| Author | Message | ||
     Baldy |
I've had my XB9R for a little over a year now, and am wanting to get some more out of it. Tires are due soon, needs a little more power (maybe less weight), and I have the suspension dialed in as close to what I want, but not quite there.... Question #1 Exhaust I've gone to many sites to research all these pipes out there including d&d, force (too expensive IMO), race pipe, jardine, drummer, etc. There are conflicting dyno runs on every site I go to. The Jardine has the best HP and torque compared to the race kit,etc. on one site http://www.hillbilly-motors.com/html/xb_9_dyno_results.html and on others it get slammed for losses in the mid range. It is the lightest pipe out there. The D&D gets raves about mid band, but loses power on the low end and up top over 5500... The Drummer is better than the D&D according to their site, and has identical (nearly) power on another. Also, I know the 12 reacts differently than my 9 so the dyno runs on the 12 shouldn't be taken into consideration, right? I don't mind LOUD, but same deal, one site has riders saying all but the race pipe are too loud.... What is the real deal on power gains? Maybe anyone has some accurate dyno's to compare these pipes. Question #2 Tires Diablos or Diablo Corsa's or Metzler M-1's or dunlop 208's or Pilot Sports or Bridgestone BT-014?????? I have some "headshake?" (bars shake back and forth tankslapper style) above 50MPH since day one... The Dunlop D207RR's I have on take a while to heat up fully, and don't feel as predictable or solid as they should I guess. I don't ride in the rain unless I get stuck out somewhere on a ride, so the rain factor is not critical... I live in Vancouver, BC (AKA the capital of liquid sunshine)... I guess I really should ride in my frog suit, but there's something about the drivers here (when it rains, everyone looks forward, not either side or behind when changing lanes, and signals are optional...) Question #3 Suspension setup I know it's different for every weight of rider and style (190LBs), but anyone have any suggestions as to setup... Currently I'm using a somewhat modified "aggressive" setup that is floating around the net... http://groups.msn.com/xb9r/20022003fireboltsuspensionsetup.msnw with 1/4 turn less compression in the front and 1/4 less rebound in the rear... Dives into turns great, but still wish it wanted to lean a little easier, and the front wouldn't wallow at speed (90 MPH) when I'm leaning over on a sweeping corner... I was out with a friend of mine (he rides a gsxr 1000) and when we stopped for gas he said it looked as though I was drunk in the last corner with the bikes front end going back and forth... Could this be related to the "headshake" (i hope that's the right term) i described above? Wheel balancing or tire trait??? Thanks for all and any suggestions and replies.... (sorry for the long post...I did my research first, but am still confused and want REAL input not the he said she said this would work stuff) | ||
| Buelluk |
Question 1 ; I changed to Diablo's at 2500 miles and have had no problems since. As far as question 2, I regularly have my XB9S over at 90 mph on a looong fast sweeper on the standard settings front and back , I weigh around 220 - no wobbles or wallowing - try to relax your grip on the bars It wouldn't surprise me if your aggressive settings with a worn tire are causing your handling problems and also try checking your tire pressures. Tire pressure differences are the only thing that upset my handling | ||
| Madsx |
I'd wait to adjust the suspension until you get new rubber. Seems alot of riders dislike the 207's. I love the pirellis on my SX. Very neutral in and out of corners and have good wet and dry grip. As for exhaust there is only one for me. You guessed it, the Drummer. Its got a real nice bark. Its not quite Harley loud but every one of them will turn their heads when you go by, and it makes the XB sound like no other sport bike out there. | ||
| Dago |
The Diablo Corsas are niiiiiiiiiiice. I never could get rid of the head shake completely running the 207's. I tried. But when I installed the Corsas the headshake disappeared. They are VERY soft though and suck for touring. I had a piece of tempered glass work its way right through the tire on my last ride. I'm going to try the regular Diablo on the rear this time. But I'll keep the Corsa on the front. Regarding exhaust: Ask yourself where you spent most of your time within your rev range. I'm almost always above 3500-4000. So I opted for the race kit and am very pleased. | ||
| Buell12hundo |
the 207's cup real bad and could cause the head shake go with new tires bridgestone,michellin or metzler I like the bt 010's as for the exhaust I still run the stock one but for x-mass the drummer it will be,and last I'm 210lbs and use the settings from the big blue buell book and the bike rides on rails | ||
| Scitz |
