First Buell - Recommendations for maintenance to do

[merryfknpoppins]

Hello Folks, Really loving this forum. Lots of good information.

I bought my first buell... after a test ride, I had to make an offer. So, after the test ride and purchase I realized my test ride had been less than thorough. Not my first rodeo, but I got a little caught up in it.

First thing I felt riding it home was my lack of front brake test. Front rotor has a shake, I can feel it pulsating through the front brake lever. Brakes are new. Fresh tires had been put on before i bought it. Anyway.. I went ahead and bought a EBR front rotor and mounting kit. Going to mount that late this week and see if it cures it up. I read it could just be a matter of a tight rotor, but it has a slight rattle when its tapped. Seems like what a floating brake should feel like.

As for the next issues.
The fuel pump wines a bit loud. Its probably nothing, but I am currious if you guys have the same audible noise from your fuel pump.

Second. There is a tapping noise from the engine. I've heard some other buells now and I believe it may be abnormal. It doesn't sound like rod nock. My suspicion is worn out hydraulic lifters. Its a little too loud. It does not get worse with higher rpm's. Its a click click, and its at a higher frequency than the pop pop of the motor making combustion.

Point being, I need some advice on what sort of maintenance steps I should take. I would like to make sure there is no potential catastrophic failures ahead of me. I would like to ride until december and then tear it down for a full maintenance cycle. So, tell me what you would do to run through a new purchase to ensure plenty of good riding.

Thanks guys,
Tom

 

[06xbss]

Front rotor shake could just be dirty sliders. Since you bought the EBR rotor and mounting kit that should fix your problem.

You should hear the fuel pump when you turn the key on and ignition switch to "run". If you can hear it while riding then you might want to start looking for a new pump. I put ~2oz of Marvel Mystery Oil in the gas tank every other fill up, it has really helped to keep my fuel pump happy and quieter.(gas with ethanol added is just watered down gas, helps to add some oil back into the mix)

The motor will always make some odd noises, just the nature of the beast. If it's excessively loud then you might have a problem. I would start with changing your oil and put in a quality synthetic.(Lucas, Amsoil, Mobil 1) Put ~500 miles on it and see if there is a change in the noise. Lucas oil quieted down a lot of my motor's odd noises.

Good Luck

 

[merryfknpoppins]

Ordering a 6 pack of Lucas oil. 20W50

Rotor will be in tomorrow. I'm stoked.

Also ordered a fuel pump.. buddy at the parts store hooked me up for $65 for the airtex replacement listed in the buell cross reference list.

Thanks again.

 

[Scottie116]

Ur front end shake could also be wheel bearings or steering head bearings need adjustment. How much was the end kit?

 

[Dave A]

Sell it and buy a sportster. They're heavier and faster all while producing less horsepower.

 

[Enemy Zero]

Sell it and buy a sportster. They're heavier and faster all  while producing less horsepower.

I mean, just look at the size of the frame. The buell has to be heavier. It's simple math.

 

[Gloomshadow]

yeah once you put all that fuel in there , a XB must weigh what? 600 lbs?

 

[merryfknpoppins]

Follow up: Fuel pump is replaced, primary properly tensioned.

Shake in the front end is semi diagnosed. Wheel bearings are a hair off, and the triple tree bearings are detented. I believe Someone put this thing down hard a few times on some wheelies. Biggest thing I see is that the valve stem is not aligned between the two valve stem alignment dots on the tire. I'm going to put some wheel bearings in, have them balance it, see where its at then rebalance if its off with the valve stem in the right place.

Next issue. Valve train noise & running issue... coming back to this one. I put about a 1000 Miles on the bike with Lucas oil in it. No improvement on the noise. Running conditions got worse and worse as the miles wore on, it felt like it was running on and off on 1 cylinder by the end with very very poor throttle response. I threw a new set of spark plugs in and its running well again. Original spark plugs looked normal, with the exception that one looked mis-gapped, but I dropped it when I was removing it so no telling for sure. I got a stethoscope and confirmed the noise is coming from the valve train and the forward cylinder sounds significantly loudest. I'm curious if it develops the same running problems on the new spark plugs.

Considering running some ATF fluid through the oil system to see if it cleans up the hydraulic lifters. If anyone has any advice on that, or a audio file/youtube link of what it should sound like, it would be appreciated.