Does Anyone Have Any Buell Thoughts?

Big_Jim59

Big_Jim59

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So now that I have a little money in my pocket I hate that it's not tied up in a motorcycle project. Several years ago I had a 2001 Buell M2 Cyclone. It was the tube frame first gen Buell. It was heavy, slow (topped out at 97mph) but was very planted and a dream to tour on. I kind of have a Jones for another one. I sold the M2 due to the weight and the stupid parts availability but man! it was pretty (to me anyway.) I have been eyeballing a 2005 Lightning. This is the second gen with a monococ frame and a Sportster mill without at transmission trapdoor.

Someone please talk me down from this idea.
 

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Well when I bought my first Buell the guy selling it was 62 years old, my brother and I thought that's pretty old to be riding this type of bike. It had clip on's and was a 96 S1. A few years later I purchased another one that was a 98 S1W, I ended up selling the first one but still have the S1W. I'm going to turn 64 this summer and just can't sell it for two reasons, (1) I have so much money tied up in this bike that I'll never get it back and. (2) It's such a fun bike to ride. But this summer I'm going to the Davenport Swap Meet to sell a bunch of my motorcycle stuff and am going to bring it and see if anyone is interested, I'm going to put $5,500 on it and see if anyone is interested in it. I'm really getting to old to be on it, LOL
 

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Hortons Norton said:
Well when I bought my first Buell the guy selling it was 62 years old, my brother and I thought that's pretty old to be riding this type of bike. It had clip on's and was a 96 S1. A few years later I purchased another one that was a 98 S1W, I ended up selling the first one but still have the S1W. I'm going to turn 64 this summer and just can't sell it for two reasons, (1) I have so much money tied up in this bike that I'll never get it back and. (2) It's such a fun bike to ride. But this summer I'm going to the Davenport Swap Meet to sell a bunch of my motorcycle stuff and am going to bring it and see if anyone is interested, I'm going to put $5,500 on it and see if anyone is interested in it. I'm really getting to old to be on it, LOL
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Oh what a beautiful bike but you are not helping my dilemma. I am kind of in the same place that you are. I have no business being on that type of bike but they are, laugh out loud, fun! I think the tube frame Buells are more sought after than the later models and $5000 seems about right considering what I have seen.
 
Big_Jim59 said:
So now that I have a little money in my pocket I hate that it's not tied up in a motorcycle project. Several years ago I had a 2001 Buell M2 Cyclone. It was the tube frame first gen Buell. It was heavy, slow (topped out at 97mph) but was very planted and a dream to tour on. I kind of have a Jones for another one. I sold the M2 due to the weight and the stupid parts availability but man! it was pretty (to me anyway.) I have been eyeballing a 2005 Lightning. This is the second gen with a monococ frame and a Sportster mill without at transmission trapdoor.

Someone please talk me down from this idea.
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Stop eyeballing it & buy it immediately! They are the most fun you can have with your clothes (leathers) on. I have a 2004 Firebolt 1200 & love it, & a good mate has a 2008 Lightning 1200 which he would not part with.
 
If this helps, my "buddy" swares these are going to be the next collectable bike on the market! I had a chance to see their new 175hp sport touring bike, it was impressive! Asked about engine looking like earlier Rotax, I was told it was not, but a assembly of international parts designed by Roland Sands and Bue!ll
 
mean gene said:
If this helps, my "buddy" swares these are going to be the next collectable bike on the market! I had a chance to see their new 175hp sport touring bike, it was impressive! Asked about engine looking like earlier Rotax, I was told it was not, but a assembly of international parts designed by Roland Sands and Bue!ll
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I am past holding things for 20 years in the hope that it incenses in value. I've watched Vincent's decline from the heady days of the 1990s so who can tell what people will want in the future? Buells have a couple of things going against them. They never sold well when new. Harley riders (along with the Motor Company) hate them with a passion that is only reviled by their hatred for Aermacchi Sprints and Topper scooters. The Buell tends to have more of a cult following with adherents getting knowing glances at bike nights and novices talking in hushed whispers about the Harley sport bike that almost was.

I truly am glad to have owned one. I got to take it on the road a wring it out a bit and it was quite fun.
 
mean gene said:
If this helps, my "buddy" swares these are going to be the next collectable bike on the market! I had a chance to see their new 175hp sport touring bike, it was impressive! Asked about engine looking like earlier Rotax, I was told it was not, but a assembly of international parts designed by Roland Sands and Bue!ll
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Period moto-mag articles mentioned it was a Rotax made engine.
 
Matchless said:
Stop eyeballing it & buy it immediately! They are the most fun you can have with your clothes (leathers) on. I have a 2004 Firebolt 1200 & love it, & a good mate has a 2008 Lightning 1200 which he would not part with.
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The "05 Lightning I am looking at lacks a title and it looks like it might not be in the best condition. I can get the paper work straightened out but it is a huge pain. The fuel injection system and ignition systems worry me. Parts availability worries me as well.
 
Many years ago, I was riding at Calder Raceway and Don Emde was there riding the KRTT Harley Racer. It was quite quick, but stuffed a timing side main bearing. I have considered an S1 Buell - the tube frame looks half-decent. But I do not think it is possible to buy a decent gearbox for the Sportster motor. In their 5 speed boxes, 5th gear seems to be an overdrive. High overall gearing with close ratios is good with a torquey motor.
 
It makes me laugh when Harley owners think other bikes are horrible. One of my mates owns a Drixton Aermacchi 350 racer. When I was young, I was too ignorant. A motorcycle dealer offered to sell me an Aprilia 250 Production Racer - I did not know what it was. All the others were 175cc.
 
