Need a Little Newbie Help

[Merddyn]

Hi all. By the title you can guess that yes, I am a newb. I just bought a 2007 Firebolt XB12R used with 3200 miles on it. This is my first bike and I must say that I LOVE it!! As a little background on me, I live a little north of Dallas, TX. I am 31 years old and work in computers for a living.

Unfortunately, I am having two minor problems that I wanted to get some advice on.

1. The heat on the inside of my right thigh is almost burn level, even through my jeans. Is there a part of some sort that I can buy that will protect me from this? If so, where can I get it? Obviously this is only significant when stuck in stop and go traffic but, as I use the bike for commuting, at least some stop and go is inevitable. I know from my research so far that the heat is normal, but surely there has to be a way to keep from getting burned.

2. My commute ride is 26 miles one way and my hands keep going numb. Is this something that will clear up with time as I gain experience or am I doing something wrong?

Also, while I am asking questions anyway, about how many miles on avg do you guys get off of one tank of gas? I know when the indicator comes on that I should get fuel ASAP, but does anyone know roughly how many miles I can get once the light comes on? I live kind of out there a ways and there are no fuel stations closer than 10 miles of my house so I want to make sure I don't run out of gas. I don't like to push my tank to the limits, but I have to know what the limits are so I can avoid them lol.

I appreciate the help on this.

 

[JSW07]

Well I'm not sure about miles wise but in Km's you should get anywhere from 40-60k when the light comes on. I guess that adds up to approx. 25-38 miles?

 

[jackson08]

loosen up on your grip on the handle bars, holding to tight causing most if not all that problem. [up]

 

[JSW07]

I personally never have a problem with numbness in my hands...try those other grips from Buell, they say they help with vibration. http://www.buell.com/en_ca/gear/acc...2&ProductLineID=3&CategoryID=7&ProductID=1288

This is from the Canadian Buell site, but I think the prices are very much the same with Accessories.

 

[dmp0001]

how early are you shifting? there is a lot of rumble in the bars below arround 2500rpm. if you are cruising below that number it might cause that

 

[Merddyn]

I will try loosening up my grip, definately good advice jackson08

Thanks as well for your input JSW07. Right now I have the factory grips on the bike so I will look into that as well.

I am pretty familiar with driving a standard transmission with cars so I have been shifting more by feel than RPMs admittedly, but I believe I am not shifting till 3500+ during acceleration dmp0001. It could be that I was too highly geared while running at highway speeds though. I will definately keep an eye on that.

Anyone with ideas on the heat issue?

Thanks for all of your replies thus far. I will be sure to report back the results on implementation of your suggestions.

 

[moogmania]

I don't even notice the leg heat anymore, I think its just something you need to get used to. Every time I let someone ride my Firebolt they bitch and moan about this. But if you are stuck in stop and go traffic, I guess you could get a thicker pair of jeans? I don't know, I live in Florida and I wouldn't want to wear anything to make things hotter than they already are.

As per fuel consumption-- it all depends on your riding style. If I am nice to the bike and riding responsibly I can easily get 140 miles on a tank, but if I feel like I'm racing from every red light and speeding way too much that number can drop to the 100's very quickly.

And vibrations would definitely bother me on my old bike, so I just got a better pair of gloves-- this should help out a bit.

 

[dmp0001]

here in colorado its been down to the high 30's at night, I love that heat!! I agree though you get used to it after a while

 

[slwglide]

The heat will always be there, at least a little. You will notice it less the more you ride the bike. Also I went from a 800 pound cruiser to the xb12r. I noticed the more I road it the more I trained my back to support my weight. The numbness is hardly noticable anymore.

I had no idea how to ride a sport bike when I switched. So I did a track day and bought a book from the trainers. It said to not push up on the tank, but sit back and be on the balls of your feet when ever you can. This worked for me even though it took a while to get used to.

Since this is your first bike I would pop the $150.00 and do a track day. If you learn to ride the firebolt you will enjoy it much more. Wear as much gear as you can afford and don't rush it.

Have fun!!!!!

 

[Merddyn]

Well, another day of bike riding and I thought I would post the results of my testing. Easing up my grip and sitting back a bit more helped with the numbness a lot. Gonna try getting some better gloves next which I think will take me the rest of the way.

As for the heat, I really watched how I was shifting today. Apparently I was shifting at 2500 and not 3500 as I thought. Changing up to better shifting habbits made her run a little cooler, but still almost unbearably hot when having to deal with traffic.

slwglide, I am actually taking a full riders course this weekend to keep me from killing myself. I will look around and see if I can find a place for the track day thing as well.

Thanks for all of your advice and input!

 

[hospitalfood]

special ops make heat shields

 

[Mace]

Yeah I know what the issue is with the heat. I have an 07 xb12r also and I actually live a little closer to the gulf than you too. As it seems that Buell and HD are mapping the EFI real lean from the factory to meet the EPA guidelines. And because we live in a high humidity area this really mess's with the air fuel mixture. I bet at times when you crack the throttle the machine backfires through the airbox or will die. I have taken mine into the shop seven times and had them look at it. They tell me what causes it and that HD or Buell neither one make anything that will resolve the issue. I live about 45 miles from Beaumont and by the time that I get there the frame is almost to hot to touch. It seems that HD had this issue on the new 96's and are putting a EFI upgrade on the machine now from the factory. Just thought that you might like to know why the bike runs real hot. Try something else, try cracking the throttle during the heat of the day and see if it backfires through the airbox. Good luck on finding a fix!!

Mace

 

[slwglide]

This is why the pipes are already gold colored. I had an 2005 superglide and the chrome pipes turned gold within 2 weeks. The dealer told me the same thing as you Mace. These bikes run so lean now.

 

[Mace]

Thats exactly right, its done to meet the CARB specs that the EPA has put in place. At least when you have a Harley, they still make the race tuner for them. But the Buell, they dont nothing for it that won't void the warranty.

 

[natep151]

hey merdyn my step dad has a xb12r i ride it when i can i think it is a superoir machine built around rider comfort i ride a gsxr-600 and with the full fairing the heat is extreme will at stop and very hott while the bike is at high speed.i love the xb power train.if you go to buell main site and check out the 1125r 08 erik goes threw and explains how he has mad the heat problem even better then ever on the 1125.i am in school for harley going into buell in 1 month ill check it out then peace.