Been moaned at two days running for not having a clean motorcycle..... (been moaned at many, many times, for this, the truth be told)
Pah.... there for riding not cleaning....
The engine may be a Hardly Movable but it not a "lets bolt on some shiny bits" sort of bike..
Mind you have not been into cleaning/ polishing.... well..... ever....
Growing up in a scrap yard you get to see a lot of vehicles that had been lovingly looked after, only to end up as scrap for one reason or another....
My brother liked to spit and polish things and he ended up owning some very unreliable vehicles as he did not always worry about oil changes etc....
Anyhoo... being moaned at....
A member of the Buell Enthusiasts Group has been helping me with my electrical problems and he sent me two ECM's to try.... one, standard, unit with the newer BUE2D map and a "tuned" but older BUEZD map....
He also mentioned that the "tuned" map was the same as one he did for "Dave" the owner of Northants V Twin... Which gave me an idea on how to do a test on the two units..
So I plugged in the "tuned" ECM and headed out to see "Dave".... it's about 70 miles from mine to where he is.... so a good distance for a test ride.....
The "tune" gave much more power from tick over to mid range than my standard BUEZD map, with the top end being quite similar.... but, then again, all the Uly's real power is in the lower/ mid grunt as 90hp at the crank leaves less at the rear wheel for top end speed...
In fact the improvement in bottom end pull away power was very impressive... Pulled up to a T junction, and as both ways were clear, I pulled out.... in the wrong gear (3rd rather than 2nd) and it simply just pulled away... no knocking, stalling, complaints.... just solid power... VERY nice...
But it did vibrate different.. had a constant buzziness to the bike.... and a, sort of, misfire/ rough running in slow moving traffic (15 -25mph range) which made riding at those speed quite uncomfortable...
Made me think the IAC valve was not working properly
Win some...Lose some I suppose..
Arrived up at Northants V Twin both impressed and thoughtful..
The shop is well worth a visit as they are an old school, back street, motorcycle workshop run by real V twin enthusiasts...
Great little Cafe/ Burger van just inside the gate.... a very practical workshop space... and the friendliest bunch you are ever likely to meet...
Dave is a star and a Buell Ulysses rider.. Swapped a few stories and he asked some questions on the mods I've made to mine...
But Julie..... you could have cleaned it... she said.... smiling... She did like my seat though...
So it was time to swap out the ECM for the standard BUE2D.....
10 seconds of fluffiness then it settled down into a nice even tick over...... pulled out and into the traffic.... no problems with roughness... pulled nice and clean... softer power than the tuned map.... but much nicer to ride....
Enjoyable ride home, with a really smooth engine... at any rev's... liking the BUE2D mapping.... lots of popping on decel... but that's normal for a Buell...
And the upshot of this is that I am keeping the Standard ECM and sending back the tuned one.. would not have bet on that that morning..
So today... out for another ride as it's a really beautiful day here... Sun is out... Sky is blue... and the tarmac is calling my name....
Came across this little bike show so pulled in for a look..... bumped into and old friend.... who said... "Could have cleaned it"..... Pfft... so I left to play on a few more bendy roads....
Happy riding all... Whatever you ride...
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