xr 650 trike for the street

[lilgsxr1000]

Because i cant post where i wanted here it goes. I started watching the site because a few years ago sitting around in the shop with a few friends drinking beer we came up with the great idea to get trikes and make them street leagle. So i started looking for a Kawasaki Tecate to turn into a road runner, i picked that because i had a 87 honda trx250r and just wanted something different, so i picked up this it was a 85 klx250a3.
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/Other%20Past%20Toys/Quads/85%20Kawasaki%20Tecate/1214011451.jpg
Made some phone calls to albany, New York states DMV head, and found out that it was going to caust me a ton of money and they still wouldn't let it pass. He then told me if i really wanted to do this i should pick up a on road bike and turn it into what i was looking for. So i traided the 3 wheeler for a 2002 Honda xr650 with 21xxx miles. Bike ran great so i didn't care how many miles where on it i just wanted a good bike to start with.
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/Honda%20xr650/0105020920.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/Honda%20xr650/0105020920a.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/Honda%20xr650/0105020920b.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/Honda%20xr650/0105020921.jpg
So the project beings, i stated by stripping the bike to the motor and frame, because thats all i planned on keeping. the stock subframe would not work so that was cut off also.
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/0106021530.jpg

[lilgsxr1000]

I had a front end off a 85 tecate that was layin around for parts from that last machine i had so i decided to try and start with that because i likes the fat front tire. after a little work i seen with some slight machining i could make the stock bike neck bearings and would not have to change the stock frame.
After turning down the tripple shaft i ended with this.
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/0106021530b.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/0106021530a.jpg
Welded it back to gether and my tripples where set for the project
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/0106021535.jpg
Everything worked great bolted right up and the front end was done, and we where on to the back. I looked at everything, stock 85 tecate swinger, 300ex swinger, 400ex swinger, trx450r swinger, and a kfx450r swinger. None of witch would fit into the bikes frame, so i new i was out to build one of my own. I wanted to use 300ex swinger as a base because i have had alot of the quads and i already had most of the rear parts i was going to need to finish this project. so i took a ebay swinger and chopped the front and back out of it because i needed those 2 peaces for my new swinger. the first one i build out of tubing, and was just way too long and i couldn't get it to stop flexing it just wanted to twist, so back to the drawin board. That was was chopped back apart and i build another one out of square stock, and i shortened it 3 in from where i was at. +1in from stock 85 tecate.
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/0107021258.jpg
This one worked perfect, added some mounts for the xr chain guide, and a mount for the stock bike rear shock, I used the 300ex +4 axle and aluminum bearing carrier. for rear brakes i also used the stock 300ex setup and it was ready for paint.
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/ResizedImage_1331646440504.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/ResizedImage_1331646552048.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/ResizedImage_1331646463645.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/0107021258.jpg
For the rear plastics i went with the trx450r plastics and seat, if i was thinking i should have went with the yamaha 450 because the honda had that peace for the kick start and it was more problems then it was worth. but for now it is running trx plastics. The gas tank is the stock xr one and it worked out good with the seat plastics set.
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/0107021258.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/0125021427.jpg
For the rear grab bar i used a trx300ex aluminum one, picked up a cheap $10 tail light and used the stock bike turning sig for now.
The stock bike pegs where tossed to the trash because they where to small. i picked up a set of trx250r pegs because they folded like the bike ones did, but the size didn't fit perfect so i ended up cutting the mounts some to get the pegs to sit right then just welded them into place so they couldn't move anymore, and that fixed my small pegs prob.
On to the headlight, i needed something that had a high/low because this was being build for the street and came up with this idea, not the best but for now its going to work, until i can figure out what i really want. the front turning sig was also from the bike because they worked good and i wanted to keep the price down for now untill i get all the other bugs worked out of it.
On to the tires i wanted to keep them close to stock. the front rim was a stock 10in wide and i wanted to keep that so i picked up a 22x8x10 DOT tire rated for 80mph
To the rear i found a set of 205-50-10's (18x7x10) and mounted them on a set of 10x8 wheels(honda bolt patern) These where alot smaller then i wanted, but its hard to find DOT tires that are not crazy in price.
Now that it is ridable i loaded in into my box van and took it to a scrap yard to get the new weight.
The next day i headed to the dmv to try and get my paperwork and put it on the road. a few phone calls and 30 mins later i was done. had the paperwork in my hand and had a leagle trike for the street.
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/ResizedImage_1333044085985.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/ResizedImage_1333044104194.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/ResizedImage_1333044123328.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/ResizedImage_1333044264247.jpg
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/ResizedImage_1333044143614.jpg

