Something Wicked This Way Comes

[MisterX]

Well, sir, a very big congrats to you and your new 1125R! :thumbup:

If you're anything like me, you'll absolutely love your bike. Sure, mine's not an 1125R, but I find my Buell to be beyond fantastic and fun to ride. Kudos to you.

As for the gas gauge, I would have figured that Buell would have started putting them on the bikes by now. Mine doesn't have one, but it does alert me when the fuel is getting low.

Again, congrats on the new bike! :rockon:

 

[sideshow_downs]

Congrats on the new bike Pete!!

Now that im back we need to meet up for a ride

 

[notjohndavid]

dude... I just got a chub

 

[xj750_Pete]

Nice bike! Please post some vids if you can!

 

[Oscar54]

Sweeeeeeet! Smokin' Ride.

I've been riding my sons UM 250R to work cause I'm working on the FZ. Outside of this little 250 being pretty kick-ass for a starter bike, I've noticed that I'm kind-a-liken the crotch-rocket riding position. It is actually more comfortable than I had imagined. And the UM 250 seat is way more comfortable than the FZ6 stock seat. So, I'm sure you like riding your new bike.

So, I might hafta start keeping an eye open for a used Buell or R6 now.:thumbup:

 

[Hellgate]

dude... I just got a chub

Yikes!

 

[Hellgate]

Congrats on the new bike Pete!!

Now that im back we need to meet up for a ride

I'm actually going to be in Killeen today at about noon. My eight year old has the day off from school and wants to go climb in tanks. I guess it's in the blood.

 

[Hellgate]

That's a Bad@ss bike. Gratz :rockon: Is it almost like the one Wavex rides?

Nope, totally different. His motor is based on an air cooled Sportster (much, much better however), my motor is made by Rotax and is sorta like an Aprilia RGV1000, sort of. The frame looks the same but is different, swingarm is different. His swing arm stores the oil for the dry sump motor. I think the front brakes are the same. His wheelbase is about 2.5 inches shorter. So similar, to a point. Oh, mine will go about 165 mph, his, 120.

 

[madmanmaigret]

congrats, Top! awesome looking bike. :thumbup:

 

[Hondo64d]

I'm actually going to be in Killeen today at about noon. My eight year old has the day off from school and wants to go climb in tanks. I guess it's in the blood.

Shoulda called me. I coulda let him climb around on a Longbow.

John

 

[Ghost Weim]

Very nice. Very, very nice!! :thumbup: Congrats and enjoy (I know you will). Looking forward to lots more posts of the bike ahead!

 

[Kilbane83]

Damn looks pretty sweet Pete, so much for them old knees eh? Hah hope you'll still roll with the fz6 crew!

 

[Fred]

Regarding Pete's new bike...

I've ridden it.

:Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip:

 

[Stumbles06]

Regarding Pete's new bike...

I've ridden it.

:Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip: :Flip:

BA$TARD... :rof: So, what is your verdict???

Oh yeah... Pics, or it didn't happen. :Flip: :Flip:

 

[CrazyBiker]

any1 have pics of the 1125r with full fairings - Sportbikes.net

 

[Fred]

I've said several times in the past,"If an American company ever makes a decent motorcycle, I'll buy it."

The 1125R is one I'm going to have to think about the next time I shop for a motorcycle.

The fish gill scoops are the first thing everyone notices about the bike. But they actually look quite good. Keep in mind that all the shots of the bike that we've seen have been taken from a height of three feet above the ground.

When you actually stand and look at the bike, the scoops look fine. Better than fine. They flow with the fairing, and provide wind protection for your knees.

The radiators in side these scoops are edge-on to the wind. So the scoops grab air, it flows through the radiators, and is let out on the inside, between the two scoops and in front of the engine. And then it gets weird. Back up below the steering head is the ram air scoop for the engine. This made no sense to me at first. The engine's sucking hot air from the radiators. But then I thought about it some more.

It gets some hot air from the radiators, but it's also getting a massive dose of cool air that's flowing directly in from the front of the bike. And the overall air pressure is increased in front of the ram air opening because the radiator scoops are funneling additional air into this one area on the bike.

As an added bonus, the ram air system is going to be immune to crosswinds. Some early ram air systems had problems where a crosswind would suck air back out of the ducts via a venturi effect, making the bike lose power. With the radiator pods on either side and well in front of the ram air opening, that's not going to happen on the 1125R.

