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FLHS to FLHR?

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Old Sep 9, 2018 | 06:44 PM
  #1  
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Default FLHS to FLHR?

I have a 1990 FLHS that needs some TLC. I want to end up with a bat wing fairing and get rid of the ugly toaster dash but the inner for the original instrument cluster are almost impossible to find in nice shape. I thought about getting a '96 style round gage inner and fairing but am now thinking of converting it to Road King tanks and instrument cluster and fabing up a set of mounts for the fairing without an inner. Here's a couple of questions.

Does the 1994 FLHR use the same frame as an FLHS? If so an FLHR tank and instrument cluster should bolt onto my frame. I'm not concerned about the wiring. They should also have a similar seat height given the same seat.

I believe they use the same front end so the nacelle and other trim parts should be bolt up.

Do the early FLHRs have a front wheel driven speedometer? If so when did the change happen to electronic speedometers?

Are there any differences on the earliest FLHRs that couldn't be transferred to the FLHS?

From what I understand the FLHS was the fore-runner of the FLHR so the conversion should be doable and straight forward.

Thanks.

Frank
 

Last edited by fshaw; Sep 9, 2018 at 07:01 PM.
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Old Sep 9, 2018 | 06:48 PM
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FLHR’s don’t have an instrument cluster... just a speedometer mounted to the dashboard on top of the tank.
 
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Old Sep 9, 2018 | 07:05 PM
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Thanks but I known that. They also have turn signal indicators, a neutral indicator and an oil pressure indicator in the dash. Those are the "instruments" I was referring to.
 
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Old Sep 10, 2018 | 11:10 AM
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If ylou haven't found one yet there are parts websites where you can compare the fine detail, such as frame and other parts numbers.
 
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Old Oct 11, 2018 | 06:35 PM
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I've accumulated an FLHR seat, headlight nacelle, and carburated gas tank so far so am gaining on this. The dash won't be too much trouble but it looks like the OEM mechanical speedometer might be a challenge. If I have to I'll pick up an aftermarket speedometer until I can find an original. I'm not too concerned about the wiring changes that will be necessary as they should be pretty straight forward. I read in a post that changing from a mechanical cable driven speedometer to an electronic speedometer is possible. The post said that the conversion would probably cause difficulty with the self-canceling turn signals that were original with the mechanical speedometer. Does anyone know if moving the speedometer from the "toaster" instrument cluster to an FLHR dash will cause the same problem? If so what would be the solution?

Thanks.

Frank
 
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Old Oct 12, 2018 | 03:02 AM
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Originally Posted by fshaw
I read in a post that changing from a mechanical cable driven speedometer to an electronic speedometer is possible. The post said that the conversion would probably cause difficulty with the self-canceling turn signals that were original with the mechanical speedometer. Does anyone know if moving the speedometer from the "toaster" instrument cluster to an FLHR dash will cause the same problem? If so what would be the solution?
I'm assuming that your 90 FLHS is similar to my 93 FLHS. The instrument unit is a one piece affair, it's not possible to separate the speedometer and tach. The MoCo used that instrument cluster in all their Touring bikes (ElectraGlides). It was just a matter of where it was mounted. TourGlides of that era had the cluster in the same location as the FLHS. The Classic/Ultra had it mounted in the batwing. The 'odd ball' was the FLHR, which had tank mounted speedometer. But you already know this.

The mechanical speedometer uses a Reed Switch to control certain functions: turn signal cancel, cruise control, auto volume for radio. Swapping in a pure electronic speedometer may not be 'plug n play'. But can probably be done.
 
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