Church Of MO – Buell's Monster

With EBR’s recent trademark filing for the name Black Lightning, we’re waiting in anticipation to see what Erik Buell will bring to us next. However, while we await the Black Lightning, let’s go back in time and visit one of Buell’s earlier cult hits, and possibly the grandfather to the Black Lightning: the S1 Lightning. The MO staff dubbed the bike “ Buell’s Monster” and even called it “The most radical motorcycle yet from the Buell Motor Company.” With its hopped up Sportster 1200 engine housed inside a sporting package far removed from the cruiser the 1200 V-Twin was originally intended for, the S1 was a radical bike then and remains a cult classic today. Read on to see what the early MOron crew thought of the bike.

The most radical motorcycle yet from the Buell Motor Company just happens to make the best sense. Buell didn’t do things the ordinary way. Most model changes result in higher numbers. Not this time, not this motorcycle. The model number went from the S2 Thunderbolt (which continues in the Buell range) to the S1 Lightning. And they dropped the price $2,000 while doing so. Confused? Who wouldn’t be. But read on for the full story of the best-performing bike from Buell so far. First impressions, when you see the Buell S1, are of size. The 1200cc Sportster-based motor seems massive inside the trelliswork of the chrome-moly space frame. The seat is tiny, postage stamp size. It may be the smallest motorcycle seat ever, we’ve never seen a smaller one. It’s one buttock sized.

The chunky Harley-sourced switchgear has been replaced with neater, easier-to-use Italian units which appear to be identical to Ducati parts. Hand levers, too, are Italian, and much easier to use than the Thunderbolt’s wide, thick levers. The wide bars give a comfortable, upright seating position which levers the rider just enough into the wind to make long journeys at highway speeds possible without neck and shoulder aches.

Other reasons include specially produced, higher compression cylinder heads, lightened flywheels and different camshafts. The end result is a motor with a serious power advantage over a stock Sporty.

If bragging is important you can try to impress pavement critics this way: The S1 is the quickest and fastest Harley-engined machine available. Period.

While the frame is different than the Thunderbolt’s, the vibration-reducing mounting system is retained. The engine hangs from the frame (the front engine mount is on the front cylinder head) and vibration is kept in one plane by the heim-jointed frame struts. It adds up to an engine that shakes at idle, but smooths out much better at speed than the rigid-mounted stock Harley-Davidson Sportster.

And the styling betters a Sportster’s. You may or may not like the Lightning’s abbreviated look, but it surely will persuade fans of Harley’s flattrack racer XR750 to sign on the dotted line. The Lightning, however, performs much better than any styling exercise. Up front, a 40mm White Power inverted fork does a splendid job of keeping the 17-inch Marchesini three-spoke in line. The rear suspension is handled by a White Power single shock, in extension mode. Buell has long favored this unorthodox lay-down, work-in-reverse style of suspension, and it soaks up the bumps well enough. Plus, it has a range of damping adjustment to appeal to the hardest core gearhead.

The basic chassis dimensions are identical to the Thunderbolt — wheelbase, rake and trail are the same — but the new frame and more leverage at the handlebar produce handling which feels both quicker and more predictable.

Parked next to a Ducati Monster, the Buell Lightning amazes. It is shorter, weighs not an awful lot more, and is fitted with the same headlight, taillight, turn signals and handlebar controls. About the only difference is the seat, and that’s even more of a torture rack than the Ducati’s modest perch. Yet the Buell’s personality is formed by the thumping, lusty, shaking Sportster, while the Monster, though still a torquer, is more of a smooth, high revver. For all of its European equipment, the Lightning is still an American original.

Andy Saunders, Editor

My personal list of horror trips grows every year (how not to impress potential pillion passengers, volume one) but 400 miles in an evening on a Lightning has to be well up there. Here’s a bike that’s plainly much more suited to an evening spent blatting up and down the boulevard, with plenty of breaks for diet coke and fries in the diner. Yet the Lightning was quite capable of the long distance ride, with excellent range and amazing comfort (it helped that it fit my body dimensions just right).

And when I did get to the end of the road, it was just fun to drive a couple of miles, park the bike, and watch the attention it got from a comfortable seat in the diner.

Eric Murray, Technical Editor

With the S1, Buell’s made a big leap from the S2. Gone are a number of previous Buell quirks like funky handlebars and bar switches. The engine’s been hotted up too, now it revs out and no longer vibrates or detonates around town when hot. It handles even better than the S2 and feels incredibly light for a 1200cc bike. Unfortunately it doesn’t look as good as the S2 and it’s not as comfortable. The tiny Marquis DeSeat locks the rider into one position and one position only. While it happens to be a good position for twisty-road riding, most non-masochists prefer the option of being able to move around a little on the bike. The passenger pegs are a joke because the seat’s so small.

My usual passenger refused to even get on the back seat let alone ride on it. If all your riding consists of killer twisties the bike will keep you so entertained that you’ll never notice how bad you’re hurting until you stop, but for people who have to ride boring roads a stock Buell S1 isn’t an option. But if the aftermarket comes out comes out with a better tailsection and seat, look out!

Todd Canavan, Associate Editor

The Buell S1 is a vastly different and incredibly unique motorcycle. I applaud Buell’s efforts at breaking away from traditional styling, and I like the result. I have seen a Lightning or two where creative owners have adapted various fiberglass racing seat sections to good effect. Gone is the feel of the S2, this bike has a completely different soul, and although the heart is similar, if your eyes were closed you might not now that this motor is from Milwaukee, it revs like no Harley I’ve ridden. This ain’t your Daddy’s Hog either, it turns lighter, stops quicker and goes faster than any Bar-and-Shield sporting machine, including the S1. This bike makes no sense, which is why it is neat, but there is one question that will dog me until the end of time: Why did they bother putting on passenger pegs?