Hi Guys,

Hope you're all well. So as I've pointed out in some of my other posts I'm going to be taking my Buell in to my mechanic to give it a going over and making sure it's up to scratch, he's done my track bikes and my regular rides and he's meticulous and most importantly - honest. Call me pedantic but it's a thing I have when buying bikes second hand, unless I know the owner(s) and what they have/haven't done then I just simply don't trust what salespeople will tell me. The first goal is to go with stock parts and no crazy mods (especially during this period of uncertainty) as it will be a daily ride as well, after that happy to mod the ever-loving-s*** out of it and get something else as a daily while keeping the Buell as a weekend joyride.

The problem I'm faced with is which parts to order, for the things I can see and can't see, and what will need replacing or what can be repaired. Given the time to get parts to Australia, even with express shipping - it's something I would rather not do piecemeal and I don't really have the money to buy an entire spare parts warehouse "just in case".

Issues I've noticed:

- Check engine light with "service bike" message on instrument cluster. Now the dealer was all "nahhh the owner before just didn't have the diagnostic tool to clear the ECU error.....but I promise the guy just serviced it at his home workshop....and he had a heap of Buell's" which I call bulls*** on, it was a Suzuki dealership and I will bet anything that they didn't want to shell out for anything bar minimum to get roadworthy and because they'd have to go through Harley Davidson to do servicing (if they won't buy any parts) then they probably just went "lolnahhh". In saying that the bike isn't knocking or running "badly" or at least nothing I've felt/heard.

- Steering head bearing changed: Again this was something the dealer told me which normally says "yeaaaa the guy was popping wheelies and hard landings" but no discernible damage to the forks, no noticeable bends and the wheels are fine, my concern is towards the wheel bearings because for a steering head bearing to be replaced at 24,000km it's playing on my mind.

- Air intake scoop fairings are separating slightly (I'll send through some photos tomorrow morning as it's nearly 2300hrs here) showing it, see what it says to you.

- clutch lever and cable are stock, and the clutch is light with a long pull and short mesh which is more a comfort thing for me (as I'm used to a shorter/mid pull and a heavier mesh, easier to ride the clutch when doing a u-turn or slow motion). At any rate I do want to replace the clutch cable and keep the stock levers in a drawer and exchange for some stubbies. ]

- The belt looks to have caught a stone in the pulley and punctured through the top of the belt, so getting that replaced just as a matter of course.

- Only came with one key, and the ignition barrel flip-lid has some surface scale (rust) on it so I want to replace the keyed parts so I have two proper keys and new locking systems.

If it sounds like I'm being overreactive I promise that the bike rides like a dream and there's nothing that I can see as a major problem that would make me think it's been severely abused or neglected.....like I said I'm just a bit protective of my rides and would rather have them in good nick.
The parts I'm getting:

So the parts I know I'm getting are:

- New tyres (Michelin Pilot Road 5's, really good in the wet which is necessary here....should tell you the time I road 3km through a legitimate oil-slick, couldn't accelerate without spinning the tyres even at speed).

- New clutch cable (Buell OEM stock)

- New shorty levers (will really need your opinions gents, as I want some really nice ones)

- New key/locking assembly (Buell OEM stock)

- Toothed drive belt (Buell OEM stock)

- K&N Filters (oil/air) if they aren't there already

- O-rings/gasket/crush washer for the oil change/filter

- Front brake pads (looking a little lead on the meat, the rotor looks fine)

- Wheel bearings front/rear (will be getting Buell OEM this time around in case they turn out to be some super-specific OEM part that not's commonly available here in AUS, and like with the toothed belt, will be taking it to my Bearing/Industrial guy to document and see if he can get something alternative for supply)



The parts I'm thinking about

So this is where I'm a little worried and need your advice, if this were a Jap bike there would be a higher chance that the part would be no more than a day away or at best, 20mins away. So naturally I'm trying to be prepared for now and at least until the next service (30,000km). The general consensus of Buell is that unless it's neglected - nothing breaks, but like I said above; as I don't have the service history I'm a bit concerned about not having something that might need to be replaced or should just get replaced (due to a common fault).

- Clutch plates?

- Relays? Electrical components?

- Brake rotors?


Really looking forward to your thoughts and hope you're all enjoying your easter long weekend.