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Thread: New Guy

  1. #1
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    New Guy

    Hello all,
    Like to thank the Forum for allowing me to join. I just wanted to say hello to all. I have been looking at the Buell for many years while I was riding Harleys and a few old triumphs and a Z750S that I currently have for sale. For sale because I just picked up a 2004 Buell XB12R last night with 16000 km (9900 miles) on it. Got it for $1800 canadian $1350 US dollars. I did buy it with a known problem which I will begin to work on today. Bike is hard to put into gear and when you do it makes quite a loud noise. No noise in neutral. So far I’m thinking clutch is sticking or warped, possible primary chain issue. We will see. If anyone has experience with this I appreciate the input. I will post pictures once I clean her up a bit.
    Thanks.

  2. #2
    Senior Member 34nineteen's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by FOKKER View Post
    Hello all,
    Like to thank the Forum for allowing me to join. I just wanted to say hello to all. I have been looking at the Buell for many years while I was riding Harleys and a few old triumphs and a Z750S that I currently have for sale. For sale because I just picked up a 2004 Buell XB12R last night with 16000 km (9900 miles) on it. Got it for $1800 canadian $1350 US dollars. I did buy it with a known problem which I will begin to work on today. Bike is hard to put into gear and when you do it makes quite a loud noise. No noise in neutral. So far I’m thinking clutch is sticking or warped, possible primary chain issue. We will see. If anyone has experience with this I appreciate the input. I will post pictures once I clean her up a bit.
    Thanks.
    Another known issue is that these gear boxes are noisy and clunky. If you have read any of the the reviews or articles, they almost always touch upon that.

    Anyhow.

    1. Make sure the clutch is adjusted correctly.
    2. Make sure the cable is adjusted correctly.
    3. Make sure the primary chain is adjusted correctly.
    4. Change your primary fluid. I prefer HD Formula +, others swear that Amsoil improves shift quality.


    The 06-later bikes had revised gear boxes which shift much better than the earlier ones, but its no where near the shift quality of a CBR600.


    If you want to pull the primary cover off, no one will stop you. My S1 was having trouble finding neutral, and pulling the primary exposed a whole slew of other problems I'm glad I'm catching now rather than just "dealing with it as I ride".
    Last edited by 34nineteen; 08-11-2020 at 04:01 PM.

  3. #3
    Senior Member Barrett's Avatar
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    Sir: follow Aaron's instructions above which are a great starting point. if you don't have a service manual, simply click the link below and download the correct one for your 2004 firebolt. these transmissions are very similar in style, content, maintenance and feel to most all sportster and XR1200 transmissions/primary assemblies.
    if you perform the following in conjunction with what Aaron mentioned, the trans and clutch should both work very nicely. will NEVER be jap-bike-like smooth...but will work well once you learn the proper shifting procedure.
    as follows:
    lube clutch lever/perch assembly
    lube clutch cable
    adjust clutch cable and clutch pack properly and as one complete operation
    adjust primary drive chain at room temperature. one-half inch of slack will be fine as per SM
    drain primary fluid and replace O-ring on drain plug. it is the same O-ring and same plug as the swingarm/engine oil drain plug
    drain the primary fluid. a full drain takes approx. 1 hour with bike in near-vertical position
    refill primary with a top-quality 20W50 motorcycle specific oil RATED JASO-MA or higher ONLY! this rating means the oil is compatible with wet clutches, which your XB has. do NOT use REDLINE in the primary as it has a history of causing stator problems. MOBIL-1 motorcycle specific or AMSOIL primary/trans specific oils both work very well in these primaries.

    lastly: after performing all of the above and you still find neutral difficult to locate....bulky erratic shifting....clutch dragging and not yielding full disengagment....clutch only starts to engage near end of lever throw....then the clutch will need replaced as you have burned/warped metal clutch pack drive plates along with diaphragm spring at the end of its life.
    ENERGY ONE COMPANY makes a very nice replacement complete clutch kit. XL AND XR NOT the same.
    CAUTION: DO NOT OVER-TIGHTEN EITHER PLUG OR YOU'LL EASILY STRIP OUT THE ALUMINUM THREADS THAT AFFIX THE PLUG TO THE ASSEMBLY!

