| Author | Message | ||
     Court |
>>>Again what happens if you start it and ride away with no oil in it Very unlikely in that, by the time the bike arrives at the dealer, it's been run twice and oil pressure/level has been checked twice. I suspect, with it being early in the ownership game, that we'll be learning more. I'm adopting an "all ears" info gathering stance . . . Frankly, absent any reason to think my bike is using oil (I know at that, I don't guess) I confess I only check the oil from time to time. We'll see what we can find. No better source of information than Buell owners. Court | ||
| Reepicheep |
You ever ridden a bike that consumed a quart of oil in a single ride? Much less 2.5 quarts (or whatever the 1125 capacity is?). I have... I was running an FL1A filter on the M2, and it needed it hose clamp to keep it from backing off (DAMHIK). If you start a ride with full oil, and use up a quart, I ***promise*** you that you will have ***ample*** notification  As for standing the bike up... I think thats what my old Yamaha and my current Kawasaki work. They both need to be upright. If you are not comfortable holding it, then just keep a chunk of 2x4 around to put under the side stand. I'll send you a piece if you need one, I have lots of scraps from the deck project | ||
| Zac4mac |
I like Asbjorn's method. We got a bunch of snow yesterday so I couldn't ride. I was playing with Diagnostic mode and trying out different ways to check the oil. The easiest was pretty much what Asbjorn described. I have a question tho, related to that: There is a significant difference to the reading if you sit or not. Sitting on it gives a "real world" position, but the angle of the engine is different if the bike is vertical, but unloaded. So, oil check with suspension loaded or unloaded? I suspect loaded, but I'd like to be certain. Z | ||
| Court |
>>>I like Asbjorn's method. >>>The easiest was pretty much what Asbjorn described. I'm with you and would bet that as we get some experience in the badweb community we'll quickly establish "best practice". | ||
| Ratbuell |
Bearly - ever ride an S2? Gotta balance it every time I check the oil. Same on my S1W. Both of those are in the tail section though, so all I do is pull the seat, balance it between my (long lanky) legs and check the oil. The 1125r does put the dipstick down low, but it is on the upward side when on the sidestand so just pull the bike to you, brace your left knee against the tail section or passenger peg, and check away. If you can ride a motorcycle, you should be able to balance one while its sitting still.... +1 on the wood scrap, though. 2x4, 4x4; I keep a couple in the garage in various sizes. I've painted them bright orange so I don't toss them, and I also keep a 4x4 about 6" long for the front of the truck bed to block the front wheel when I'm loading. Not a big deal on the Buells, but it keeps the FLHP's fender off the truck bed. I'd still like to see a longer dipstick, though, with an "OK Cold" mark way down there. Owners should be able to check hot with no problem, but for us dealers it'd be nice to do a cold check without having to ride the bike. Even if Buell pulls a "Chrysler" - there is no transmission dipstick in our Magnum (or the Charger or 300). The dealership has a "special tool" - known as a dipstick to folks like me and you - they use to check the fluid level. Maybe issue a longer dipstick to dealers? Just a thought... | ||
| Blake |
All the tube frame Buell require the bike to be upright when checking oil. I never gave it a second thought. The instructions say nothing, zero, nadda, zip about loading the suspension, thus I'd conclude that when checking oil level, one should avoid that. Assuming that a longer dipstick will provide the desired ability to accurately/reliably check oil with the bike on its side-stand may be risky. Lots of variables and issues may cause that method to be inaccurate/unreliable. So let's please proceed with caution. Good suggestion again Court. I'll add Asbjorn's ingenious method as a note within the procedure. (Message edited by blake on December 28, 2007) | ||
| Davegess |
My Honda had to be upright also. I would do it while sitting on the bike. | ||
| Court |
I just read the manuals for both the family autos and they both have to be upright too . . . I guess it's not as big a deal as we thought. (Message edited by court on December 28, 2007) | ||
| Blake |
In editing the oil checking procedure to include Asbjorn's suggestions, I realized that there may be other factors that might lead to false readings. Just to be sure that it is okay, I'd like for someone to verify the acceptability of that method before publishing and recommending it here. If someone is willing to check their 1125R's oil level using both methods, back to back, and then reverify by rechecking oil level via both methods back to back, the rest of us would surely be grateful. If the oil levels are identical for both methods (up-sidestand-up versus always-up), then we should be good to go. The following is an integration of Asjborn's excellent suggestions into the factory's published procedure:
(Message edited by blake on December 28, 2007) | ||
| Dentfixer |
I think I'd use those 2x4's to rig up a quick "center stand" that you can easily roll the bike on to just for checking the oil. Can any of you owners verify if there is room enough and a secure place to position a "center stand"? | ||
| Brumbear |
