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Gentleman_jon
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 08:49 am: |
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As the XBRR racing program fades into the past, I imagine that quite a few of them will be offered for sale. One is on eBay right now. Certainly quite a few Buelligans have imagined themselves riding one of these magnificent beasts on the street. I know I have. Of course there are a few obvious impediments, but where there is a will there is a way. Am I right, oh my brothers? Lest this idea be immediately dismissed as, stupid, impossible, or both, I must recall that I had a street legal Norton Manx 500cc DOHC single in the sixties. Now to specifics: On the negative side: 1. No vin number 2. No starter 3. No lights 4. No street rubber 5. Rear seat is too small On the positive side: 1. Runs quite enough for the street with the factory racing muffler 2. Has the proper amount of grunt for a sports bike. 3.Already has the chain conversion, Ohlins, and so forth. 4. Apparently, the cases have already machined for some street specific fittings, or so I am told. 5. Better brakes 6. Lighter wheels 7. Transmission trap door 8. Steering damper 9. 4.4 gal fuel tank 10. Larger oil cooler. OK, LET THE MADNESS BEGIN!! Flaunt your XBRR specific knowledge: List the problems as you see them, and your work-around Naysayers, negative thinkers and the unimaginative are cordially invited to start their own thread. (Message edited by gentleman_jon on January 24, 2007) |
Teeps
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 09:00 am: |
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No V.I.N. could be a good thing... Salvage title on a real frame, viola! One problem down. |
Mutation_racer
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 09:11 am: |
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sorry it does have a vin and its 19 dig. so no good for the street. i know i race one |
Gentleman_jon
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 09:19 am: |
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Anthony - Am I imagining things or did I possibly detect a negative thought? As in "no good for the street"? And your work-around is? Don't worry Anthony, no one is going to put YOUR bike on the street. We are taking about the ones that never made it to the track, and are just sitting around, paitiently waiting to come to life. (Message edited by gentleman_jon on January 24, 2007) |
Spiderman
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 09:38 am: |
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a little welding and a number stamp kit can change all your VIN worries. Not that I know of such things |
Court
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 09:53 am: |
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>>>>As the XBRR racing program fades into the past I wouldn't sell your BUELL RACING shirt too quickly . . . but, hey, that's just me.
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Gentleman_jon
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 10:01 am: |
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VERY OUTSTANDING SPIDEY!! Now we are getting somewhere!! NEXT? I was just thinking of something like buying a used XB12 frame with a good title, doing a number transplant. Not that I would know anything about that!! Anyone got any ideas on the starter thingy? Back in the day, push starting was the order of the day, and hard core street racers did it all the time. Too old for that now, and the motors are a lot bigger. |
Josh_cox
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 10:10 am: |
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You can put a standard Long frame on it. Viola street legal frame. The firebolt tail section bolts to it without modification. Tada, passenger seat. We installed a standard XB starter, battery, cables, relay, etc. We had to make a battery box, but it was no big deal. Street worthy electric start, done. The real challenge will be getting it to run well on street fuel. Have fun on the dyno. |
Gentleman_jon
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 11:11 am: |
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TOTALLY EXCELLENT KNOWLEDGE, JOSH!! You mean you already solved the starter problem? I can't believe it !! Did the starter just bolt right in? May I ask why you decided to fit a starter? Not that I don't think it is a good thing, even on a race bike. It looks like my original five problems have been pretty much solved day one! AWESOME!! Never underestimate the collective power of the Bad Webber Brothers. Now there just remains the tuning thing: getting it to run well on street fuel, and at street speeds. As this bike claims to have the largest throttle bodies ever fitted to a Vee Twin, there could be some slow speed issues. Have I overlooked anything else? Anyone know if a six speed tranny will fit? I believe this gearbox has the requisite trap door. Your thoughts, my brothers? PS. I'm thinking I will set mine up as a naked, something like the Firebolt. Don't need a fairing, and I don't want to hide the motor. . |
Josh_cox
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 11:14 am: |