I've only had experience with the Dunlop 208ZR tires . The rear tire seemed to wear down pretty quickly, of course it doesn't help when I'm trying to pop wheelies all the time, with a little over 3000 miles on it. I found that the 208 is kind of slick until it heats up, even then the rear would slip a lot of time when I'm riding in second and dump the clutch to wheelie. I didn't have any problem with slipping on high speed turns. At the recommendation of a lot of BadWeb users I just bought a set of Metzler Sportec M-1's to try. | ||
| Diablomichael |
This post will probably get flamed but oh well For the record I one a XB9R and race a XB12R Set the bike up as suggested by sportrider.com . You will have to move it around a bit but its a very close if you have stock suspension. I am 190 lbs. at this time. Tires I dislike dunlops I would only go with the race version of the Perelli , I had a real bad experience with the second tier tire ( Corsa) I think its called. The front washes with little notice. The new Michelin is bomb! Brakes my choice is Dunlop pads | ||
| M1combat |
I pretty much would just like to second everything said here... Get new tires before you do any setup changes for now. Just an FYI... I run 2 lines of preload on the front and I'm on the sixth ramp on the back. I like the Metzelers. The Metzeler Sportec M1 and the Diablo Corsa are the same carcas/rubber with a different tread pattern. Metzeler=Pirelli. I use EBC "HH" brake pads on the front. The D207's are crap and are most likely causing the instability that you mention mid-corner as well as the reluctance to turn in. They also cause a horrible tendency to stand up if you use the front brake at all mid turn if you ask me. They also cause the bike to require a lot of effort on the bars to maintain high lean angles (and all the while they're squirming around trying to get out from under you...). | ||
| Mou5e |
baldy if your interested in the jardine i have one. it is a brand new titanium RTone. i need money so im going to have to part ways with it. msg me if your interested. | ||
| Baldy |
Thanks for the insight... I knew I wasn't crazy when I thought the tires were BaAAAAd, even though one of the guys at the local bike shop told me they were pretty good compared to a lot of others... Just goes to show, you have to ask those who actually ride the bikes and don't just sell or service 'em.. | ||
| Baldy |
Mou5e, i sent you a PM 'bout the can.... | ||
| Xbolt12 |
I second everything said above except the Corsa washing out without notice. Must have hit oil or antifreeze because the Corsas are very predictable, certainly more so than the M1's in my opinion. xbolt12 | ||
| Diablobrian |
The Diablo corsa's in question were brand new, but had been warmed up with tire warmers. Also this was in a race setting, not on the street. The track surface was not optimal either. Blackhawk with intermittent sprinkles/rain In hind site we should have been running true rain tires. Michael however has had much better success with the Michelin slicks on a variety of track surfaces. Just the "wrench"'s input take it for what it's worth. | ||
| Dago |
"even though one of the guys at the local bike shop told me they were pretty good compared to a lot of others..." You should ride around Dallas one Thursday night. There is a huge sportbike scene here, and I'd say half of those jokers run on tires that have the center threads showing. | ||
| Buellerx |
I am running pirelli scorpion syncs...luv'em | ||
| Race_pirate |
These are just my opinions. 1. Exhaust - Go where your wallet can take you. I have heard the Special Op's and Drummer. Both sound mean and seem sturdy. I have a extensively modified Jardine, and I did the mod's so it stays together. 2. Tires - Pirelli's 3. Suspension - Wallowing at 90 is no good. I tried the Agressive settings and have softened up considerably from there. My reccommendation is change you tires, put the suspension back to factory settings and set the Sag for you. for agressive street riding set it 25-30mm. THEN start making comp & rebound adjustments. Stiffer doesnt mean faster, the key is to try and keep the tires planted over various types of bumps and turns. | ||
| Madsx |
I hear that!  Love the Scorps (Message edited by madsx on August 03, 2005) | ||
| Ingemar |
Q1: Drummer. Q2: Pirelli Diablo's. Q3: Sportrider is a good starting point. Experiment from there.  | ||
| Kaese |
1. Drummer, you will not be disappointed, not to loud or radical. Best pipe for the $$. 2. I have tried a lot of tires and mileage stickiness, I prefer the Pirelli Corsas. Gotten over 10,000 miles on two sets now. 3. I use the same settings, found them years ago. I could never find a direct link.  | ||
| Blake |
The suspension settings as recommended by Buell appeared here on BadWeB... http://www.badweatherbikers.com/cgibin/discus/show.cgi?tpc=3842&post=426573#POST 426573 | ||
| Baldy |
The posts just keep comin' Thanks again guys.... Tires, Pirellis it will be.... Suspension will come after.... Exhaust.... Mou5e is offering me a pretty good deal on the Jardine, so I just might have to take him up on the offer... |
