Hi everyone,
I am Richard and live in Poole, Dorset.
I am a software engineer, previously an electronics engineer, and was trained as a mechanical engineer by my late Father, so am happy to undertake most things on a bike myself, there are a few things I prefer to pay other people to do and a few things I don't like doing - I hate final drive chains, chains should be enclosed and in a bath of oil.
I have owned a Buell M2 Cyclone, Blue Streak with PM wheels, from new, since mid 2002, it has now covered about 33000 miles without any problems at all ! Well actually it has eaten 2 and a bit final drive Belts & sprockets, some gears & other bits inside the gearbox, some snapped exhaust studs, 1 rear shock, 2 front wheel bearings every year, warped 3 front brake disks, regularly used to get water in the petrol tank & the gearbox, and 1 headlight bulb, no other bulbs - can't understand why the vibration doesn't eat bulbs ! . For some strange reason I still love it, it puts a smile on my face wet or dry, it's strangely agricultural & refined at the same time, probably a bit like me!
Cheers
RickLB

How tight is the drive belt?

-- and hello.

Welcome Rick...

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08 Specialized Langster

Welcome. You wouldn't have that much FUN with a jap bike

Let it all out...........there there

The drive belt is not tight, i.e. on sidestand can press both top & bottom against the alloy swinging arm.
I am going to the Picos in Northern Spain, via France in September with my Brother & a Friend and would prefer to replace belt now & carry a spare than wish I hadn't, and while it is off can check Gearbox output bearing & fit neutral switch I have had in a box for 5 years !
Also I have no idea how long the rear isolators last, mine are probably the latest type, but have now done 33k miles and 13 years, again prefer to do now than in France or Spain.
Can't think of a bike more suited to the mountains !

No, I wouldn't have that much fun on a jap bike.
Great shame Eric didn't manage to put the swinging arm pivot in line with the gearbox output shaft, and put the belt on the outside of a single sided swinging arm, but that would have been too easy to change and the Harley dealers would have gone out of business even faster.

He did sort it on the X1 with a removable plate

welcome
might need to check on your oil pump drive gear before doing any long trips
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=18115&hilit=oil+pump+gear

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Buell Ulysses XB12X 06/08

Thanks for that Barney, any idea how much ? pretty irrelevant as much cheaper than the result of not doing it I guess,
Is it a problem on the M2 as well as the XB's ?

To be honest, mate, at 33,000 I'd be sh*t scared to push the starter button until I'd pulled the gear to have a look....

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If your dreams don't scare you, they are not big enough.

have a word with Pash ref Gear £
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=16387

or ask and see if he can get DaveH to post it for you

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Buell Ulysses XB12X 06/08

If I have done this correctly you should see pictures of my oil pump drives!
The bronze one came out of my 2006 Ully with 30000 miles on it, this as it's the later bike and bronze in colour I take to be the Buell upgrade. Now Black Bear sold me exactly the same replacement drive calling it the later one that won't wear.
Well they do as you can see, but they don't wear as badly as the earlier type which is in the other picture.
This one was taken out of my 2000 X1 at 34000 miles.
This is most likely the same as yours!

Both my bikes have only two previous owners and I have had them for the last five years or so, I have all the history including the old MOT certificates so the likelihood is they are genuine mileage bikes

My advice to everyone if you have a bike over 25000 miles and you don't know if it's been changed:
DO IT!
A friend bought a non runner with 30000 miles or so on it, and when we pulled it apart there was nothing left worth saving apart from possibly the crankcases