No more buell

[warsaw1776]

Well, back in June i decided to get rid of the xb9r. It had been a year and i was ready for something new. I loved that bike but honestly i love my new one more. i would love another buell in the future but as a second bike.

for those that care and have not ridden a modern Japanese SS bike here are some differences I've noticed over the past 5k miles on the Honda. keep in mind the suspension of was set for me on both bikes.

The Honda does seem more stable in turns, i also felt kinda big on the buell so that might be what i am feelings. The brakes on the Honda are superb. Better than the buells by far.

My favorite things the Honda has that the buell doesn't:
- more available parts
- bigger and better dealer support if you need it, including independent shops
- Full fairings
- doesn't sound like it is going to fall apart going 100mph
- doesn't vibrate my nuts off
- don't have to ever go to a HD dealer ever again
- doesn't run out of RPM in a long turn. seemed like on the buell i would either start too low in the power and not get the drive out of the turn, or would be in that sweet spot but be redlining while still at full lean.
- people have actually heard of it, was getting sick of explaining what a buell was.
- get lots of compliments

Things i loved about my buell that the honda doesn't have.
- Pretty easy to work on, don't have to remove a bunch of plastic to get to things
- Great sound.
- looked different....in a good way.
- had character and was a blast to ride, even if it couldn't keep up with other bikes
- had all the cool unique features like the brakes, swing are and frame. great conversation piece.
- more compliments from people who actually know bikes, not just ******* pulling up next to me at stop lights.
- more that i cant think of right now

so anyways, going to miss my buell, i loved that thing. but my honda is a great bike too. whoever say 600cc bikes are dickless or have no usable power they are wrong. deff not a beginners bike but neither is a XB. Not saying dont buy a buell just a new experience.

take care everyone and thanks for all the help.

btw i have a brand new throttle cable for sale, i'll put up a classified ad in the future sometime.

 

[anrkizm95]

nice bike[up] via con dios

 

[netty2424]

Good luck! Enjoy the new bike!

 

[netty2424]

Curious, if you don't mind, what did that Honda set you back?

 

[nikfleisch]

To each his own, just see to many hondas, I enjoy when people look at my like im crazy when I tell them there 983CC in my bike that was build 30 miles away from where i live.

 

[thumpin1203]

Hey warsaw, enjoy the new ride!.. Hondas are very well engineered, there is a bazillion of 'em out there.. I was riding them up until I bought my first Buell. I still have a VFR800vtec w/only 2300mi.. it just does everything all to well, and has no quirks.. that is why I love Buells, they have heart, soul, and are a "tinkerers" delight, they throb with charachter and rattle old ladys china cabinets cruising through the neigborhoods... Above all they are AMERICAN made & that means something to me in this day & age.. I just dig the way people young & old stare you down and try to figure out what the F#CK just blew by them..

Vaya con dios ...FROM THE DARK SIDE!

Thump

 

[konarider94]

well all that matters is you like it.

ive ridden modern jap bikes and they are fast but i hate how they lag in the lower rpm, you cant just crack the throttle and go. you have to kick down 2 or sometimes 3 gears from a crusing rpm if you want to take off and pass quickly. the riding position also kills me. on the track im sure they are great but i dont care for them much.

i rode an 1125cr today. oh man im surprised at how fast they are with a very useable power. cant wait for an 1190 i can afford.

 

[Dave A]

An ST1300 may be in my future. I don't care what you ride I just don't like being snubbed.

 

[Zeroflat24]

I have to say I see far less cbrs than gsxrs and yamahas. That said, I would give up certain performances to have the unmatched original features the buells have. I have owned several SS jap bikes and would never go back. Sweet bike though. I'm glad your happy with it [up]

 

[Alfatango1]

ive ridden modern jap bikes and they are fast but i hate how they lag in the lower rpm, you cant just crack the throttle and go.

What on a 600? A liter bike has no lag whatsoever. Any I4 sportbike will kill a 1203 Buell from to get go. It takes like 1 second to make for up the torque on a Buell zero to sixty. Lets not kid ourselves here. When our Buell's hit 7200 RPM redline the Jap bikes have twice that in most cases and are way ahead of us.

 

[Alfatango1]

I have to say I see far less cbrs than gsxrs and yamahas. That said, I would give up certain performances to have the unmatched original features the buells have.

