97 Sportster 1200 conversion


A couple pics of the piston kit before the operation. They are Wiseco reverse dome pistons with Hastings rings. I went with the Hasting rings versus Wiseco because they are better suited for road use. The Wiseco rings are better for race applications. I used Wiseco pistons because they are forged and weight about the same as the stock cast 883 pistons. Many people recommended Wiseco over stock Harley. The factory service manual and lots of help from members of the XL-List helped alot. I'm not a trained motorcycle mechanic, but I like to wrench my own. If you decide to do this yourself, consult your local independent or dealership for advice. I was lucy enough to have members of the XL-List an email message away and also a Harley Davidson performance shop(R&R Cycle in Manchester, NH) a few miles away.

Stock 883 pistons removed on left and new Wiseco's installed. Note the rags to keep stuff from falling into the crankcase. Also note the plastic tubing over the cylinder studs.

Rags removed	Base gasket installed and cylinders. I used James gaskets throughout. The stock cylinders were bored out by R&R Cycle in Manchester, New Hampshire. I can't say enough good things about them. Both Reggie Jr and Reggie Sr were a wealth of information. I highly recommend them. I bought all the parts from them.
I checked the deckheight at dead nuts zero. Things worked out great.	Time for reassembly. Heads are back on.
What a great set of jugs. Oh, don't tell my wife I'm lookin at a great set of jugs :-)	Pushrods are in place.
	Valve covers and intake manifold installed.
	Carb is on. Almost time to crank it over :-). I put the fuel tank back on. Filled the oil bag with oil. It started right up. I also ended up with the 1200 Screaming Eagle ignition module. The 1200 conversion was the best thing I ever did to the bike. It ran great and had more power than I would ever use. Once broken in, this bike would go from 0 to over 100MPH in no time flat. I only did that once, eh, well, almost only once :-).