sure I've EVER loved a bike quite as much as I do this carbureted old beast. My interest in Buells started in 2004 when I visited Stone Mountain Harley on my '98 Suzuki GS500, and first saw the '04 XB12S. From this moment, it wasn't long until Buells turned into a mild Obsession. At This point, it's a Full-Blown obsession. My ideal garage would be filled almost exclusively with Buells, and a small truckload of Buell parts. An 1125, a few XB's, a Tuber or two, and some kinda small, nimble (probably KTM) dual-sport/supermoto, and that'd do it for me. But the air-cooled Buells are what calls to me. Half of my friends think I'm nuts, but I just tell them "If you don't like them, then don't buy one. For MY money, there's nothing better." So I just got this '98 S1. I knew I'd like it, but I had NO idea I'd love it like I do. It's easily the most uncomfortable bike I've ever ridden, and I've spent time on a 748 with lowered clip-ons and a Supermoto, so that's saying something. When I get done modding it to ME, I'm sure it'll be fine, but I honestly wonder how they let the bike leave the factory with a seat This bad. Granted, the seat is 16 years old at this point, but still.(I'm a rambler. bear with me) All of this is to say: I now understand what you tuber guys have been so passionate about, and I couldn't be more proud of my new S1. Compared to the rush of cranking on the throttle of my XB12XT, there's just no comparison to the S1. The sound, the feel, the bark, the bite.... It's just outta this world. I've never ridden something that feels So visceral, So vicious, so ALIVE. I'm always telling my non-riding family that a motorcycle is More than just a bike, it's an Experience all unto itself. I've treasured Every XB I've had the pleasure of owning, I've regretted selling Both the 9R and the XT, and I look forward to owning many more XB's in the future because they're just So damn excellent; but for the Rush, for the Feeling it gives you, for the drama, the adventure, the bond you form with the beast, and the all-consuming Monster that she becomes when you loosen the leash.... I don't think there's Anything on two wheels that comes close to a Tuber. I've only been riding for 10 years, so I've got plenty more motorcycling experiences yet to have, but I can't imagine anything eclipsing the overall Experience of riding a tube-frame Buell. From what I've read here on BadWeb, with the mods she's got, I'm assuming she's right around 105bhp/95tq at the ground. NRHS 1250 kit, 42mm flatslide, American Sport Bike Intake (soon-to-be a Forcewinder), Accel ignition coil, breather re-route, Banke Shifter, Banke Frame Brace, American Sport Bike aluminum oil tank, and a few other mods I can see (and probably some I can't). I wanna learn everything I can about Tubers, and I'll be relying on ya'll heavily to fill in my knowledge gaps, so bear with me if I ask dumb questions. I wanna treat her right and take good care of her, as I expect Many years of hard-ridden but well-maintained faithful service. She's got just over 24K on the clock, and I'm looking forward to seeing 125K more added on. When she hits those higher-mileage marks, I want to be able to crank on that throttle and rev her out knowing she's gonna Continue to do what she does best: Thrill me, Surprise me, and Scare me just a little. I also want to know that with 110K on the clock, I can head up to the mountains for a long day in the saddle wihout fear of having to wrangle up a truck to get us home. To that end: American Sport Bike says the newer Goodyear Hybrex belt is a direct bolt-on to my S1. Experiences? Thoughts? Is the standard Sportster belt a replacement? I wanna know what parts are gonna get hard to find as the years go by. Anyway, I'm glad to be joining the Tuber family, and look forward to gaining Some understanding of the Beast that sleeps in my garage. | ||
| Woodnbow |
Pictures or it didn't happen!!  | ||
| Purpony |
congrats and welcome!! | ||
| Hootowl |
You can use an 04+ XB belt on the tuber. Same number of teeth, pitch, and length, but it's a newer design, and more durable. Also, if American Sport Bike says it fits your bike...it fits your bike. They really know their stuff. If I need a part, and they have it, I'll get it from them every time. Welcome to the addiction. 3 and counting. | ||
| Kc_zombie |
Congratulations on your new baby! PM me if you need a service and parts manual, N/C. | ||
| Jolly |
ha...he said mild obsession and tuber in the same sentence...  4 tubers and counting...welcome to the madness! I agree these are fantastic bikes, my other passion is certain Moto Guzzis! so I've got two bad problems to deal with....do Triumphs count as a problem? I might have more instability in my garage than I can afford... but I have to agree, for the hooligan rip snortin fun level, nothing beats an S1!! with your XB experience you clearly have a back ground in Buells...with your S1...welcome to the "dark side"(?) | ||
| Jefc73 |
Lol. Another sick individual! Welcome to the sickness. The tuber sickness. Iam on borrowed time to add an S2 to my S1W. LMFAO! | ||
| Lynrd |
By the way.... That's not a seat. It's a suppository  | ||
| Rick_a |
I feel my S1 with its solo seat, rearsets and clip ons is the most perfect riding position...for riding one tank at a time. I have rode dozens of other bikes, and while some come close, nothing else has the character and sheer fun factor of my S1. Many bikes out class it in various ways, but nothing can replace it as my ultimate street bike. Without getting too into it, preventative maintenance is key to a long tuber life. Listen to it closely. I've caught near catastrophic failures through things that didn't sound right. These engines do not like being rung out. Running near the rev limiter often will severely shorten your engine life. Mine has been rode hard for twelve years and it still gives me the same stupid grin from day one. | ||
| Wesbuell |
These things have seats?????? | ||
| K12pilot |
It's really a 2x6 with vinyl a cover. Welcome to the MADNESS. PICTURES.... | ||
| Rick_a |
Coming from lots of miles on bicycles...they don't feel bad. From any other perspective they may be the "torture rack" many describe. | ||
| Twintalon |
