Gotta have one!!

[Trooper]

Im sitting in afganistan with the canadian army, and the first thing im doin when i get home is getting a Buell Lightning XB12s long, at least this is what i want, i have loved the look and sound of these beasts for years, and i need a tour toy, is there any advise i can get on what im getting into, i am a 20 year Honda man, but this bike has my attention, not that everything hasnt been said on this site, very helpfull on choosing this bike.

 

[bad juju]

xb12 are very tourqie!i beleive it is a great twin and probly one of the funnest sport bike's to ride!inline 4's can get you into alot of trouble if you rap em up good the xb is a very good choice.

 

[Trooper]

and to further this, im buying new and want to get everything done to it before i bring it home, what are must have aftermarket parts to get, and what is the best sounding exhaust, i might as well get it all put into one big price in the beginning, from past experiance its harder to save up the $$$ after you get it. and i hate the rear bracket, were do i get one of them LED lights??

 

[LeFox]

hi & welcome!

you'll have lots of fun with the bike!

1. before installing performance aftermarket stuff, i would gently break it in...stock.

2. the fender eliminator can be mounted from the start and you can get at several webshops, like:
trojan-adrenalin
american sport bikes (asb)
ironmachine

3. best sounding exhaust is personal prefference...

 

[Trooper]

Is there a way to hear the exhuast systems, ive tryed utube but the sound usually blows, i want that deep bass sound, loud but not deafining.

 

[dave_xb12r]

Sounds to me like you want a Drummer. Here is a link to sound clips and all the info you could want for comparing exhausts. exhaust shootout

When you do get the exhaust, there are a few things you should buy at the same time. Along with whatever pipe you buy, you'll want an open airbox mod, a breather reroute, a K&N, a servo eliminator, a directlink key, and a ECM remap for your specific mods. All is available at www.americansportbike.com. But like Lefox said, break it in first. Make sure you remap, its better than a race ECM and will give you better performance and the most important part, will make your engine last longer.

 

[Trooper]

thanks for the info, i didnt know there was that much involved in an exhuast change.

 

[dave_xb12r]

If you want a healthy running and long lasting motor there is. I've been waiting on doing everything because I want to do it right. If I was to get a K&N, i would need to remap or get a race ECM. Same goes for a open airbox mod. Intake mods change the air/flow ratio. Exhaust changes back pressure and other crap. Any change requires a tuning on the ECM, thats why its better to just do it all at once. I think the total for the stuff I mentioned is around $900 not including the core charge for the muffler. You can contact the web site I showed you, tell them what mods you will have and send them your ECM, and they will unlock it with that directlink key you purchased, and remap according to the mods you have. The better option is dynoing, but it's tough finding a place to do it because you have to have a bung on the header

edit:typo

 

[Trooper]

so you have an xb12r what is that, i am goin with the xb12ss long because of size and the occation that my wife will actually get on, i am 5'11", i have read the long will be fine for my size but the bikes are still small compared to others,by the time i get out of this sand box itll be march of 09 so i may just wait for the 2010 modle, if i can.
i really like the 04- 06 modles but they really havent changed much have they?

 

[dave_xb12r]

If your concerned with the breaks, definitely get an 09. It has a 8 piston caliper, rather than a 6. Plus the engine is all blacked out and in my opinion, looks way better than older versions . There are a few other updates made in 08, like a different oil pump I think. The computer is also updated, but I'm not sure if it is tunable yet. The XB12Ss is a good bike for tall or big guys. It has a slightly longer frame and swing arm than the regular XB12S or my XB12R. The XB12Ss also has a larger capacity fuel tank.

 

[rah7777777]

There are tons of exhausts to pick from.
I would personally go with a
www.specialops-online.com
or a www.kdfab.com
Both of these guys are small time guys and do GREAT work! I actually have a special ops on the way right now! I have the race pipe installed and it sounds nice, but i'm looking for a bit more sound.

with the LED lights you have a few choices...
www.americansportbike.com
www.xblights.com (my favorite )
www.clearalternatives.com ( very very crappy! email me and I will show you the proof!!!!)

