Normal rpms...

[Getn off]

Hard to search for a 3 letter word or phrase of course, and spent many hours looking through the old stuff.
I have been riding, on and off, for over 30 years. From 1970s Honda enduros, YZs, cruisers, and sportbikes. Yet, I have such a noobie question for u guys and gals. More directed to long time Busa riders that have put many miles on their babies, and even seen the insides.

What rpm do u use while just tooling around? I tend to baby my bikes (yep even the ole 2 strokes!) pretty bad. If I am not runnin the chit of of them, I usually keep the rpms around 2-3. I do understand lugging is bad, and I don't crank her open hard when lugging, but at slower speeds, I keep her turning slow.
Been riding with friends with sportbikes lately that seem to keep their rpms high...maybe 6-8 k at all times (R1, R6, Ducatti 1199).
I know the Busa is all forged and pretty strong, but am I adding any extra life the way I am riding, or should I keep the rpms higher, and shift less?
Also, how is gas milage affected with this? Much difference?
Most of my last 10 years have been on big bore cruisers that love to lug around btw.
Please go easy on me...I'm new! LOL
Troy
170 miles and counting! Stupid rain. And work.

 

[E Zurcher]

In normal riding around town I rarely go above 4k unless I'm getting on it. On the freeway it's around 4600 at 85 indicated which is around 75 give or take. If you ride around town at 6 to 8k you will never get outta 3rd gear and have so much power on tap throttle control will become VERY important. She's got so much grunt down low it's just not necessary. You do have to blow her out once in a while to keep the intake valves from gumming up.

 

[RedBusarider]

Just tooling around?

Around 3K is a good RPM for me.
The other bikes you mentioned have higher redlines so it's similar 5K out of 15K redline = about a third.
3K on the Busa is about a third of 10K.

The Busa is noted to have a strong pull from low rpm up to redline. So tooling around between 2-3K should be fine most of the time.

As far as mileage, it is a given that the lower the rpm's the better the gas mileage unless you are lugging it but 2-3 isn't lugging it unless your racing
or doing spirited rides on twisty roads. Mileage runs all over the place from low 20's to over 50mpg. Most people don't buy a Busa looking for good gas mileage.
If I wanted great mileage I would ride a 400cc bike.

 

[ky busa]

between 3k and 4k

 

[Getn off]

Great. Sounds like I am doing it right then. Just wanted some with better experience to confirm.
As far as torque and throttle control goes. You just haven't lived till u ride an M109. Mine just has basic bolt ons and is dynoed at 110hp/108tq at the wheel. Thing is gnarly to ride comfortably around. Any slight wrist movement and the bike jumps, or just road imperfections. Kind of a pain, but fun. I have a PC and TRE which help a bit too.
And red, u r correct! I didn't buy these things for milage! Hell, i don't have anything that gets more than about 20 mpg...Lifted Wrangler=13, 67 Mustang 289=15, 2014 modded Mustang GT=22 freeway, M109R=25, and my yeller Bus! Wife's Benz only gets 27 on the freeway!
Thanks!
Troy

 

[fallenarch]

If are riding a Busa around in the 3-4K range then you are leaving a lot of bike on the table! This really depends on the ratios you are running but 3-4K in 5th or 6th is highway cruising. 6-8K is just tasting the power and the party is pretty much over at 10,500. I will admit I rarely shift at the 11K redline as doing this in most gears is well beyond safe road manners. I bet only a hand full of riders have seen 11K in 5th or 6th gears! There is a natural resonance in the Busa at around 3,500, so I ride a little above that at 5K. When I use the cruise I might run at 3K, but that's because the cruise likes lower rpm. But of course to each his or her own. The Busa really doesn't become a monster until you get above 8K and then it is a handful requiring full attention. When you shift there, the front end will come up. I have had the front skim the road surface for 25-30 yards or so, just remember to keep the front wheel pointed in the direction of travel or when it comes down you may get a nasty surprise.

 

[busafan08]

For a inline 4 the busa has a nice flat low end grunt which is nice i ride around 3k also around town

 

[wiesjon]

I ride around 3,000 around town. On my bike anything above 10,500 is wasted gas. My hp dies after 10,500.

 

[RedBusarider]

Great. Sounds like I am doing it right then. Just wanted some with better experience to confirm.
As far as torque and throttle control goes. You just haven't lived till u ride an M109. Mine just has basic bolt ons and is dynoed at 110hp/108tq at the wheel. Thing is gnarly to ride comfortably around. Any slight wrist movement and the bike jumps, or just road imperfections. Kind of a pain, but fun. I have a PC and TRE which help a bit too.
And red, u r correct! I didn't buy these things for milage! Hell, i don't have anything that gets more than about 20 mpg...Lifted Wrangler=13, 67 Mustang 289=15, 2014 modded Mustang GT=22 freeway, M109R=25, and my yeller Bus! Wife's Benz only gets 27 on the freeway!
Thanks!
Troy

You said that you don't get anything over 20 miles per gallon.
Now you do because you have a Busa. For normal riding you should get anywhere around 40 to 45, for spirited rides you should get probably mid to upper 30s.

So now you have an excuse to ride your Busa because it gets the best gas mileage of any of the vehicles that you now own.

 

[Getn off]

Well, that's all the excuse I need Red! Lol.
Troy