let me try this would you even think about starting your car if you pulled the dipstick and there was no oil on it? if you would : I go no further as a mechanic I say I LOVE YOU and your on my christmas list cause people like you are my job security. if not what would be your next move a.) fill it until you see it to be safe I know what the book says but thats not always right either as we all know b.)if its a car you can at least make sure there is oil on the rockers or most bikes look into tank to make sure there is some oil in there c.)start anyway and hope like hell the oil light goes out cause my machine is still under warrenty my preferance easiest answer longer dipstck not to measure just to make sur ther is at least a minute bit of oil in it. | ||
| Reepicheep |
Two car jackstands and a chunk of rebar through the hollow rear axle has worked great for a center stand for me... | ||
| Davegess |
The dipstick on my Honda would be dry if you checked the oil cold or even hot if you waited too long; you had about 2-3 minutes to check after running for a good long while. There is no oil in the tank to check when the engine is cold so it will always be dry. I think this is common for dry sumps and not an issue. Brum have you not had bikes like this before? I certainly have. | ||
| Court |
>>>would you even think about starting your car if you pulled the dipstick and there was no oil on it? I do that at every oil change. | ||
| Blake |
"would you even think about starting your car if you pulled the dipstick and there was no oil on it? " No, but my car has a wet sump oil reservoir. My Buell has a dry sump oil reservoir. So your question is akin to asking "would you even think about eating chicken if it were not thoroughly cooked?" when I don't have chicken; I have beef. | ||
| Buellgator |
Blake, I just tried this suggestion on our demo bike. Holding the motorcycle upright and screwing the dipstick in comes up with a much higher oil level reading. Using the above suggested method of putting the bike on its sidestand and then standing it up showed the oil in operating range, but not nearly as high as when screwing the dipstick in from the upright position. Our demo bike is way overfull using the new factory method. Thanks BadWeb | ||
| Buellgator |
I should also add that I tried standing the bike up from its sidestand 10, 20, and 30 seconds and got pretty much the same reading each time. | ||
| Ratbuell |
I wasn't suggesting a longer dipstick for sidestand checks, but for upright cold checks. Of course, that is all speculation since I don't know if there is a "tank" further down below the dipstick or if the passage stops at the bottom of the current dipstick. That's why I posted the idea for the Anony's to look at and consider. | ||
| Dave_bogue |
I use a very simple method to check the oil level on both my bikes. I simply hold the bike upright and check the sight glass. If the oil is between the upper and lower marks, I know all is good. I've used this method on numerous motorcycles. It just takes a few seconds. The 1125R oil level check procedure is way too complicated for my liking. What was Buell thinking when they approved this design? Dave SV1000 ZX-10R | ||
| Blake |
I had a Yamaha that had a site glass for checking oil level. It was hands down the worst possible scenario I've ever seen. You had to have the bike upright and at the same time be down on your hands and knees in order to clearly see the sight glass. | ||
| Dave_bogue |
Blake, In that case, the 8 step procedure outlined above for checking the 1125R's oil level will be a labor of love. Have fun, Dave | ||
| Josh_ |
well Baxley Chocks still has their 10% off Christmas sale (and the prices go up tomorrow) if you want the bike upright w/o an assistant. | ||
| Doerman |
if you want the bike upright w/o an assistant. That better be the wood block method you are selling there. I ain't fer sale!  Asbjorn | ||
| Buellistic |
IMHO the Dealers are going to have oil level problems as with the TUBE FRAMEs ??? (Message edited by buellistic on December 28, 2007) | ||
| Ccryder |
My Honda ST1300 is just about as complicated. It has a sight-glass with 2 lines. 1) Start it 2) Run it until 3 bars show 3) Put it on the center stand on level ground 4) Shut it off 5) Wait 3 mins 6) Find a flashlight 7) Get down on your hands and knees to view the sight-glass through a small opening in the fairing. Hmm, too complicated, life is complicated but the alternative is........ Time2Ride. Neil S. | ||
| Ironhead1977 |
Easy maintenance is a good selling point. That is why I do not have a Duc. | ||
| Blake |
If counting to 8 is a problem, we can reduce the number of steps for you...
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| Blake |
Buellgator, Thanks for that valuable info. Looks like we'll have to learn to remove the dipstick while straddling the bike and holding up upright/vertical. That's probably the method I'd use anyway, on account of I'm lazy. | ||
| Spatten1 |
I love the sight glass, only way to go in my opinion. Just sit next to the bike and lean it slowly to the balance point while looking at the level. You can even straddle the bike and use a mirror to view the sight glass if you are not comfortable balancing it from the side while sitting. At any rate: would you rather hold the bike upright and screw in and unscrew the dipstick with one hand, or use both hands to steady the bike and look at the sight glass? | ||
| Court |
>>>>Our demo bike is way overfull using the new factory method. Again. I'd suggest folks share this information with their dealers. If I were buying an 1125r, I'd check the oil level, knowing what I now know, myself. |
