883 to 1200 Conversion....Should I?
Road Master
Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 990
Likes: 10
From: Redondo Beach, California
I love the bike so far and am considering the 1200 conversion.
1) Am I just going to kill the reliability of the bike?
No. The reliability may be somewhat the same or even better.
2) What am I doing to the resale value?
It may be more than a stock XL883 and a little less than a stock XL1200.
3) I was told approximately $500-$700 in parts. Is that true?
This depends on the kit that you buy.
4) Will it make driving on the highway at 80mph more tolerable?
Not really. You can leave the engine as a stock XL883 and save your money and just change the transmission drive pulley from the stock 27 Tooth pulley that it comes with to a bigger 29 Tooth pulley (that is what comes stock on a XL1200) or to a 30 Tooth pulley and the RPMs at 80 MPH will be noticeably lower and that will help make the VIBRATIONS that you feel lower and that will help to make it more tolerable at highway speeds. It is a very simple process to change the pulley that you can probably do yourself and it costs WAY less expensive than an engine conversion as a pulley is about $125.00 or so. I also have a pair of vibration dampeners in my handle bars that cost about $100.00 for the pair called Vibranators and they do a really good job of reducing the intensity of the vibrations that are felt in the handlebars. It just takes a few minutes to put those babies in too! It wont stop the vibrations, but it will reduce the intensity of them. Between the pulley change (I used a 30 Tooth pulley) and the vibration dampeners, I have gone 6,000 miles, round trip in 9 days, coast to coast and back again and doing 90 MPH for hours and hours and hours this past June and I just love to take my XL883 for long rides now. I just did a 4,000 mile, round trip to Sturgis and back again for Bike Week this August.
5) Any other things I should be aware of?
You can also change the rear wheel to a smaller pulley, but the cost is greater than the cost for the larger transmission side drive pulley and if you change either of the pulleys, the displayed speed on your Speedometer will be off. I use a recalibration unit from Dakota Digital that cost about $100.00 that just plugs right in and I have reset the displayed speed on the Speedometer to be correct. An increase in size from 883 to 1200 or more will reduce your gas mileage a bit. The extra power from a larger engine is a bit addictive too, so whacking the throttle is hard to resist and that will lower your gas mileage as well. For the small costs involved and the little labor involved, I would try this stuff out and then see what you think of 80 MPH on the highway with your XL883. If you are still not happy then the extra power of a 1200 conversion is still an option open for you to pursue. Hey, Good luck with your Sportster and ride safe!
$100.00 Vibranators
$100.00 Dakota Digital Sportster recalibration unit
$125.00 30 Tooth Pulley
+______
$325.00
1) Am I just going to kill the reliability of the bike?
No. The reliability may be somewhat the same or even better.
2) What am I doing to the resale value?
It may be more than a stock XL883 and a little less than a stock XL1200.
3) I was told approximately $500-$700 in parts. Is that true?
This depends on the kit that you buy.
4) Will it make driving on the highway at 80mph more tolerable?
Not really. You can leave the engine as a stock XL883 and save your money and just change the transmission drive pulley from the stock 27 Tooth pulley that it comes with to a bigger 29 Tooth pulley (that is what comes stock on a XL1200) or to a 30 Tooth pulley and the RPMs at 80 MPH will be noticeably lower and that will help make the VIBRATIONS that you feel lower and that will help to make it more tolerable at highway speeds. It is a very simple process to change the pulley that you can probably do yourself and it costs WAY less expensive than an engine conversion as a pulley is about $125.00 or so. I also have a pair of vibration dampeners in my handle bars that cost about $100.00 for the pair called Vibranators and they do a really good job of reducing the intensity of the vibrations that are felt in the handlebars. It just takes a few minutes to put those babies in too! It wont stop the vibrations, but it will reduce the intensity of them. Between the pulley change (I used a 30 Tooth pulley) and the vibration dampeners, I have gone 6,000 miles, round trip in 9 days, coast to coast and back again and doing 90 MPH for hours and hours and hours this past June and I just love to take my XL883 for long rides now. I just did a 4,000 mile, round trip to Sturgis and back again for Bike Week this August.
