WHAT’SITLIKE
I’venowownedtheBuellfornearlya decade
butit’sonlyclockedup12,000km.I always
knewit wasa keeper,soI’llneverrunit into
theground.
It’sdonea fewlongertripsloadedwith
luggage,usuallywithmatesaboardtheir
Harleys.I findit comfortabletositonall
day,butitsgearingis shortforlonghighway
stretches.It’sbestsuitedforshortspinsaround
townorquicktripstothepubandback.
It vibrates,makeslotsofnoisewhenthe
throttleis openandbegsyoutoliftthefront
wheeleverytimeyouleaveanintersection.
It’sa quirkybiketorideandasanoccasional
bikeI can’tfaultit but,if riddendaily,I’msure
thatwouldchange.
The1200ccSportster-basedenginemakes
massiveamountsoftorquewithsharpthrottle
response.Thefive-speed’boxstartswitha
lowfirstandreasonablycloseratiosafter
that– it doesmissa sixthgear.Withitsshort
wheelbaseandsteepsteeringangle,it steers
quicklyandcangeta littlenervousover
bumpsatspeed.
Thesuspensionis soft,too,andthe
combinationofitsuprightridingposition
andstrongfrontbrakedoescreatea lotoffork
dive.I’veconsideredfittingfirmersprings
butdon’twanttolosetheplushride.I now
find myself instinctively applying a little
rear brake to squat the rear of the bike before
grabbing a handful of front anchor.
Erik Buell was proud of his minimalist
design, incorporating the perimeter front disc,
fuel cell inside the frame, engine oil insideOur
BikesClaimed dry weight of
the dual-seat XB12SS
Lightning Long was a
claimed 181.5kg dry,
which worked out at
a neat 400lb for the
domestic market.OUR BIKES
the swingarm and muffler under the sump
was all done in the name of saving weight and
mass centralisation.
Despite all these innovations, however,
he then went and fitted a heavy two-valve
Harley-Davidson engine that’s remained
relatively unchanged since 1986. Yep, the
bike’s a rolling contradiction.
I’ve never met Erik Buell but my good mate
Denis Ackland has. “The man is living proof
that LCD is still readily available in the
United States of America,” he says. I think
that can be taken with a little tongue in
cheek. I think...
The only plan I have for my Buell is to keep
it just the way it is.
I’ll own the Buell until the day I die –
whether I’m too old to ride it or not. That’s
not something I can say about any of my
other bikes.I’ve now owned the Buell
for nearly a decade but it’s
only clocked up 12,000km
106 MOTORCYCLE TRADER