I would be so much more happy if we had a clutch lever that didn't feel so 1980's and a tranny that didn't clunk so much. Even the 1125's still have the same HD BS clutch pull and the six speed still seeks neutral half the time.

 

[RT Performance]

I would be so much more happy if we had a clutch lever that didn't feel so 1980's and a tranny that didn't clunk so much. Even the 1125's still have the same HD BS clutch pull and the six speed still seeks neutral half the time.

The 1125 slush clutch feels like any of the others and the gear box is butter smooth compared to the xb...
I had issues with false neutrals for maybe the first 500 miles i was short and soft shifting (break in)

Back to the op.
Cbr600rr is a great looking bike and yes less than the million Gixxer's. I swear everyone has a gixxer.
Enjoy the new Bike

 

[Alfatango1]

The 1125 slush clutch feels like any of the others and the gear box is butter smooth compared to the xb...

Yes compared to the XB, but not to a Honda clutch to be sure. It's like one of those hand grip exercise deals one would buy from Big 5 back in the day.

 

[thumpin1203]

It's like one of those hand grip exercise deals one would buy from Big 5 back in the day.

Nailed it! LOL

 

[konarider94]

What on a 600? A liter bike has no lag whatsoever. Any I4 sportbike will kill a 1203 Buell from to get go.

yes most of my experience has been on 600's. ive been on a R1 with carbs. but never did i say a buell was faster, i know they arent. and i was more talking about cruising at 50-60 in top gear and wanting to make a pass than from a stop. and they are still uncomfortable

my whole point was that after riding the 1125 today i feel like it really takes away a lot of the short comings of the xb bikes.

i think he's talking about a honda shadow..

thanks for the awesome contribution to the thread. your insight is impressive

 

[warsaw1776]

An ST1300 may be in my future. I don't care what you ride I just don't like being snubbed.

Not trying to snub anyone here man.

What on a 600? A liter bike has no lag whatsoever. Any I4 sportbike will kill a 1203 Buell from to get go. It takes like 1 second to make for up the torque on a Buell zero to sixty. Lets not kid ourselves here. When our Buell's hit 7200 RPM redline the Jap bikes have twice that in most cases and are way ahead of us.

I was worried i would miss the torque of the buell, but driving home i hit 7k and was like damn, that felt a lot like the buell but sharper, then the next day i hit 10k and i almost didn't hang on it pulled so hard.

ive ridden modern jap bikes and they are fast but i hate how they lag in the lower rpm, you cant just crack the throttle and go. you have to kick down 2 or sometimes 3 gears from a crusing rpm if you want to take off and pass quickly. the riding position also kills me. on the track im sure they are great but i dont care for them much.

i rode an 1125cr today. oh man im surprised at how fast they are with a very useable power. cant wait for an 1190 i can afford.

from cruising sure, but on the 9r i would have to drop a gear when in 5th to pass too. plus the buell wasn't super great down low in the RPM either. On the CBR i find myself on the freeway in 4th or 5th and it pulls plenty hard without shifting, or drop a gear and the front gets light.

If i could have afforded a 1125 i would have been really tempted. honestly the biggest draw was available parts, especially used ones. Never going to a HD dealership to order OEM parts was pretty appealing too.

riding position sucks, i am regretting not getting a z1000 or something similar a little bit.

Hey warsaw, enjoy the new ride!.. Hondas are very well engineered, there is a bazillion of 'em out there.. I was riding them up until I bought my first Buell. I still have a VFR800vtec w/only 2300mi.. it just does everything all to well, and has no quirks.. that is why I love Buells, they have heart, soul, and are a "tinkerers" delight, they throb with charachter and rattle old ladys china cabinets cruising through the neigborhoods... Above all they are AMERICAN made & that means something to me in this day & age.. I just dig the way people young & old stare you down and try to figure out what the F#CK just blew by them..

I loved the dumb looks people gave when on the buell, seriously one of my fav things about the bike. it being American was nice, but lets be fair, many if not most parts aren't from America, and buying American doesn't really count when the company doesn't exist thus those US jobs don't exist anymore, but this isn't about American economics or free trade.

the CBR rattles some china cabinets too.