Let me get the pictures from camera and phone to computer. And I'd like to thank ya'll for NOT saying "Yeah, the 1250 is cool, but you ain't seen Nothin till you do the 88 swap." I'm already worried ENOUGH about getting to know the local fuzz better because of this bike.... | ||
| Coxster |
I haven't discovered the XBs yet. I saw the RS1200 in a biker mag back in '91 and hoped/waited 20 years for my M2. I can't imagine needing any other bike. A coworker once said " but it doesn't sound like a Harley " so I said "Thank you" ; ) Enjoy your tuber! | ||
| Rick_a |
I've done some miles on XB's. The 1200's are especially great. Very refined and ride like the wheels are attached to slabs of billet. They wheelie and stoppie like nothing else. Very refined in all respects, contrary to what they say in the moto press (lots of that tractor engine talk). Not enough character for me, and I actually prefer the communicative nature of the tuber chassis. Rumor had it that one well developed race team was going faster on their old tuber Buell, but switched to XB's for the contingency money...though I'm sure that with enough time and money thrown at it anything can be made fast. XB's work better at the extremes of handling, tubers work better everywhere else, IMHO. | ||
| Buelljunkie |
Twintalon - Congratulations and welcome! Everybody here knows how you feel...  Hey I sent you a PM.. | ||
| Littlebuggles |
Visceral - That's what my profile says, toobers are great bikes. I second what Rick stated, "Coming from lots of miles on bicycles...they don't feel bad." So if you are having trouble with your S1's seat, spend some time on a bicycle and you'll find your Buell's seat becomes a lot more comfortable - for several reasons. -Mike | ||
| Rick_a |
Someone here gave me a great tip to make longer trips more tolerable that was so simple I don't know how it escaped me...using padded cycling shorts under the usual pants/riding gear. | ||
| Twintalon |
Always busy. Let me see if I can do this from my phone.    | ||
| Twintalon |
Wow, it worked. Well, there she is. I've got plans for this one. The intake takes a big chunk out of my enjoyment because of knee clearance, and the seat is Wretched. I ride ALOT, and a seat that has you shifting around to find comfort after 30 minutes is ridiculous. I'm also gonna go with the solo tail and a Corbin, so if anyone has a spare solo setup, let me know. If anyone is after a twintail, let me know. I'm not Actively trying to sell it right this minute, but having Just gotten off the bike, it won't break my heart to get rid of it. | ||
| Twintalon |
I think I want her to end up pretty close to this:  I don't know who's this is, but I got the pic off this forum, so I hope the owner will take it as a compliment that I'm Drooling over their bike. I'm gonna leave the XB9SX upright and mostly stock, and I'm thinkin the S1 is gonna be leaned over and more aggressive. In the 150 miles I've ridden her so far, the S1 feels like it needs more weight on the front tire, and I think a more aggressive position would suit her and me alot better. I've read that the XB crossroads bars will bolt right on to a tuber. Any suggestions on 0-degree vs 7-degree? I'm 5'8", about 185, short and stout, with short arms. I never thought twice about hopping on the Firebolt for a Long day in the saddle, so I'm not super-worried about comfort, but the crossroads look like a good compromise versus Actual clip-ons. Plus, I don't wanna move the headlight brackets to accommodate Actual clip-ons on the fork tubes. Or, what about putting drag bars in the stock clamps? Any experience with that? I have the smaller tank, so clearance isn't an issue at all. As far as rearsets: preliminary research looks grim, it doesn't look like they're available new anymore, so I'd have to wait for some to pop up here or on ebay. I like a tight peg-to-seat stretch, and I'm reading that rearsets are the way to go if you lower the bars. Any thoughts/experience is much appreciated. | ||
| Twintalon |
Oh, and why does mine have a different swingarm than most S1's? Did someone add this one, or did a handful of them Come with it? | ||
| Impala |
You have the updated swingarm due to a recall. Lots of info on it here but the updated one is fine. | ||
| S1owner |
Twin thats my bike and i have no issues with you doing anything you like feel free to ask anything you would like | ||
| Lynrd |
That one is a later swingarm, but not the recall swingarm. It's just a 99-02 alloy arm. Slightly heavier, slightly stiffer than the original arm or the recall steel arm. | ||
| Littlebuggles |
I found trimming the seat foam to flatten it out a bit helped with comfort a lot. I ride with Crossroads seven degree bars and Banke foot peg relocators, the raise the pegs up an inch and a half and back about half an inch. It's pretty comfortable for canyon strafing and track time as well. Pegs have only touched in one specific curve I ride in a local canyon where I don't hang off at all really (helps me keep my pace more moderate). On the track I move around on the bike a lot and never touched a peg, though imagine I would with a bit more experience. I'm happy to post pics, but won't do so uninvited. There was a Buell Pro series or race series rearset kit for the S1's, so keep your eyes open for that. | ||
| Littlebuggles |
Your bike looks beautiful as-is though, and it's got good upgrades for a tighter, controlled ride with the updated swing arm and the Banke frame brace. I'd stick with suspension as the only upgrades from where she is now, and I agree on the intake, I found the Forcewinder a lot easier on my knee when I went from the Buell race part to the Forcewinder. | ||
| Hootowl |
Has anyone ever tried to rotate the ham can air cleaner for knee clearance like Buell did on the S2? | ||
| Jayvee |
I hope you keep the burgandy color though. It looks like it has ceramic coated header already. If so, it would be a shame to wrap it with whatever it is one wraps a header pipe with, not to mention it wouldn't give any advantage over ceramic. Looks like it just needs a fender... | ||
| S1owner |
I agree the red is nice and I ussually hate red! The header wrap on my bike pictured was because that header was a cracked up pos it has a new stainless header now |
