| Author | Message | ||
     Ramon |
Good point Court. BTW, he IS a BMW rider!!! LOL -ramon | ||
| Fasteddieb |
BMW K1200RS's flop over with alarming regularity until riders learn to ALWAYS park the bike in gear. I've gotten in the habit of killing the engine with the sidestand with the engine in first - ALWAYS. The problem has been well-known on the K1200RS site (www.i-bmw.com) since the bike came out in 1997 and still no admission/recall/retro-fit by BMW. I posted the Buell recall notice on the K12 site as an example of a responsive company. Nothing wrong with that. BTW, has anyone else had their turn signals quit? my failure may have been partially self-inflicted (it's a long story) but involves the new, smaller turn signals, which did work for a short time, anyway.  | ||
| Blacksix |
Someone else posted about a turn signal issue a week or so ago. I don't think it was a "built in" problem though. | ||
| Darthane |
Eddie, no problems with the turn signals. The rears are a pain in the ass to change. Those saddlebags are bithing. Did you get those at Deal's Gap? Who makes them and how much? Bryan | ||
| Fasteddieb |
Bithing? You mean bitching? Yes, I got them at Deal's Gap. Made by Oxford, an English company. They were $160 plus tax, I think. Can probably be ordered online from Sport Touring Accessories (the name of the Deal's Gap store). If you notice they ride high enough to clear training wheels!  I didn't mean to turn the 'bolt into a sport-touring bike. It's just that I like to ride and I'm far more likely to use the bike for errands if I have a way to carry stuff. The turn signal debacle was a case of a simple job getting complicated by faulty assumptions. 1) I removed the stock signals. The new signals have larger stalks (fixed by drilling the mounting holes larger). The bullet connectors on the new signals were too small, so I cut off the larger ones from the stock signals and soldered them on. 2) I assumed that the striped wires from the new signals were the "hot" wires, following what I assumed was a convention. In any case, I hooked the striped wires up to the colored wires on the Buell. 3) Turned the Buell on to try out the new signals - not only did the signals not work, but the instruments and taillight were now out. Found a 7.5 amp fuse marked "accessories" was blown. Replaced it with a spare, which promptly blew as well. Gave up and went on the K1200RS rally and bought some new fuses. 4) A couple of days later I disconnected the turn signals and checked their polarity. The striped wire turns out to be the ground wire. Applying 12V to just the black wire caused the bulb to light, indicating a ground path through the stalk. 5) Switched the wires, replaced the fuse, turned the ignition on and had instruments and taillights. Tried the left and right turn signals - EUREKA! The scientific method does work. Both signals worked and were very bright. 6) Took the 'bolt and the Suzuki out for a ride. My friend Tony started out on the 'bolt and says the turn signals were working when he rode it. When we switched, however, I couldn't get them to work. Both bulbs are fine and the fuse is fine. I'm guessing I may have damaged the flasher unit with my fumbling. Next trip up I'll probably be taking the bike to a dealer for front rotor replacement (still a loud ticking), sidestand recall and TPS reset once I get the race kit installed. At this point I'll see if they can rectify the turn signal situation, hopefully under warranty (though I'll understand if they're reluctant to call it a warranty repair.) Oh, well... | ||
| Darthane |
LOL...as to the flasher...mine was completely crushed at Deal's Gap, I managed to pop it back to some semblance of a cube, and it still works. The bags necessitated the turn signal change, yes? I'm in the same boat, I don't drive unless I have too, and saddlebags would cut that number in half by allowing me to carry more shit. ...and yes, 'bitching'. My typing's off today. Bryan | ||
| Chainsaw |
Still on Sidestand #1: Well, I'm glad I haven't taken my Bolt in for the sidestand replacement! Who knew being lazy could work to my advantage. Maybe if I wait long enough, Buell will have a chrome sidestand available....  | ||
| Fasteddieb |
The stock turn signals got bent way to the rear by the bags. That, plus the fact that the stockers had moisture get in them during a mild bike washing, plus the fact that the smaller ones look cool, all conspired to get me to go smaller. I just got a Buell Rider Survey in the mail - I'll be sure to mention that gaskets on lenses (tail light and turn signals) would be a nice design upgrade. BTW, did the flasher appear to be mechanical or electronic? I'd guess electronic these days - I don't have my manual here to check. | ||
| Blake |
Chainsaw,... groan! | ||
| Java |