To each his own, just see to many hondas, I enjoy when people look at my like im crazy when I tell them there 983CC in my bike that was build 30 miles away from where i live.

this reminds me about one of my gripes with the buell, or should i say HD motor. 983cc and it feels like a sv650?? i might feel diff if i had a 12r so i dunno. i know when i first got it, with that big motor and big ass belt, i was expecting accidental wheelies left and right. im not a wheelie guy but i remember wheelies on my SV being just as easy or hard.

I LOVED my buell and miss it a lot. I would be very happy to have both, one for performance and one for pure fun but it wasn't in the cards. I have no ill will for buell either, i hope to have another, or even better a EBR. I am a fan of motorcycles and not a fan of one single brand, and right now its time for a Honda.

i just don't want anyone to confuse anything i am saying with me hating on buells or your choice to own one, just sharing my experience with pretty much a completely different bike.

 

[Alfatango1]

yes most of my experience has been on 600's.

600 don't have power until around 8,000 RPM and then they take off. Now a Gix 750 or bigger are rockets, I prefer a 750 for overall feel. My 675 Triumph is a fantastic bike but I may still sell it for something else down the road but it has torque like a twin and 11K rpm like an I4.

I truly hope EBR makes a middle weight and liter bike that have modern components and Erik's unique features that will set them apart from crowd. I've read that the 1190 is a no compromise bike in all aspects.

 

[captain chaos]

this reminds me about one of my gripes with the buell, or should i say HD motor. 983cc and it feels like a sv650?? i might feel diff if i had a 12r so i dunno. i know when i first got it, with that big motor and big ass belt, i was expecting accidental wheelies left and right. im not a wheelie guy but i remember wheelies on my SV being just as easy or hard.

I LOVED my buell and miss it a lot. I would be very happy to have both, one for performance and one for pure fun but it wasn't in the cards. I have no ill will for buell either, i hope to have another, or even better a EBR. I am a fan of motorcycles and not a fan of one single brand, and right now its time for a Honda.

i just don't want anyone to confuse anything i am saying with me hating on buells or your choice to own one, just sharing my experience with pretty much a completely different bike.

You're not alone. I never did jive with that HD engine either. That ultimately lead me to selling mine and buying a Hayabusa.
Harley must have tried, I mean REALLY put forth some effort to design a 1200cc engine that struggles to make much more than 100whp without added displacement. Erik worked wonders on that HD EVO but ultimately the design itself is just terrible for making power.
I absolutely LOVED my Buell's chassis, brakes and suspension (basically everything Erik designed) but that engine just didn't really bring a smile to my face when I cracked it open.


To anyone who thinks the Japanese supersports are lacking in low end (show me a 600cc bike that isn't lacking in torque); try riding one of the big bore versions.[cool] The literbikes are certainly not lacking and the big guns (the ZX14 and Hayabusa) give up NOTHING in terms of torque to the Buell and will almost double and XB's hp if you're crazy enough to keep the throttle pinned to redline. My Busa feels just as strong as my XB12 did below 3000rpm but is 10x smoother and doesn't lug NEARLY as easily. It IS possible to have your cake and eat it too. Now if the big bird (Hayabusa) just could have the FEEL of an XB's chassis....

Now, I'm not raggin' on Buells either. I loved mine and would still like to have another (maybe an 1125CR). From a performance standpoint though, the Japanese, Germans, Italians and pretty much everyone else are WAY ahead of the XB bikes. The XB's are a GREAT platform but their really held back by that HD engine, IMHO.

Anyway, enjoy that Honda. Their GREAT bikes and I'm sure it'll serve you well.

 

[nikfleisch]

I rode an 1125 a couple weeks ago and if this makes sense, actually hated how smooth it was! I love being able to feel it shifting, makes me feel part of the bike!

 

[Alfatango1]

i just get tired of buell people trying to down play a japanese or italian sport bike. especially when all there doing is talking out there ass.

I notice many of the people who talk down on the Japanese bikes are first time bike owners or ones who's last experience was on a 1980's era bike. Sure XB's are better than those bikes, they should be. But many first time owners will say how XB's out handle the competition and that's not true at all. I actually feel turn in is nicer and sharper on the Japanese bikes. I think the short wheel base on the XB affects turn in to where I don't have as much faith in it. I know everyone likes their setup different and I got mine as close as I could but never as flickable as I can on like the Zx10 I'm riding today, and the Gix 750 I rode last week that is fabulous. A the 600's are so light and fun, I don't mind the wait until 8K, it's pretty fun from there.