| Author | Message | ||
     Faralon |
I want to get down to one of the local dealers, but I have commitments from sun up to sun down all this week. So I figured I'd come here and ask about how openly dealers let you test drive the bikes. I'm 50/50, torn between the S and the R, so its going to come down to which I feel better on. And you can't really tell just by sitting on it on the showroom floor. The 9 or 12 is really just a $$ issue, and I would have no problem with a 9. I do know the local dealer near me has One Midnight Black XB12R  You guys want pics? heheh | ||
| Danny |
Call the dealers in your area and see if they are offering test rides? | ||
| Reepicheep |
F&S Buell in Dayton Ohio gave me a test ride yesterday. XB9S w/ race kit... yum! Where are you at? Somebody probably knows a dealer in riding distance that will give you a ride... | ||
| Buckinfubba |
we sure do... Brian Gardner buell brand manager tilley's 704-872-3883 b.gardner@tilleyhd.com | ||
| Daves |
We do! I would stay away from any dealer that does not offer a demo ride before you buy. Ride to the edge! Dave HD/Buell Cycle Center Waterloo Iowa | ||
| Racerboy |
Do you guys "escort" the demo rider? See Ya! Bob edited by racerboy on August 08, 2003 | ||
| Buckinfubba |
you betcha..."escorts" are good....  | ||
| Daves |
After extensive research, I've found that the longer 2nd into 3rd gear wheelie I ride while on the demo ride, the more Buells I sell.  Ride to the edge! Dave | ||
| Metalstorm |
I can't speak for the 12 but when I test rode the 9, Golden Gate Harley just handed me the key and said "have fun". Then again, everyone is really cool there. Sales people are great, parts people are among the best and the service people have never let me down. | ||
| Docrecon |
Dave: don't tell us, we already know - it's a Dirty Job, but Somebody's Gotta Do It... >>After extensive research, I've found that the longer 2nd into 3rd gear wheelie I ride while on the demo ride, the more Buells I sell. -Dave | ||
| Dynarider |
Back in 91 I test rode the Kawasaki ZX6 at a local dealership that allowed them. They would have one of the shop guys "escort" you with their old beater 400 Yammmy. Took me about 12 seconds to lose the guy  And funny thing is they didnt even get upset about it....just seemed to happen all the time they said. | ||
| Noface |
Dave, 2nd to 3rd gear wheelies? You must be talking about X1's and M2's, as I can't get my 9R to wheelie from 2nd to 3rd. errr... maybe I'm not trying hard enuff?  Jody S. | ||
| Daves |
If you go to 6000 rpm in first, shift quickly into 2nd the bike will stand straight up, click it into 3rd and ride it out to the rev limiter. Ride to the edge! Dave Iowa HD/Buell (Buell Cycle Center) | ||
| Docrecon |
OK Dave, got a question for you on that: I read on one of the boards about the XB being sensitive to wheel position as it comes down, I'd suppose 'cause of short WB/high rake angle. I don't do wheelies, I do "wheel raises" - you know, when the wheel comes up a few inches. I'm getting used to the XB, riding pretty easy, brought the front up a few inches the other day, when the bike came down I thought I felt the possibility of a tank-slapper. Any comment on wheelying technique on the XB? >>If you go to 6000 rpm in first, shift quickly into 2nd the bike will stand straight up, click it into 3rd and ride it out to the rev limiter. | ||
| Tripper |
My S1 stands up in 2nd at 3k rpm. Proving agian, there is no substitute for cubic inches.  | ||
| Glitch |
No replacement for displacement!  I thought I felt the possibility of a tank-slapper. Don't yank he bars, keep 'em straight, come down easy... | ||
| Daves |
I've never had any slappers yet. Ride to the edge! Dave Iowa HD/Buell (Buell Cycle Center) | ||
| Buckinfubba |
I've had a tank slapper....but that was me slapping with my hand after I came down from an airborn excurrsion that wasn't planned. I felt like a rodeo guy... | ||
| Glitch |
I think some people are calling a wobble a tank slapper. Kinda like the guy was saying about when he took his hands off the bars at 100mph... I don't know how one can recover from a true tank slapper. I'm sure someone has, just that I've not seen it... | ||
| Uwgriz |
Someone had a video posted here showing a racer recovering from one. Can't remember where it was but through a combination of a never say die attitude and lots of luck, he rode it out. | ||
| Noface |
Ah Dave, I do second gear wheelies like that on my 9R all the time. I couldn't count how many times. It's just I can't seem to gather the cajones to shift it to 3rd with it in the air. I've alost done it a few times, I'm just skeered I'm gonna loop it. R U using the clutch or power shifting it? Jody S. | ||
| Steveford |
A tank slapper is a rapid, violent episode which occurs at speed where the bars attempt to go from fork stop to fork stop at the rate of perhaps five or six oscillations per second. My understanding is that the tire tries to find it's center, misses it, overcompensates to one side, overcompensates to the other side, etc. Hanging on for dear life and braking really hard at the same time worked for me on my Le Mans IV. A front end wobble can develop into a tank slapper if you keep your hands off the bars and foolishly let it progress although your classic tank slapper occurs without any sort of warning which is why they're so frightening. You can also get high speed handling problems from the swing arm pivot from improper bearing preload where the entire bike goes into a sideways pitching or yawing motion. This was described to me by a friend who said it was to the rhythm (sic?) of, "I'm going down, I'm going down, I'm going down..." but he managed to ride it out somehow. I'm not saying that the Buells do this but the 85-87 large block Moto Guzzis certainly had their share of handling problems which the factory rectified with revised steering geometry and a return to the 18" wheel for the Tonti framed Guzzis. I can't speak much for wheelies but it should be like doing an Evel Knievel impersonation at 115 on a Triumph Bonneville with the police in hot pursuit: you want to keep the front wheel pointed in the direction of travel. A Bonnie is forgiving enough to recover if the front wheel comes down skewed a bit from the ideal centerline with only a chirp of protest from the front tire. As for the original question, I accompany the customers on the demo rides and set the pace for whatever they're comfortable with. The more spirited the ride, the more enthusaistic the response. | ||
| S3t_mitch |
I'm in the military overseas and I'll be in Washington State next week. Anyone know of good Buell dealers there offering test rides? Like many "tubers" I'm still undecided about the 12R or the 12S. |