I was thumbing through a British bike mag, (I forget which one) and saw a full page ad for those pretty Oxford saddlebags. They also have a tank bag, and a tail bag to match. They are available in half a dozen colors, one of which looks close to "Reactor Yellow". Bitchin. Also, another Brit magazine, "Performance Bikes", announced in the current issue, that they got a Firebolt for a long term tester. These guys are brutaly honest in their writing, more so than most American mags. Strangely, they've never been as hard on Buells as our press, 'cause they've got a couple of hooligans on their staff that understand what the bikes were meant for. We'll wait and see. | ||
| Darthane |
Eddie, To the best of my knowledge, the flasher is purely electronic. Looks like a mini-relay, and the amount of voltage going through it determine the cycling speed, which is why if you have a turn signal out it flashes faster (cars taht use flashers instead of some logic-based board to control turn signals do this as well). I'm looking to see if I've got a flasher at work that carries the same load. If I can find one, I'd be happy to send one your way. Bryan | ||
| Fasteddieb |
Bryan, If it's got the same base I'd love to give it a try. Hope that's all it is. And PLEASE take the time to poofread your posts! | ||
| Ray_Maines |
If I had a Flasher at work that carried the same load a lot of people would be happy | ||
| Epierce |
Anyone going to Daytona for the Oct. Bike week, Oct. 17-20th? Will Buell have a tent/display area like they do in March? | ||
| Fasteddieb |
I may ride up Friday, camp, then return home Saturday afternoon. Won't be on the 'bolt (it's in GA) but would love to touch bases with some of the Buell clan. Harleybrit might already be on board. Ono of us should start a thread a week or so prior. | ||
| Darthane |
::thumbs nose:: Ah'll speel howevuh I wanna! I'll check out the flashers tomorrow and let you know, Eddie. In fact, I'll even put one on mine first just to verify that it works. Are those new taillights pulling more current than the stock ones, by chance? Bryan | ||
| Blake |
Bryan, I don't think they are teasing you about your spelling. Rather, I think they have unique imaginations when it comes to the words "flasher" and "load."  | ||
| Csg_Inc |
Turn Signal modifications  and the finish product  | ||
| Spiderman |
Now just get rid of that reflector and you are all set | ||
| Geofg |
Speaking of that reflector, I'd love to ditch it except it *does* add a little bit of extra to keep the dirt from flipping up my back. Not that it's doing much good, mind you. Anybody developing a hugger fender out there? Sign me up if you are. -Geof | ||
| Captainplanet |
Here is a link to a company in England making a stainless steel exhaust for the XB9R. http://www.britnett.net/trojanhorse/listings/190.html Not very good pic though. Jeff | ||
| Captainplanet |
 Check out this bike I found on a Japanese site. Frame sliders? Lots of custom stuff. | ||
| Xb9 |
I wonder what type the forks/wheel/brakes are? Uses the stock fender. Dual disk with hub mounted floating rotors is the setup Buell should have gone with stock IMHO. I'm not a fan of the perimeter mounted rotor. Funny why they ditched the air scoop! I'd worry about rear cyl. cooling. Wonder if it has a chain conversion, looks like the rear wheel has been changed also. | ||
| Xb9 |
Can you post the URL where you found this? | ||
| Bykergeek |
I wonder where / how the frame sliders are mounted. There is nothing strong enough to hold frame sliders during a crash in that aread of the bike. | ||
| Captainplanet |
Here is the link to that Japanese site. http://www.highside.co.jp/ Jeff | ||
| Fasteddieb |
Crash bars on opposed-cylinder BMW's are rumored to be a bad idea. In a typical low-sider without guards, often the valve cover is damaged and nothing else. Even if the cylinder head is damaged it's not a catastrophic expense. With the "crash bars" there's anecdotal evidence of the crash damage being transferred to the frame, which may bend. Then, the bike may be a total loss, depending on the severity of the frame damage. In the case of this Firebolt, it would look like those sliders might cause MORE damage, when they snap off and take out a portion of the frame. I imagine that after a few 'bolts have been down and suffered cosmetic damage to the frame, someone will come up with "covers" to either cover up the damage or to protect the frame. I'm picturing maybe 1/4" thick rubber or plastic panel covered with either carbon fiber or, more likely, faux carbon fiber. There's probably a business opportunity there somewhere. | ||
| Harleybritt |
here' is a site with all the oxford luggage stuff i just ordered the tail bag.lockit.comhttp://www.lockitt.com/index.htm | ||
| Harleybritt |
let me try the link again sorry http://www.lockitt.com/index.htm | ||
| Sparky |
ASB, I betcha, has something ingenious coming in the Firebolt frame slider department, sorta what Fasteddieb's picturing. At least I hope they do! Sparky |