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We fitted a starter because we are endurance racing. In the event of a fall and the bike shutting off, we need to be able to start it again. The cranking compression of the RR is over 200 psi making the bike near impossible to push start. |
Gentleman_jon
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 11:20 am: |
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Thanks, Josh. Figured it might be something like that. Not quite like push starting my Parilla 250cc Gran Sport after a trip through the weeds!! The starter and all the related gear just bolted in? If I recall properly, Buell may have had some "detuning" spec.s for horsepower limited classes. Ring a bell, anyone? . |
Hughlysses
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 12:07 pm: |
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Seems like the easiest thing to do would be to buy a complete XB street bike and swap over the appropriate goodies (engine, suspension, bodywork, brakes). Hey, black_sunshine's got an XB9S with a seized engine for sale... |
Hughlysses
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 12:08 pm: |
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Hey, any chance someone could post a scan from the parts book? I'd sure like to see what the new oiling system looks like behind the cam cover on that engine. Looks like it must be a totally different arrangement from previous Buell & Sportster V-twins. |
Gentleman_jon
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 12:46 pm: |
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Excellent point Hugh. Actually, since I already have the competition swing arm, and the Ohlins rear shock and steering damper, and they are in the XB 12S frame that doesn't hit my knees all I really need for the fun to start is; 1. The motor, suitably fitted with a starter of course. 2. Figure out how to get the motor to run on the street. I could use the Ohlins front fork, but the standard wheels and brakes should be just fine for road use. Hmmm................. |
Jbar
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 01:45 pm: |
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To all: I'm in the process of adapting the XBRR for track days, not the street...so here goes with several thoughts: Starter: I'm putting in a used XB12R starter (evidently, all of the 12s use the same starter) and wiring in a Taylor Vertex Power Plug (quick disconnect used for drag racing) with #2 cables. The starter switch and relay all are in the bike. I'll be starting the bike in the pits with a Automotive Starter Battery/Charger Combo. Negative is if I stall on the track, i'll will have to get the Combo unit to the bike OR push it to the pits (that'd be the pits!). Fuel: The XBRR is 12.5:1 and used 114 Octane Rockettbrand racing fuel (www.rockettbrand.com) (about $8.00 per gal). But that's sort of, if you have to worry about gas prices, you shouldn't be playing...! Don't know anything about detuning for 91 octane, but guessing it won't be easy... Instrumentation: Tach only...no lights, turn signals, etc. AND not the standard XB12 harness...it could be retrofitted, but it has a tiny battery...would have to, like Josh_Cox says, fit a bigger, standard XB12 battery... Exhaust: Josh_cox, how loud is it??? Guessing that it's a cop magnet...! That's my thoughts on the subject... |
Glitch
| Posted on Wednesday, January 24, 2007 - 02:47 pm: |
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Another drawback would be the extra short OEM parts list...
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Gentleman_jon
| Posted on Thursday, January 25, 2007 - 07:29 am: |
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Glitch - That is a pretty short list: a mere 14 items. Especially when you consider that I, and many other owners, have already upgraded the following: 1. Shift lever to CRG 2. Engine shift lever to Cross roads 3. Brake pedal assembly to Crossroads 4. Clutch lever to CRG 5. Right foot peg to LSL 6. Left foot peg to LSL 7. Rear muffler straps to s/s hose clamps That doesn't leave too much. A couple of gaskets, inspection ports and the clutch cable. And lots of guys are going with electric or hydraulic clutch. Bright spot: Many Bad Webbers will already know where to get a lot of special parts - they definitely will need to. |
Jbar
| Posted on Thursday, January 25, 2007 - 07:43 am: |
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After talking to Josh yesterday, I've changed my mind about the starter/battery. I'm going to put a standard sealed XB12R battery and wire in the starter AND the Taylor Vertex jack in parallel so that I can use aux power in the pit and still be able to start it on the track. It'll need a special battery box, which may need to be fab'd... Also, no speedo means no odometer. Any ideas out there about how to track either miles driven or engine hours for tracking maintenance? Maybe a data logging system tied to the the ECM? I know that I could use a Hobbs meter, which is used in aircraft to track track engine hours, but those are general old "steam gauge" size... |
Gentleman_jon
| Posted on Thursday, January 25, 2007 - 08:49 am: |
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Mike, You might be able to use Dakota Digital universal Inductive speed sensors. With their 2 1/16" speedometer with odometer and resettable trip indicator.
