Hi Guys

Quick hello from sunny hants/berks borders

Looking to purchase my first buell very very soon once i find one suited and thought only to well to join up.

Looking at buying a xb12 firebolt or lightning or possibly a 1125r but am more set on the xb's tbh !!

Anyhows will be on quite a lot very soon once purchased the bike and any pointers / advice etc would be great

Paul

Xb's and 1125's both have their respective faults use the search function to check these out. Like any vehicle, service history and low mileage would be a bonus. Specially if it's been serviced by maz. (extremely thorough) If you see an xbs that fits the bill don't hang about as they usually end up bought by dirty harry and are shipped off to germany quite quickly. Less so the firebolts and 1125s. Best of luck.

Hello
as said above ,do some reading on the pros & cons loads of info on the site
in amongst the usual banter & opinions
forewarned is forearmed

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Feros Ferio

Hi and welcome,

As has been said, definately have a look around here for various known faults (and must-have upgrades). Looking just at the XB series, a very quick run-down is:

Orignal exahust - bad (if its not rusted through yet, it soon will). Albert exhaust - good. Some other after-market options are good, others are bad, depending on what you are looking for. Pretty much any stainless pipe is "good" if longevity is the primary concern.

Original belt tensioner - bad. Free Spirits tensioner - good.

Original oil pump drive gear -bad. Upgraded one - good.

Reflectors still on front fork legs - bad. (Have a good hard look around them for any signs of corrosion behind the reflectors.)

"Maz nipple" fitted - good.

Ask the owner when the wheel bearings and stearing bearings were last changed. (They tend not to last all that long.) Ask when the rear axle was last removed - if the owner can't remember, this is bad. They tend to seize up if not removed, relubricated and replaced quite often. If it has siezed and you are ham-fisted when trying to remove it, you can end up destroying the swinging arm!

Service history is a tricky one: a full Maz history is the ideal (but rare). Don't assume that a full HD dealer service record is any sort of guarantee - some HD dealerships have been guilty of major howlers when servicing Buells. If the current owner has used an independent mechanic / shop, then check around the site to see what sort of reputation they have.

Don't immediately discount a bike because the current owner says he does his own servicing - these are entusiast's bikes and a lot of owners are more than capable of looking after the bike better than somne HD dealers. Any decent "home mechanic" should know the servicing schedule and all the tasks required at each major service and what the service intervals are, so ask what's involved (but make sure you know the "correct" answer first).

No doubt others will be along shortly to tell me that I am completely wrong - that's how this site works, but they are still the best group of people you could ever meet.

so, welcome to the roller-coaster world of (impending) Buell ownership!

Dave

Welcome. DfS has pretty much covered it for the XB's. There is a 9 for sale in Berkshire on a separate thread. How far is that from you? If it is too far, there may be someone on the forum closer who is willing to have a look for you. If you find a good one, snap it up, as has been said - they tend to all end up in Germany! Good luck

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Go big!! Or go Home!!

Hello, from an also relatively new Buell owner.

As all above have said there is lots and lots of info on here.

Watch out for our Southern Softie meet up, usually once a month just watch for the dates on Social.

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Thread Killer

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