    https://www.buellmods.com/

  4. #4
    Senior Member 34nineteen's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Barrett View Post
    Sir: follow Aaron's instructions above which are a great starting point. if you don't have a service manual, simply click the link below and download the correct one for your 2004 firebolt. these transmissions are very similar in style, content, maintenance and feel to most all sportster and XR1200 transmissions/primary assemblies.
    if you perform the following in conjunction with what Aaron mentioned, the trans and clutch should both work very nicely. will NEVER be jap-bike-like smooth...but will work well once you learn the proper shifting procedure.
    as follows:
    lube clutch lever/perch assembly
    lube clutch cable
    adjust clutch cable and clutch pack properly and as one complete operation
    adjust primary drive chain at room temperature. one-half inch of slack will be fine as per SM
    drain primary fluid and replace O-ring on drain plug. it is the same O-ring and same plug as the swingarm/engine oil drain plug
    drain the primary fluid. a full drain takes approx. 1 hour with bike in near-vertical position
    refill primary with a top-quality 20W50 motorcycle specific oil RATED JASO-MA or higher ONLY! this rating means the oil is compatible with wet clutches, which your XB has. do NOT use REDLINE in the primary as it has a history of causing stator problems. MOBIL-1 motorcycle specific or AMSOIL primary/trans specific oils both work very well in these primaries.

    lastly: after performing all of the above and you still find neutral difficult to locate....bulky erratic shifting....clutch dragging and not yielding full disengagment....clutch only starts to engage near end of lever throw....then the clutch will need replaced as you have burned/warped metal clutch pack drive plates along with diaphragm spring at the end of its life.
    ENERGY ONE COMPANY makes a very nice replacement complete clutch kit. XL AND XR NOT the same.
    CAUTION: DO NOT OVER-TIGHTEN EITHER PLUG OR YOU'LL EASILY STRIP OUT THE ALUMINUM THREADS THAT AFFIX THE PLUG TO THE ASSEMBLY!

    https://www.buellmods.com/


    ^^^^^^^^^^
    Buell Whisperer

  5. #5
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    Thanks all for the input. I might be getting deeper then I want, but here we go. Removed primary. Unable to get bike back into neutral. I did get it to go down the road in first. Would not shift at all. Shifter was like it was locked in place. The shifter rod that comes through primary is loose and you can slide it in and out just have not removed it yet. That is with primary cover off. I will need to replace that because the end is stripped. I will try to attach pictures. Next attempt is to remove clutch. Should the whole basket be pulled or can I just remove the individual plates image.jpg
    Attached Images Attached Images

  6. #6
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    Forgot to add. Was some metal in primary cover and on drain bolt. That normal for these bikes ?

  7. #7
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    I did manage to get it back into neutral with channel lock pliers.

  8. #8
    Senior Member 34nineteen's Avatar
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    Will the bike shift when the engine is off? My S1 is doing something similar and its kind of a mess in the primary. I am pulling it apart now to clean, inspect and make sure its put back together properly.

    Yes, a little bit of metal shavings is normal... and when I drained my primary it looked acceptable. But when I pulled the cover off, there was much more than I am comfortable with, so I will be pulling the transmission out as well for cleaning.

  9. #9
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    I've never seen inside the cover but those two drill Mark's dont look normal. ??? Not sure but looks funny to me. Second do yourself a favor and throw the channel locks in the corner and dont use them anymore they destroy everything and should not be used on anything you care about. Ie. your bike. Just my opinion.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Sdrxb12s View Post
    I've never seen inside the cover but those two drill Mark's dont look normal. ??? Not sure but looks funny to me. Second do yourself a favor and throw the channel locks in the corner and dont use them anymore they destroy everything and should not be used on anything you care about. Ie. your bike. Just my opinion.
    That's from balancing - they remove material from the factory to balance. Lot's of engine/parts that spin will have that same tooling. Sometimes they add weight but typically, they try to remove it.



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