| Author | Message | ||
     Jraice |
http://onewheeldrive.net/index.php?option=com_cont ent&task=view&id=135&Itemid=125&limit=1&limitstart =0 I have heard people talk about it but this is the first review. On one of the first few pages they say it actually takes considerable bar effort to get the bike to turn... Thats the opposite of what I am looking for, I want effortless handling. Maybe the speeds they are talking about are higher then the average twisty but... Is the buell truly as effortless to turn as people say or is the short wheelbase and low CG not really any different then the less radical geometry of most bikes...? | ||
| Paul_in_japan |
Firstly- I find that due to the bikes wheelbase the bike is overly sensitive to small adjustments in the suspension. That said, it takes considerably more effort (time) to set the bike up to handle the way you like it. Literally an eighth of a turn on any of the dials will change the way the bike handles. Once set up right, it handles supurbly and is an absolute joy to ride. I feel like i could literally steer it hands free in the twisties just by leaning. The opposite side is when its not set up correctly and you have to fight the bike a little to get it to do what you want. I find this a little bit when the seasons change (hardening or softening my suspension) or when my tires are old and their profile and grip level have changed. Knowing my suspension well, from doing lots of testing i am usually able to make a quick adjustment and get it back on track. So all this said- I dont take the words of any reviewer too seriously , when he says it doesnt handle to well. It took me a month of small changes and note taking to get the bike the way I like it. Now its dreamy. On a side note, the way Buell hypes their bikes up, you expect them to out perform other sport bikes by 200%. If all of Buells technology and innovation amount to anything better than the competition, it is marginal. Its like comparing a $9 dollar beer and a $10 beer, they are both pretty good. I find that my mates Ninja, handles and breaks well too. | ||
| Ebuella_virus |
I did not read the whole article but when I first bought my '05 Firebolt, she was a dog in the turns. It took me everything of my 150lbs. to get her through the twisties. I was tired after only 30 miles of turns. Then, I checked out the settings on it, and they were all out of whack. The previous owner did not even set it up for himself correctly and they were all out of factory setting. I then adjusted it for my weight and then fine tuned it for my riding style. Man, what a huge difference! As a matter of fact, there were a few times that I tuned it to where it was too effortless and I lost some feel and predictability in the twisties. Now, she's just about right for the mountains and I stiffen her up just a little bit for the track. Getting a knee down is not a problem as the article seems to suggest. It is probable that those that wrote the article did not have it set up correctly for their weight or riding style. There is one caveat when it comes to the settings on these bikes is that they are VERY sensitive. Just a quarter turn here and there are what a full turn or even a bit more was on my Ninja. BTW, the speeds at which I am riding into these turns is 2x's + 10 the posted recommended speeds. So, it is a relatively fast clip although I've had some of my psycho riding buddies ride in on their Buells a bit faster. Good Luck | ||
| Jraice |
Thanks... I dont see myself tinkering with the adjustments to much but if they are as noticable as you say maybe I will... I just need to learn what effects different adjustments have first. And yeah I am coming from an R6, handles exceptionally well of course I just want something with a bit more leverage (bars) that snaps into corners a little better. The R6 loves sweepers and faster corners but get into the really tight sub 30mph stuff and I think a bike with bars would be more fun... Not to mention the R6's engine is completly wrong for my riding style. I have also heard the buells (as you seemed to hint at) turn more from leaning then bar input... | ||
| Jraice |
Oh and my riding style is also not dragging knee, I just like to carve through the twisties at a moderate enjoyable but totally controlled pace, not cruising but not racing... | ||
| Diablobrian |
It sounds like you are on the right track. The Lightning series (ss,sx,s,or scg) should be exactly what you are looking for. The R6, like all of the other 600 class hyper-sport bikes, is a very capable machine, but it is not well suited to the kind of riding most people do day to day. It isn't in it's "happy place" until you have it wound tight and in the top 2k rpms. It will, of course, run at lower rpms but it's obvious from the seat that it was not meant to put around on city streets. there are lots of primers on suspension settings, in fact there is one in the owner's manual just below the setting charts with notes on where to find the adjusters for both compression and rebound damping on both ends. The owners manuals are available on Buell.com, and I can email you some of the better suspension set-up articles I've found. | ||
| Sifo |
That article seemed like the author had an ax to grind with Buell for some reason. What he describes doesn't match my experience at all. Of course I rode mine home from the dealer and adjusted the suspension that day according the the owners manual. I rode a Triumph Datona 675 and found that it took much more input to get it to turn than my Ss, and the Ss is supposed to be less "twitchy" than it's shorter brethren! There have been plenty of reviews of Buells over the years where they are compared to other brands. They almost always come to the same conclusion... The Buell can't perform as well as the competition under the stop watch, but daily riding on the street they love the Buells. They just force the corners of your mouth to stretch back toward your ears.  | ||
| Jraice |
Very good information that the Ss even was more flickable then a Daytona (close to the 600's), which I have always heard is one of the most fantastic handling sport bikes on the market! I think a big part of that is the handlebars, it gives you a more direct angle to push with, you can get the same angle with clip ons but only if you are way down low in a racer's position. Sitting as upright as you can its almost like your pushing mostly down and not forward on the bars. | ||
| Sifo |