[badass350x]

Welcome to the site,,, Awesome Job!! now you need a longer rear brake line!!! lol... but Really I like it and would love too see a video!

[fabiodriven]

That is one fan-friggin tastic build. Top notch work man. I may have to do something similar someday.

[Matt85'350x]

Great work! I really like it. Are you going to keep the gas tank red? Love it otherwise!

[JJMF1979]

Best thing I have ever seen I have been thinking about using a dirtbike to do something like that in the future, and now I know where to start I am surprised we don't see more of them around, do you get pulled over by the cops often when you drive it?

[350XJEDI]

:Dvery cool build , we should all build one ,saves gas ,adds fun to any comute, !! any hasles yet?:wondering :beer:beer

[Grindin' Gearz]

AWESOME!!! Hope to be passing through NY and see this thing rippin down the road, great build man. Hope it brings a ton of fun!

[lilgsxr1000]

Thanks everyone idk about the color of the gas tank, for now i'm going to leave it they way it is and let the cops settle down and get use to the idea of it being on the road. I'm having probs with the front end on it. The front tire i chose to use is just not any good, its too big and its just too wide. It handles really bad at speeds over 60mph. but for now it just has to be.

[lilgsxr1000]

i put it on the road thurs so i have only had one day that is was not raining so i havn't had alot of street time on it. but yes the cops are all ready all over me about it. but hey that was one of the reasons i started the build, to have fun with the cops, and not get any tickets

[Bryan Raffa]

Cool Man nice build...

[atc300r]

Awsome build.Did you get the tires balanced.And can you get it inspected or havent you tried yet.Also would it work out if you registured it first and then converted it.Sweet bike .Have fun with the cops lol.

[JasonB]

Kick ass build! Very resourceful man, love it!

[350XJEDI]

:D update us when you find a better front tire. could the handling prob be from the geomitryof the one off front end? rake /angle,:wondering started looking for a enduro for a similer build , 350x front end/300ex rear need research wash. state law ,!!

[wide'n'low]

very nice. ive been thinking about doing the same thing, as street trikes and utvs are legal here.

[Swinger]

I really like this build. Lots of good info and just goes to show that you cant keep us trikers down. Loopholes baby! Hell yeah!!:Bounce

[lilgsxr1000]

I'm not sure about the rake, thats why i joined the form i wanted to ask those people who have already built bikes into trikes, but i cant ask till i make some more post. i might have a bent front rim, and thats why its giving me probs, not really sure yet because i'm just lazy and have not looked into it yet. I will keep people posted on the front tire, but its going to be sometime because that one caust me $100 and i dont feel like wasting more money on something that isn't going to work.

[lilgsxr1000]

o the bike was reg before i started, remember this was a on/off road bike when i started so that was the easy part. finding someone to give me a insp sticker not soo easy yet, but i should be able to get one

[lilgsxr1000]

quick update i took the trike to a place that has been insp motorcycles for well over 40 years and he could see that this bike was ready for the road. so after 30 mins of fun he gave me a insp sticker, and told me to have fun with the cops because they where going to be all over my trailprotrailprotrailprotrailprotrailpro!

[gomer202]

Is this possible in canada? Dont know. can someone let me know if it is or not. Thanks

[lilgsxr1000]

you have to check all your local laws, there is always a loop hole some where you just have to find them. the first place you need to go is your local dmv or what ever you have for the departmet of motorveh.