5) Any other things I should be aware of?
You can also change the rear wheel to a smaller pulley, but the cost is greater than the cost for the larger transmission side drive pulley and if you change either of the pulleys, the displayed speed on your Speedometer will be off. I use a recalibration unit from Dakota Digital that cost about $100.00 that just plugs right in and I have reset the displayed speed on the Speedometer to be correct. An increase in size from 883 to 1200 or more will reduce your gas mileage a bit. The extra power from a larger engine is a bit addictive too, so whacking the throttle is hard to resist and that will lower your gas mileage as well. For the small costs involved and the little labor involved, I would try this stuff out and then see what you think of 80 MPH on the highway with your XL883. If you are still not happy then the extra power of a 1200 conversion is still an option open for you to pursue. Hey, Good luck with your Sportster and ride safe!
$100.00 Vibranators
$100.00 Dakota Digital Sportster recalibration unit
$125.00 30 Tooth Pulley
+______
$325.00
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 4,525
Likes: 8
From: Wheeling, WV
Follow the info posted in several of the above posts, and you will not be able to wipe that **** eatin' grin off your face! Trust me. I did my conversion in '05 or '06, can't remember, but I know I should have done it earlier. 
Thread Starter
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Advanced
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 84
Likes: 0
From: na
Thanks for the responses everyone. Looks like I have a fun winter project planned.
I will look into the transmission job as well, though I have an old mechanical speedo and have no idea how to re-calibrate it.
I will look into the transmission job as well, though I have an old mechanical speedo and have no idea how to re-calibrate it.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 7,604
Likes: 38
From: Landrum, SC , elevation 986'
NRHS and Zippers are good to go. Open that wallet a little bit and you can put that bike in the century mark. 
Best thing I ever did to the bike was put a NRHS kit in it. It will flat **** and git now.
Best thing I ever did to the bike was put a NRHS kit in it. It will flat **** and git now.
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 46
Likes: 0
From:
I did the conversion on my 883xl custom very easy to do wesico kit comes with 1200 jugs pistons rings all gaskets, took me a weekend and works Great glad i did it
has more power and deeper sound. cost me about $500 Bucks.
has more power and deeper sound. cost me about $500 Bucks.
Cruiser
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 135
Likes: 0
From: southeastern MA near RI
Quick background - Got a ridiculous deal on my bike since it had been sitting in a garage for 5 years. Only had about 600 miles on it. So I bought it knowing that the power was slightly less than ideal.
I love the bike so far and am considering the 1200 conversion.
1) Am I just going to kill the reliability of the bike?
2) What am I doing to the resale value?
3) I was told approximately $500-$700 in parts. Is that true?
4) Will it make driving on the highway at 80mph more tolerable?
5) Any other things I should be aware of?
Thanks for the help.
I love the bike so far and am considering the 1200 conversion.
1) Am I just going to kill the reliability of the bike?
2) What am I doing to the resale value?
3) I was told approximately $500-$700 in parts. Is that true?
4) Will it make driving on the highway at 80mph more tolerable?
5) Any other things I should be aware of?
Thanks for the help.
I've got a 04 and had it done and its a totally different animal. I had the dealer do it with screaming eagle everything. As soon as I fired up the bike I noticed a difference. The bike is a real sleeper and can get up to speed quickly. I wish I had it done earlier.
1. No you will not kill the reliability of the bike as quoted from the dealer I took it to. (There were other things I could have done but he flat out stated that the reliability will go down.
2. IDK I do not plan on getting rid of my bike anytime soon.
3. Yes if you go through the dealer I think my price on parts was $687.00
4. You can cruise 80mph all day long, its not annoying either plus you don't have to down shift to go faster.
4B. I rode my bike home from NH and still go 54 miles per gallon.
5. Might want to upgrade the ignition. Since you are running higher compression, when I start my bike it turns for a second then a pause for a second then it fires.
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