There may be other models out there, but the idea is an inductive sensor, and small gauge will give you the info you need without adding much weight or requiring a mechanical connection. |
Glitch
| Posted on Thursday, January 25, 2007 - 11:49 am: |
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Yes, but Jon those are ALL the parts on the bike that are OEM. The XBRR parts book alone is 73 pages! |
Spiderman
| Posted on Thursday, January 25, 2007 - 12:02 pm: |
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Quit bein a buzz kill
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Jbar
| Posted on Friday, January 26, 2007 - 01:33 am: |
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Thanks, Gentleman_jon, for you info on speedos/odometers...! |
Rick_a
| Posted on Saturday, January 27, 2007 - 03:27 pm: |
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A quality bicycle speedo works well. I've since made a CF dash with a small bargraph tach. |
Jimidan
| Posted on Sunday, January 28, 2007 - 06:23 pm: |
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Since Buell only made 56 of these bikes (and I think one can assume that the factory will keep the 6 of them they now have), and fewer than 10 of them will be racing this year (can anyone name even 10?), how long will Buell continue to make parts for these bikes? How long will they be selling parts? How much will the used parts cost? Who will be able to afford to race them? jimi |
Jimidan
| Posted on Sunday, January 28, 2007 - 06:39 pm: |
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Actually, there are two XBRR's for sale on ebay right now! Buy one and start your own race team! I just checked ebay and Glendale (CA) HD/Buell is selling their's straight out of the crate...it is at $16,100 right now, which is not up to the reserve. I would say that the reserve is $30,000 Plus. Then there is Rich Cronwrath's bike, and the starting bid is $30,000, with a Buy It Now price of $40,000, being sold by Classic Sales, a car auctioning company...here is the description: "You are looking at the 2007 XBRR that was campaigned by Mike Hale for Classic Harley-Davidson/Buell of Reading in the 2006 AMA Formula Extreme series. This bike is Serial Number 11...that's the 11th bike built by Buell and the first production bike that was delivered to a dealer. The first 10 models had been used during the Daytona 200 by the Buell factory team. This bike has produced 143 rear wheel horsepower on a Superflow Dyno and was good enough to run in the top 10 at the AMA level. After the 2006 season ended, the bike was torn down, cleaned and maintained, then reassembled to original condition. It is ready to run for a racer or can be easily stored for a collector. This bike is for off road, race track use only and can not be registered for use on the street. The buyer will get a valid title as proof of ownership. Because this is a track only bike, there is no odometer so miles are unknown. The bike was run for about 400 miles on the track, but an exact number of miles is unknown. If you have any questions about this bike or its history, please feel free to ask." Check out the cool photos: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Buell-XBRR-BUELL-XB RR-RACE-BIKE-BRAND-NEW_W0QQitemZ230082770897QQihZ0 13QQcategoryZ6704QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZView Item I will bet that Erik is absolutely sick about seeing his pride and joy going up on the public block to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. |
Anonymous
| Posted on Sunday, January 28, 2007 - 11:13 pm: |
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The bikes will have parts available for them for a long time. I have no idea why everyone is going into a tizzy that there isn't a factory team. There never was supposed to be; the bike was always built for privateers. So why would anyone ever think parts wouldn't be available, unless they want to start bad rumours and discourage people from racing them. Lots of races will be won in the coming years by XBRRs, and the parts will be there. Probably upgrades too as more is learned. I'll bet Erik isn't sick; after all what if someone buys it and wins a championship? That's be cool! |
Jbar
| Posted on Sunday, January 28, 2007 - 11:23 pm: |
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Rick, how does your bicycle speedo work and what brand is it? Does anyone have any suggestions for a data collection/telemetry transmitting rig. Does any XBRR owner know if the the existing sensors can be connected to such a rig, particularly one that could be used for track times? It looks like that the standard sensors (plus a few) are all there. Finally, how is the "lean angle" sensor used by the bike? Is it an input into the ECM? Thanks everyone! |
Court
| Posted on Monday, January 29, 2007 - 08:55 am: |
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The XBRR's will be around and produced for some time. I suspect that parts, 10 years hence, will be as available as parts for an S-2 are today. Most of what you hear has a much merit as a Ducati rider coming off the throttle due to his visor fogging. . . Ya gotta love the internet . . . |
Blake
| Posted on Monday, January 29, 2007 - 03:39 pm: |
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Court and Anonymous speak the truth. I'll go you one further. Ya gotta love people . . . Which then leads to the notion that I often express, "people are funny." |
Court
| Posted on Monday, January 29, 2007 - 05:30 pm: |
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I giggle everything someone tells me they can't get parts for an S-2 as I think of a pile of 5,000 of one item that sits there waiting to be ordered by S-2 owners. . . Hey. . . we were optimists and Dave Gess told us we'd save money by ordering in quantity. You'll recall that originally Buell was to be JUST 300 S-2 and it was a wrap. When we passed that, well . . we thought we'd be making S-2's till we had grandkids! Optimists.
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