The front brake works well, although I was scared of it at first. It's a giant rotor with a six piston caliper. It looks intimidating. And I remember how good the brakes on the Buell Blast (POS bike) were. You have to pull the lever a bit to get it to bite, but then the brakes are quite effective.

The rear brake is extremely firm. It's almost like an on-off switch. But it's easy enough to get used to it.

The riding position is extremely aggressive. I wouldn't want to tour on this bike. But it's perfect for racing.

From a wrench's standpoint, the bike has one extremely cool feature. When it's time to adjust the valves or work on the top of the engine, the entire engine and the radiator pods are designed to swing down to give you room to access the engine. If you look at one of these bikes on the showroom floor, you'll see that the pods are not attached to anything but the engine.

This should make servicing it a breeze.

Handling is great. Power is very good. Rolling on the throttle brings on a strong *thump thump thump* vibration and an impressive increase in speed. Even a 6th gear roll-on caused the bike to take off like a scalded cat.

The intake sound has to be heard to be believed. It's louder than the exhaust.

At idle, the exhaust sounds like somebody playing a steel drum. But that's pretty much what it is.

The muffler design is clearly lifted from the Buell Blast, but redesigned to make it actually look good. The header is a 4-2-1, with each cylinder having two exhaust ports. There's a single wire oxygen sensor in one of the front exhaust pipes. I didn't check to see if the rear cylinder had another oxygen sensor.

Given that it is a sportbike and not meant for long distance riding, my only legitimate ergonomic complaint is about the mirrors. They're pretty much useless. Then again, I'm taller than the riders that they designed the bike for. I cannot even get into a tuck behind the windscreen. So maybe Pete had better luck with them.

All in all, I liked the bike but won't be getting one for myself. If Buell starts putting that engine into other styles of bikes, then I'll be quite interested. It's well past time that Buell used a real engine, and they finally have one.

Fred

 

[Hellgate]

Fred and I had a great 200+ mile ride on Sunday. The event was capped with lunch at the Ouslander in Fredricksburg. Fred had a nice looking steak, I had a Weinerschnitzel mit spatzle und rot sauerkraut. Yummm!

This was my first hard ride on the bike. On the way back to Austin we were going 90 mph most of the way with bursts up to 135 mph. After we traded bikes I kinda gave up at keeping up with Fred. At one point I was going 102, 103 for a long stretch and not getting any closer to him and the 11!

In the first part of the ride we were in a loose, bumpy, twisty section and I learned that I need to readjust my right wrist. 1) corners come up very fast, 2) the rear wheel will spin, 3) the front end will come up and then the head shakes in air. WOW!

When we were flying back home I was running second as Fred has the radar detector, in some places I was stuck behind cars and to catch up to Fred and was going 135. The bike was rock steady, me? My heart was pounding! I'm okay with 90 to 105, 120 is about my limit, 135 is crazy fast! As those speeds the riding position is perfect. The little wind blast that I got kept me up in a comfortable position. I know Fred was a bit cramped on the 11, he's about 6'2" or 6'3", I'm 6'0" and it fits me like a glove. My tank bag was in the way, but without it I'm able to duck under the windscreen fine.

I've got 300 miles on her and so far I'm happy with every aspect of the bike except the rear brake. I went back and re-read some of the reviews of the bike and I have no idea what the hell the magazine writers are writing about. The bike is different from the mainstream but not in a bad way, just a different way. After those 300 miles I feel right at home on her and I really can't think of anything I want to change, I like the bike that much. Give me a track day or two and I may change my mind.

Oh, here's a clip of the new, soon to be released, Drummer exhaust > [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9UtU_V3boFw"]YouTube - Drummer 1125R[/ame]

I will admit I've got my name on the list for one...

 

[Hellgate]

Damn looks pretty sweet Pete, so much for them old knees eh? Hah hope you'll still roll with the fz6 crew!

Believe it or not Ed but it is really comfortable. The clips on are not way the heck out there like an Italian bike, and they are higher too. I feel very balanced on the bike. When I traded bikes with Fred I felt very odd, sit up and beg like.

 

[Hellgate]

Fred, rumors say that that the Uly will get the new motor. I'd look for a Lightening with it too soon. Rumors also say 2010 will be a big year for Buell, we'll see!

 

[Fred]

Sorry about that, I was trying to get you home in time to go play Army. I sort of gave up after seeing that we had 30 minutes to get back to Austin and 55 miles to go.

I rode the Buell faster than I meant to. I didn't think I was going anywhere near those speeds until I finally looked down at the speedometer. I thought I was taking it easy on the new bike!

I'll be good next time. I promise.