I'm not an expert on this but my impression was that the narrower grip on the Datona just doesn't provide the leverage that the wider bars on the lightning do. The Datona is a fine bike, but the Lightning just reacts with a much lighter touch. Nothing answers your questions like a test ride though if you can arrange that. Comfort wise the Datona was a torture machine to me and I was very happy to be off of it after less than 1/2 hour, but met someone who rode his from Ohio to Chicago pretty much non-stop with no complaints. He was a young kid though and I'm... well... NOT.  | ||
| Jaimec |
Just start with the factory recommended settings. Buell has very nice, detailed directions in their owner's manual and shop manuals as to how to dial in the suspension for riders of various weights. I thought my bike handled just fine, but I decided to check the settings anyway. A couple of them were off from the factory recommendations, so I made the adjustments and HOLY CRAP what a difference! I haven't checked out my new 1125R yet. I told the mechanic before I took delivery to set it up, but... never hurts to double check, right? | ||
| Troopshipberlin |
You don't really have to tinker with the suspension adjustments all that much, and the adjustments are very easy to make. There are instructions and charts in the owner's manual explaining how to do it. I spent some time (probably half an hour, total) making adjustments after I first got the bike, and that's it. | ||
| B00stzx3 |
Defintley flickable. Just throw your weight and the bike follows. Its a sportbike! They're light for a reason. | ||
| Boltrider |
Jraice: Even if you get a new one, still check the settings against what the manual says. I bought mine new in 2008, and assumed everything was kosher. But the dealer must have fooled with it because my rear shock preload was set for someone weighing 220 lbs. I believe the factory default preload settings on these are around 160lbs. | ||
| Johnnylunchbox |
That's an old article, and I found the stock dunlops from that year to be the worst tires I've ever ridden on. My '04 12R was a evil handling lil biotch until I got new tires. | ||
| Jaimec |
That's right! I forgot all about those OEM Dunlops! I scrapped them as soon as I could for a set of Metzelers and it did make a HUGE difference. (Message edited by Jaimec on February 27, 2009) | ||
| Old_man |
Amen - the Dunlops that came on my bike truly sucked. - I tossed them with less than 1000 miles. New tires completely transformed the bike for the better. | ||
| Ochoa0042 |
I've only read the title, and will read all posts when I have the time For ME: buells have really heavy steering compared to jap-bikes.. jappers flow so easliy and are light as feathers for turn in's.. on the other hand I dont see it when people say the buells are twitchy, I see them as a solid predictable ride and japs are twitchy 2cents, be back soon | ||
| 2008xb12scg |
Jraice, if you're buying a new bike you can just ask the dealer to set it up for your hieght, weght, ect. I'm sure they would be happy to do that as well as show you. It's very simple to do. I had mine set at the dealer and have never felt a need to change anything. But that's just me. | ||
| Old_man |
2008xb12scg, Your bike came equipped with great tires. Buell got the message and quit using that garbage tire. | ||
| 2008xb12scg |
the Lightning is freakishly nimble, perfect for abrupt motions while hooligan-ing in traffic. | ||
| Jaimec |
Ochoa0042: You're bike ain't set up right. No way a bike with that short a wheelbase and that steep a rake, with handlebars as wide as they are are going to be hard steering. No way, no how. | ||
| Jraice |
See here even in this thread its very mixed, some say with the handlebars you have much more leverage and its very flickable, others say jap bikes are more twitchy or flickable... Perphaps you guys are relating a jap bike to the XB9/12R? I am looking into the lightnings with the upright wide bars, sounds like I will just have to test ride it and see. Either way its definetly a step in the right direction for my riding style compared to the R6. | ||
| Macbuell |
Dude, that article is way old, when the bikes came with Dunlops. Change the tires to Pirelli Diablos and the bike will flick easy enough. | ||
| Surveyor |
I don't know whether your frame geometry differs from the XB9r but I do know that the 9 was a bas***d to turn in when I got it about 5 years ago. I played around with suspension settings ride height tyres and pressures etc and in the end I varied my riding style. In my experience if your a classic Hailwood rider your going to have problems getting the bike to behave as you want it to, but if your the type of rider who climbs all over the bike and hangs off like a monkey the XB is transformed, the only problem being ground clearance. With a decent set of tyres, a fairly radical riding style and properly set up suspension the Firebolt is well worth the effort and is IMO unbeatable in corners. I should say I am talking about track use but I reckon the same rules apply on the road. I should also mention that if you like to carry your braking deep into corners (i.e. beyond the turn in point) the Buell is even harder to turn in, but I think there are quite a few Loonies on this forum who engage in the outrageous American tradition of 'Backing It In' with some success....here in Europe we are much too sophisticated to engage in that type of behaviour so I can't really tell you whether thats a good method to adopt. Hope that helps, just my 2c worth as you guys say. Slán. (Message edited by surveyor on February 27, 2009) (Message edited by surveyor on February 27, 2009) | ||
| Brumbear |
BULLSHYT there ya have it It takes 2 seconds to set up the suspension and the motor is also user friendly and ya don't have to shift like rabbits screwing | ||
| Cmm213 |
Any lightning with the suspension setup sweet and have a good set of Perelli's or conti's like I ride, should be able to throw the bike around now problem. When I first started riding my 9s I almost thought it was to sensitive. | ||
| Ochoa0042 |
sounds like I need to do some tuning.... I do have them set to my weight and such, but I will take the advise  here are some vids I've seen motorcycle suspension sag part 1 motorcycle suspension sag part 2 (Message edited by ochoa0042 on February 27, 2009) | ||
| 2008xb12scg |
Old-man, true. I found out after getting rid of my Blast that my biggest complaint about it (wheel shake)was caused by the Dunlops. Jraice FYI all the new Buells come with "the good tires" My theory (uninformed? theory) Is that clip ons, clubmans are great for riding very fast and leaning, but suck for slow to slightly fast speeds. The bars on the Lightning are low enough that you can still tuck in and lean, but wide enough that you can manuver around in the parking lots and on the street. Somebody with more experience want to confirm or un-confirm that theory for us, please? |
