to boost or not to boost...that is the question

[tomahawk1976]

I'm sure since I am new and about to destroy a "perfectly good Buell" I will make no friends with this post...although I am guessing I will have a lot of take-off parts, so my loss your gain. I want to keep stock bike dimensions as close to original as possible to hopefully retain some of the Buells awesome handling. The rest of the bike is going in a small rigid frame with narrow drag bars and a high tunnel peanut tank. I don't want to be able to smoke every jap bike on the road, just every other Harley I ride with. I am looking for some suggestions, as to ---am I better off going with a big bore kit and some perf. upgrades or just go "all-out" with a turbo and call it a day. I hav searched and read all the turbo stuff on the site...I am still up in the air, although a turbo on a rigid frame bike would be "interesting" to say the least. Any thoughts...opinions???---thanks

 

[mrlogix]

I want to keep stock bike dimensions as close to original as possible to hopefully retain some of the Buells awesome handling.

If your going to ride it on the street I would hope you would want to keep all of the Buell's awesome handling. Sounds like your going for a street/drag bike. In drag racing, power to weight is everything with aero second, but in street riding ( turning left and right) the Buell's awesomeness and secret is in the handling. It already has a good power to weight ratio and like I have taught my kids, once I get up to speed, I don't have to slow down as much as the other guys. Buy a V-Rod for the 'boosted bike drag racer', strip the weight down and keep the Buell for the good stuff.
Just my opinion.

 

[buellxb9rs]

Keep the buell as is, anything you build will weigh more and it's not going to have the buell characteristics at all

 

[chief_of_smoke]

agree.

 

[mrNICEGUY]

How much more do you guys think it will weight with a turbo setup? A maximum 1meter aluminium intake pipe and 7,5 kg turbo.

20pounds less, 20pounds more... Irrelevant shit if you gain over 50% more power and torque.

 

[Fatty SS]

The OP isn't talking about adding a turbo to a stock Buell, he's talking about using the Buell engine in a frame up custom build from scratch. With a rigid rear end, no less.

Good handling is a function of many factors, one if them being traction. Removing suspension in the rear will destroy traction over bumps. If you want to retain the Buell's awesome handling, retain the Buell's suspension. And chassis. Dare I throw out an absolute here, but some random guy in his garage will not be able to build a turbocharged rigid frame bar hopper that handles as well as a factory produced sport bike.

 

[mrlogix]

some random guy in his garage will not be able to build a turbocharged rigid frame bar hopper that handles as well as a factory produced sport bike.

[up][up]

 

[captain chaos]

Why not just keep your grubby hands off the Buell parts and make your abomonation with a Sporty engine. The loss of a Sportster is nothing but a Buell's are a limited source.
What you're suggest is just that too, an abomonation.
You will NEVER get a rigid frame bike to handle ANYTHING like a Buell, I don't care how god of a builder/designer you are. In fact, to even mention 'Buell handling' and 'rigid' in the same sentence show a lack of understanding as to what it actually takes to get a good handling bike or what a "Buell's awesome handling" even is.

Buells are no more and there will never be any more of them. NOTHING makes me want to puke more than someone hacking one up for parts to make some rigid framed 'look at me' chopper. [down]

 

[jetlee]

I don't want to be able to smoke every jap bike on the road, just every other Harley I ride with.

My Blast smokes most Harley's in my area. My XB has beat most jap bikes I've lined up against until they reach 27862348623rpm and scream away.

If your XB is not beating Harley's, you have other issues and a turbo isn't going to help it.

 

[brock]

Well you obviously going to get alot of shit doing what your doing on this forum.
But i wouldn't take a perfictly good buell and put the parts into a chopper. i would just poke around the forum and see who has what because your only going to use an engine, front forks, trees and wheels. thats what im doing on my build. i put a new front end and rear on my bike and wheels and used the rest on my rigid frame, then picked up a engine from someone on the forum from a salvage bike. i used a buell engine simply because it has more hp then the harley engines for the comparable year and i got it for a good price.

Keep you buell, and shop around for parts that you need to complete your rigid.

 

[Xb12sLt]

27862348623rpm

Hhahahhaha

 

[theMelvster6]

^^^^All these guys are purists...probably not going to get any support here. Let me add some valid advice, the XB engine was never designed to be rigid mounted. Unless you can figure out a similar isolation system as what's on the BUELL XBs, you''ll eventually break something. Usually it's a cracked head where people fab up some rigid mount where the isolator is supposed to go.

 

[mrlogix]

alright guys, lets not kill him on his first post...That being said, if you really want a rigid street drag go with a V-Rod (different) or big bore like a BullDog 107 CID engine and custom trans then add the pressure cookers. You'll soon find out that yeah your the fastest but your back is killing you. So earn the street cred with the Harley Guys by beating them fast and often, then live off the glory tales. OR keep the Buell, light power mods, and just leave everybody behind slowly and surely on all the rides, first at the bar for the next round (and since it not killing your back, it wont be killing the ladies backs either and they will want to ride with you and not the other guys) and be a long term HERO......

 

[theMelvster6]

You guys talk like you have an expendable income...The Buell motor makes good HP stock, something sporty guys spend thousands of $$$ to get in the same ball park. You can pick up an XB12 engine for $2k or less, that's why people covet them. I can't knock the guy for that part...

 

[jetlee]

The OP is catching shit because he wants to butcher a perfectly good XB12.

As Brock said, take a wrecked/salvaged/parted-out bike and build from that. Breathe new life into an engine destined for scrap instead of damning a perfectly good Buell.

imo, if he wants to build it then more power to him (see what I did there?)! I just think it's ridiculous to chop up a perfectly good motorcycle to do so.

 

[WIGGLE2]

^^ EXACTLY!! Well said. You wouldn't take an RS/SS Camaro that is original and/or complete and chop it up to make a pro-street car.....and if you did....you should have your head examined. Same deal here...........

 

[mrlogix]

No, I understand. I have 21 and 20 year sons, and they are just starting to get interested in motorsports. They remind me of the gentlemen above, but it is up to us as experienced wiser riders on the forum to educate them on practicality of choices. Just because it makes preliminary sense doesn't mean it's the right way to go about it. Yes, the XB motor is better out of the box than a stock sporty, but Buell's are a limited commodity and the end result isn't worth the endeavor, but it is just my opinion from experience. I've some stupid mods in my lifetime (V-8 Vegas, Big Block Chevette, small block Porsche, etc., etc.) and spent a whole lot of money.

 

[tomahawk1976]

I expected to get shit for it...I have thick skin and you guys are pretty mild compared to my friends...they are Buell "purists" too. I had an M2 Cyclone I picked up to chop years ago...rode it for 6 years and couldn't bring myself to do it----it was just a good lil bike. But I paid $3500 for my bike and if I wanted to retain just the motor I could get a good return on investment from the takeoff parts. You should see what I did to a perfectly nice 1941 Knuckle motor---would make the Harley purists cry---hahaha...Thanks for the advice. It is greatly appreciated

 

[turboraven]

I would recommend "enhancing" what you already have (XB12) by doing a big bore kit. This will allow you to keep all the handling dynamics of the XB platform yet give you that extra umph you're obviously in search of.

I had a great experience with Dan at Hammer Performance completing my XB engine build.

 

[WIGGLE2]

He doesn't care about the Buell aspect of it...........that's obvious. How you can even BEGIN to associate anything with a rigid frame to a Buell is enough of a statement in itself. A buell off the showroom floor will handle ANY Harley on ANY road, AND take 99.5% of them in a straight line as well. I'm not sure how they invented crack.............