I like to think of the Buell as the modern equivalent to the Norton. It uses a high torque, low reeving, antiquated lump of an engine pared with an innovative, isolastic frame that provides world class handling. Oh. . . and I forgot to saw that both brands had a dedicated group of devotees.

As far a Harley owners go I think it's more fundamental than thinking other bikes are horrible although that's part of it. My buddy is a big Harley guy and we talked about our preferences. He hates riding with his head down in front with low bars. For me, a sport bike guy, I hate the whole "lounge chair" or "gynecological exam" riding position. To each his own. I once had a guy comment, when he saw me ride up on my Buell, "I would hate to have my head out there in front of me like that. It would be the first thing at the wreck!" For me, I would feel stupid in a crash if I didn't have control of my bike. Once again, to each his own.

The Harley Aermacchi 350 road racer has always been a favorite of mine.
 
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Some people worry about crashing motorcycles - mostly we just get slung up the road harmlessly. But a Harley is a big bike to have jumping on you.
The Drixton Aermacchi 350 racer is really good stuff, I first saw it when my mate was looking at it. He got to it ahead of me. He has actually had 3 350 Aermacchi racers. Any 350cc Yamaha would be faster, but nowhere near as much fun. I find that racing two-strokes do not inspire me.
Some years ago two of my friends were at the IOM and watched Bill Horsman win the Junior Classic TT with a 350 Aermacchi. I would not be brave enough to race there.
 
As I understand it, the horizontal cylinder layout of the Aermacchi 350 had some surprising benefits. To make power you need to have good gas flow. This was achieved through bigger valves but a bigger valve weighed more and that weight required a heaver spring to pull it back fast enough to escape damage or avoid valve float. Heaver springs also pulled the head off the valves. The horizontal cylinder layout of the Aermacchi placed the valves almost horizontal to the ground. The springs only had to move the valve back and forth and didn't have to overcome the resistance of gravity. In other words they would rev too the moon on a lighter spring.
 
The bloom is off the rose on my Buell fetish. I have been obsessively looking on all corners of the Internet and have come to the conclusion that Buell motorcycles have no real value. As a comparison I was looking at Norton values on KBB and they list a "fair" 74 Commando at $4110. They list a 2005 Buell XB12S Lightning average retail as $1525. That's parts bike territory. I have been keeping an eye on the motorcycle ads and there are a number of nice and an equal number of ratty Buells on offer. They just don't sell. And something else, the AccessNorton.com forum is active with a lot of posts from riders and restorers. The Buell forums are just dead. The parts availability issue is not great and these bikes are getting long in the tooth. I really do like the bikes but I guess I don't want to get stuck with one. If one falls into my lap I might buy it but that's the only way.
 
I visited my Harley-loving friend yesterday and we talked briefly about Don Emde and the 750cc Harley racer. He mentioned that bike had a special crank and slipper pistons which were not available to privateers. I suggest those parts do not mean anything. The main thing in building a quicker bike, is about getting a decent multi-speed close ratio gearbox. A Buell could be helped to really perform well. If an S1 Buell is cheap, it would be worth buying and developing. It could be a very nice bike to road race. The late Sportsters had 5 speed boxes, It might involve making a close gear-set.
In about 1972 I was on Calder Raceway at the same time as Don Emde - the Harley 750 was quite quick, but it destroyed a timing-side bearing. That problem was later fixed in the Sportsters. Americans did not know much about race bikes - their frames were crap.

Harley Davidson XR-TT 750

Motorcycle Specifications Overviews and Road Tests
www.motorcyclespecs.co.za www.motorcyclespecs.co.za
 
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My only Buell thought is this: I should have bought a BRAND NEW 1200 sport model when they were on close-out at half price when HD was liquidating them.
 
Big_Jim59 said:
The bloom is off the rose on my Buell fetish. I have been obsessively looking on all corners of the Internet and have come to the conclusion that Buell motorcycles have no real value. As a comparison I was looking at Norton values on KBB and they list a "fair" 74 Commando at $4110. They list a 2005 Buell XB12S Lightning average retail as $1525. That's parts bike territory. I have been keeping an eye on the motorcycle ads and there are a number of nice and an equal number of ratty Buells on offer. They just don't sell. And something else, the AccessNorton.com forum is active with a lot of posts from riders and restorers. The Buell forums are just dead. The parts availability issue is not great and these bikes are getting long in the tooth. I really do like the bikes but I guess I don't want to get stuck with one. If one falls into my lap I might buy it but that's the only way.
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If as you say they are worth bugger all, then why not buy one & have some fun on it. If it goes bang flog it for parts.
They certainly aren't cheap to buy here in the UK. I wish they were.
 
Matchless said:
If as you say they are worth bugger all, then why not buy one & have some fun on it. If it goes bang flog it for parts.
They certainly aren't cheap to buy here in the UK. I wish they were.
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I just saw a 2000 Buell X1 tube frame model for sale pretty close to me. It was parked 10 years ago. Owner passed. No key, no pipes, no FI and no title. I would be upside down just looking at it. The guy wants $600 and I know me. I would start fixing, cleaning and painting. I would replace tires, battery, belt and cables and pretty soon all my fun money would be gone. If it's still around in a month I will probably go and get it.
 
Big_Jim59 said:
I just saw a 2000 Buell X1 tube frame model for sale pretty close to me. It was parked 10 years ago. Owner passed. No key, no pipes, no FI and no title. I would be upside down just looking at it. The guy wants $600 and I know me. I would start fixing, cleaning and painting. I would replace tires, battery, belt and cables and pretty soon all my fun money would be gone. If it's still around in a month I will probably go and get it.
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$600 why not?????
 
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