| Author | Message | ||
     Bott |
Picked up this months Thunder Press at the dealers, since it had a small pic of an RMR Buell on the cover. Then I read the article, which i have heard most before,except the following:    | ||
| Cataract2 |
Known about that for some time. I will say this though, I'm much happier with the Rotex 1125 than I would have been with the VROD motor. | ||
| Spike |
These have been posted before, but they're worth posting again. Gabe Ets-Hokin takes the shed tour and catches it on video: | ||
| Ratbuell |
I'm much happier with the Helicon as well. The Revolution motor - just the *motor* - weighs nearly as much as an XB. That happened when HD decided "it's ours" and developed it into a full-on power touring platform, and it started gaining weight in order to meet their design requirements. From what I understand...originally it had every chance of evolving into a lightweight, powerful, sporty drivetrain, but then things (and the focus of the platform) changed. | ||
| Boltrider |
That would have been a sweet motor for the XB if they kept the weight down. The same torque with 20 more hp would have been perfect. | ||
| Slaughter |
Erik has been quoted (can't source it... working from age-faded memory) as having been frustrated with the direction that the V-Rod motor took once the Skullz, Doo-Ragz and Flamez folks took control of the design. | ||
| Buellinachinashop |
The Revolution, as is, wouldn't have been the same motor Buell would have used. I don't think "Revolution" would have even been the motor's name if it was in a Buell frame. I thought I read somewhere that Bill Davidson came up with that name with Harley marketing. So when you look at an 1130 Revolution, in a VR, you're looking at something that progressed from the initial prototypes that Buell would have used. I don't see how the "V Rod Motor was obvious", Willie G designed the look of the Revolution for the V Rod, from the cooling fins, right down to placing the coolant hose vertivcaly over the V instead of passing over the front cylinder. This motor was meant to be pretty and meant for the V Rod frame. All this took place after the motor was intended for Harley use. Exactly when Porsche got involved is a mystery to me. I'd assume that was after the Rev was designated for Harley as well, probably pretty close to 1998? A Revolution 1130cc motor weighs in at about 193 lbs. without headers, chrome heat shields and slip-ons. | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Given that Buell could have gone back to the original VR1000 motor when looking for a water cooled powerplant, I'm assuming there was a reason they didn't. | ||
| Buellinachinashop |
Price and durability were the two factors that HD didn't use the VR1000. | ||
| Davegess |
Erik, was the person who laid out the original VR motor as a race only engine. He built a prototype race bike using that design but it was not chosen by H-D and they had someone else design the VR bikes. The Vrod project was driven early on by Erik wanting a liquid cooled sport bike motor to use with the replacement for the tube frame bikes BUT fairly early on in the development of that engine H-D decided to go forward with the VROD and the designe paramaters for the motor changed and made it unsuitable for a Buell. I don't know that it is fair to say that the XB platform was originally intended to use that first WC engine. I beleive the design paramaters changed pretty early on and that the XB was only a "twinkle in Erik's eye" at that point. Teh XB was designed to use the hopped up air cooled engine from nearly the beginning. At some point after it was release Erik got the go ahead to pursue his own engine. I am not perfectly happy with the accuracy of this time line. When we wrote the book we were limited in the amount of access we had to gather details on th eXB and 1125R. We did not even know the 1125 was ready until after the book was started. | ||
| Lonewolfnavet |
I hope that if they do change the XB engine; that they do use the Rotex instead of the V-Rod's.... | ||
| Buellinachinashop |
Dave, Did Harley have plans for the VRod first, then used the "buell" motor or did the motor come first and HD built the VR around it? | ||
| Glitch |
I think the motor just got too heavy, and H-D took it over. | ||
| Glitch |
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| Buellinachinashop |
I like mine.  | ||
| Davegess |
My understanding is that the motor was supposed to be Buells but that H-D was going to use it also. When H-D got finished with all the modifications they needed for a power cruiser - many of them for style only- the engine was bigger and heavier than originally intended and Erik refused to use it. I think we got a much better engine out of the deal as Rotax does a better bike engine than Porsche. | ||
| Ferris_von_bueller |
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| Natexlh1000 |
Those Photoshops are cool but I think the transmissions have been chopped to jam it in there. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
Sorry. Me = RONG | ||
| Froggy |
What you don't want a 1 speed and special rear header that rubs the rear tire?  |