Over all i'm sure you will LOVE the BUELL!

Keep it safe over there!
-Robert

 

[Trooper]

hay thanks for all the different site for parts, i was worried about them being hard to find parts for, and i know im going to love this bike its a long time commin, i have learned alot in the past few days from every body here, glad ther is a goot support system for Buells, thanks again

 

[mrdozer2you]

If you plan on sinking money into aftermarket right away why not look for a used one? Get something fairly new with low miles. Buy all your aftermarket parts, and find someone to put them all on for you [up] That way you save a bundle, can buy more stuff, and have it ready when you get home .

 

[Trooper]

I have been thinkin about goin used after some of the feed back ive been getting, and the dealers dont really no much about anything but but the price of a new unit, i was wondering about buying state side, and what the deal is for bringing it across the border, what is involved with that. i think i will have a hard time to find used in canada, you dont see to many around.

 

[mrdozer2you]

i was wondering about buying state side, and what the deal is for bringing it across the border, what is involved with that.

You will have to pay Duty for sure....but the deal you could get, plus a good exchange rate could far outweigh the hassle. ( Do you have any relatives living in the States? Because then they could purchase the bike and "gift" it to you duty free [smirk] )
I have a brother-in-law living in Windsor....did that with a car...it works.

 

[jsg]

The only problem with trying to get an exhaust from the dealer here in Canada is it will probably be limited to Jardine, not that it's a bad thing but lots of people seem to like the Drummer or Special ops and these two are rarely available at a dealer. Sometimes some US dealers can have them but still not very often from what I read. Where are you based in Canada? It might facilitate your purchase but from what I saw when I was on the West Coast (Comox) and now in the East (Valcartier) I havent seen any other exhaust then the Jardine at a dealer and that's if I could get a aftermarket one.

It seem's like most not all of the dealers here up in Canada have even less interest in Buell then the US ones, from my experience and it's only in 2 provinces I found 2 places where you can be sure to find a sale man that like Buell and it's Trev Deeley in Vancouver and Premont H-D in Quebec city.

This is only my .2 cents

 

[mrdozer2you]

Thunder Road Harley is pretty cool.....Windsor, ONT. I was riding over there and broke my footpeg, I stopped in on a Sunday....they were open . The Buell guy wasn't there, but they helped me find the peg I needed. They even took me in the warehouse to look for it , because they were pretty much clueless. [up][up] for effort though, the guy spent over an hour with me for a $12ish sale. If you tell them what you want I bet they'd get it.

 

[Trooper]

Where are you based in Canada? It might facilitate your purchase but from what I saw when I was on the West Coast (Comox) and now in the East (Valcartier)

Hay jsq, im stationed in petawawa, there is a dealer in pembroke, havnt checked them out yet, cannot get them on email, but i have tryed to deal with ottawa and all the did was give a price list of buells and havent heard from them since, good way to get buisness, lol. You must be in the army also from the two places you have lived, Quebec isnt that far eathier, maybe ill check them out, im in afganistan till march 09 so ive still got a while to go, but im thinking of getting used now after reading up on them and getting feed back from here, im to impatient to go threw the breakin period ( really should get new but ill see) i want exhuast and all the goodies when i buy it so its done, this is going to be my first newer bike and i dont want to work on it i wanna drive it.

 

[jsg]

Yep Trooper in the air force. From Pet. you might want to check out moto international in Montreal but I have no clue how they are with Buell since I have never been there. The other place I forgot is the H-D/Buell deaker in Barrie I was there in 02 and one of the saleman owned a Buell and seem to know his **** so it might be a option since you wouldn't pay the higher sales taxes of that French place where I live lol.

PS be safe over there and come back in pone peace to enjoy you new bike. I should be there next Oct 09 or Apr 10 with the Shinnoks.