Anyone tried this?

[cased73]

So anyone with a 5 speed sporty knows the high end of 5th gear just sucks on the highway. Here my question.... has anyone here tried to swap out the gear for 5th with the gear for 6th from a newer sporty? Only thing my Google search came up with is people on other sites I won't name saying things like oh you shouldn't do that kinda comments hence why I'm asking here cause folk here do shit not just say you shouldn't.

[farmall]

Tranny gears are in PAIRS so you would have to confirm they are a match. I have no idea if they are and strongly expect they are not along with doubting the net result if they do work.

Find a gear ratio chart to see if there would be enough change to matter. The xlforum should have one, maybe on their wiki.I post there and here because both sites rock.

I just gear everything I use on the highway tall via the final drive since I ride solo and don't pack fat chicks. I left my Evo Sporty gearing stock since I have big twins for highway use. If you run a chain you have any gear choice you want by swapping rear sprockets and you can have Sprocket Specialists etc make whatever you fancy.

hence why I'm asking here cause folk here do shit not just say you shouldn't.

That's how I roll. I require testable evidence when someone advises me and give it when I advise others.

Let us know what you find out.

See if a combination of Andrews gears and different final drive gearing can produce what you want. Contact Andrews tech support if needed (too few people do that and it doesn't cost a dime).

http://www.andrewsproducts.com/sites/www.andrewsproducts.com/files/catalog_pdfs/page_28_0.pdf

Used five speeds are cheap enough you could buy one and build it instead of pulling yours if downtime is an issue. I'm lazy and hate extra downtime so I like to overhaul assemblies then swap them.

[cased73]

Thanks for the input farmall and to be honest xlforum didn't have anything listed about the subject but I respect the guys there cause most things posted are again posted with knowledge not arrogance. I'll keep digging and I'm goin to try and get actual specs on the parts involved

[farmall]

Figure how many RPM you want to drop in top gear then "fill in the blanks".

Is your engine stock? 883 or 1200? Chain or belt final drive?

If chain my rule of thumb for nearly all undergeared bikes (vintage Jap included!) is drop four teeth off the rear wheel sprocket to begin. I do similar with belts which I prefer to chain but trying different belt combos is fucking expensive.

[cased73]

Figure how many RPM you want to drop in top gear then "fill in the blanks".

Is your engine stock? 883 or 1200? Chain or belt final drive? .

It's a 98 1200 that's been blown apart and built cams sleaves slugs carb blah blah blah. It has a habit of killing ignition pick ups and I'm kinda embarrassed to say it's actually been sitting in pieces for 4 maybe 5 years now. Life kinda got in the way but lately I've had folks really pushing me to get it together again and finally I actually want it together again. I've been laid up cause if neck surgery sense Sept 11th this time so I finally started. My tins have been raw for as long as the bikes been apart but I finished them the other day. I can't remember how to post pictures so give me a moment to figure it out and I'll post em

[cased73]

Ok I need help. Says exceeds forum limits when trying to import picture

[Tattooo]

Ok I need help. Says exceeds forum limits when trying to import picture

Your pics are to large...... Send them to yourself then try it again..........

[cased73]

[cased73]

Thanks tattoo!
Here's what I started with

[Pacifictime]

Any chance that the front pulley for your belt drive is from an 883? I think they are a little smaller and some times get changed on 1200s to provide quicker acceleration from the stop light but at highway speeds you get higher rpm.

[cased73]

Any chance that the front pulley for your belt drive is from an 883? I think they are a little smaller and some times get changed on 1200s to provide quicker acceleration from the stop light but at highway speeds you get higher rpm.

Honestly I don't know. It's possible and would make total sense. Before I left it to die it was great for wheelies and I slam shifted it launching and destroyed a drive belt. Buddy of mine has a 883 he built I'll compare it with his. Cool info man thanks

[Skjoll]

Gearing depends on the year, model and the market the bike was meant for. What I can tell you is that my '98 1200C does fine on the highway where I usually average anywhere from 70-80 mph depending on where I'm riding but first gear is tall enough to make gridlock or 'stop and go' rush hour or accident traffic a great left hand grip exercise that can kinda suck after a few miles so I never bothered with gearing the bike even taller via final drive. Also I'm used to riding all kinds of bikes long distances, some of which rev all day at 6K-7K rpms at highway speeds so to me both of my 1200 Sporties feel like tractors... it all boils down to what you're used to. Here's what I gleaned from my 91-03 factory service manual. I added it as a link because as an image this forum reduces it to an unusable size... have fun with it.

91-03 SportsterGearing

[Pacifictime]

Did you ever get around to checking that front pulley?

[TriNortchopz]

Anybody tried this helical 5th gear swap:

"SportGear, the fifth-gear/main gear helical replacement assembly for 1991 and up Buell (tube frame trapdoor models only) and Sportster five-speed transmissions...The cornerstone of the SportGear helical performance system is our unitized 5th gear/countershaft combination.
Our 5th gear is a 22t helical that meshes seamlessly with our 42t helical main gear, delivering an ouput ratio of 1.91:1, which is nearly 14% more reduction than the stock ratio of 1.68:1. (XLs, at 1.73:1, get a little over 10% reduction, similiar to our Big Twin TwistGear helical performance system.)"

http://www.twistgear.net/page%20html/sportgear.html

[cased73]

Did you ever get around to checking that front pulley?

yeah finally got back around to it, stock 1200 pulley