| Author | Message | ||
     Hmartin |
Muffler valve actuator is on its way out. Problems are still intermittent, but it's only a matter of time now. So, my question to all of you is: Which of these three options would you recommend, based on personal experience or whatever? Dig into the tackle box and wire the valve open with some fishing weights on the actuator cable (no $), replace the actuator (some $), or dig into the future bike savings fund and switch to a valve-less muffler & ECM setup ($$ to $$$)? I've been going over previous threads talking about the smoothness vs. mid-range power trade off when you wire the valve open. The hooligan in me would miss the way the front wheel practically jumps off the ground in first gear going WFO from 3,500 rpm. Maybe my fork seals and steering head bearings would thank me, but I bet I'd miss the mid-range if it suffers too badly. Any thoughts? I'm open. HM | ||
| Rwcfrank |
I ran it with it open for a while and here is my humble opinion. The first ride after its wired open is a lot of fun, more on top it seems, definetly noticeable After a while when you start to ride normally again (if thats ever) you really miss the midrange Once you go back to the valve you fall back in love with the reason you bought the bike in the first place. Erik got it right with the valve | ||
| Froggy |
I wish my micron had a valve. The mid range is strong, but it would be nice to be able to boost it more, and have it be a little quieter just putting around town. | ||
| Werewulf |
yes, erik got it right....ive had the aftermarket modded ones and the stocker... the stocker is an all around performer.. | ||
| Tootal |
I had mine changed under warranty and a month later it failed. I took it into the dealer and they told me the new one had metal gears in it and mine had plastic ones and they stripped. They didn't want to pay for it so I called Buell customer service and within 15 minutes they called my dealer and told them they would cover it. Call customer service and be polite and see what happens. They were great! | ||
| Werewulf |
what year did they change the internals on the muffler? | ||
| Hmartin |
Actuator's fried - done. Won't budge any more. So, I stopped by the dealership today. Their computer had a hard time finding a part number for the actuator. As each one came up, it said 'obsolete'. By about the 4th one, he got a good part number. Not in stock, of course. Pretty pricey, about $170. I'm thinking about it. I found a cheaper one online, but who knows if it's not one of the other 3 obsolete actuators? If it's not a recall, they probably won't cover it as I am way out of warranty. I didn't even ask the dealer. Mine's never been replaced before. Do you think BCS will cover it in this case? Been running with the valve open in the mean time. Doesn't do too bad. It'll still loft the front wheel in 1st & 2nd, but I think I see what everyone's talking about when they say the mid-range suffers. It's not that bad, though. I could probably live with it if I wanted to be cheap about it. Thanks for the comments so far. Any further advice on how to leave it? | ||
| Xbimmer |
Have you tried opening the actuator up? I think I've read somewhere here on BadWeB the gears can be realigned... Mine actuator gets hesitant occasionally, the valve gets squeaky. I'll squirt some CLP at the valve shaft and it's good for a time. YMMV. | ||
| Tootal |
Before I had mine replaced under warranty I opened it up and found things trying to move but the cable wasn't moving. After replacement the new one failed and they opened it up and said the gears were stripped. Now the new one has metal gears so that takes care of that weak spot, I'm just wondering if the valve itself is so stiff to move that it's breaking the actuator? I just got mine back yesterday but it was raining but the sun is out today so I'll see what I was missing for a while. I would call BCS and talk to them. I was friendly and so were they. It surely can't hurt! | ||
| Hmartin |
 I apologize in advance for the quality of this camera phone picture, but in the case of this actuator, the failure is not mechanical. The gears are fine. I can work the mechanicals by hand and there's no slipping or binding. As you can see (or maybe you can't), the gears are all plastic except for the worm gear. Looks like the problem is electrical. There's power to the connector and the ground is good. It should work. I'm guessing either the motor or the circuit board's bad. |