[bigredridr]

Great job. i was looking into doing a build like this, my concern is the clearance of the skid plate as i would be using it for off road and on road, have you bottomed out with it? and what would you say your ride height is when sitting on it?

[lilgsxr1000]

This is a road only, sittin on it i have around 4.5 in of clearance, i didn't care much about it because i have no interest in riding it off road at this point in time. If i where to ride off road with it, i will be doing a custom triple with a set of ktm forks before hand. Just as of right now the custom triples are out of my budget. I built this for less then $2000 the triples are going to run around $500 then forkes, just not in the budget this year.

[350XJEDI]

:wondering the clearance would be better with 22 inch back tires, 350x forks are a little longer ,that could help make it a little higher, still super build :cool: .... we all need a street enduro trike:drool::drool::Bounce:Bounce:beer:beer

[lilgsxr1000]

yea the rears are 18x7x10s on a set of 8in wide rimes so yea bigger tires would help, but if you have ever used your trike on the road, there not the best, so i was looking for a low stance to start with. the skid wont hit the ground but its really close. fully compressed ints about 1in off the ground, not much at all.

[Killbot]

Wow! That's GREAT! I'm a old enduro rider but new to trikes. Could he put the XR650 front wheel on? My Bigwheel when i was little turned on a dime!

[350XJEDI]

:wondering that would look wierd ,:rolleyes: might work , but ruin the whole project,:(:Bounce:Bounce:Bounce:beer:beer

[Killbot]

I think I would like to see someone do that! Motocross fender and tire on front! That would be interesting to see!

[350XJEDI]

it has been done!!not a pretty site:crazy:

[lilgsxr1000]

yes there is a dude on youtube.com who has put a swinger on the back of a dirtbike, and that is as far as he has made it. Looks really different, the small tire is not for me i would rather have it handle bad on the street with the look of a late 80's atc then have a dirtbike front tire.

[just ben]

o the bike was reg before i started, remember this was a on/off road bike when i started so that was the easy part. finding someone to give me a insp sticker not soo easy yet, but i should be able to get oneI know a guy that will inspect it but he's 2 1/2 hrs from you. I'm going to be spending 3 or 4 days in newark in a couple weeks I would love to see this thing in action edit... I didnt read the next post that you got it inspected

[Jon Boy]

just curious, but could the front end problem be do to the front tire having a squared off profile? (compared to a 3wheelers rounded profile).
also, wondering what you did for balancing your tires for those higher speeds? might try those bags of beads truckers use to balance out their tires. wouldn't need a whole bag though. toss the bag into the tire, set the bead, mount it and after driving a few miles the bags bust open automaticly balancing the tire everytime you drive. best part is no real mess to clean if you remove the tire, just vacuum out the old beads or save them and use again since atv tires are much smaller than semi tires.

[Jon Boy]

I think I would like to see someone do that! Motocross fender and tire on front! That would be interesting to see!

it has been done!! not a pretty site :crazy:

blacksheep

[lilgsxr1000]

john boy that is some funny stuff. to the john boy. if i'm home when your in the area we could meet up newark isn't that far from me. The only prob is i work for nys goverment and i'm out of town every other week working down in the city. if you let me know the dates your going to be around i can give you a idea if i'm going to be around home or down in the city. You should bring your ride there is great off road riding just outside newark, would bring my quad out anytime you wanted if i'm around i love riding out there and during the day most of my friends are working and cant go play

[350XJEDI]

:drool::drool:hows the street trike doing ?:wondering any probs?:wondering update!!!:D:beer:beer:Bounce:Bounce:Bounce

[BeersBuds&Mud]

i wonder how fast that b is??? we need up dates!!

[lilgsxr1000]

sorry i have not been on the net for a while, here is the big update. I have loged well over 300+miles on it now, going from town to town because i like the slower speeds. I have pasted around 12 cops now, with nothing, I cant get pulled over. Town,County, and State Cops will not bother me yet. I"m not sure if the word got out about the build or not. The Front tire is now much better it tracks nice and straight down the road, shakes a lil in the turns but nothing that would make you fell unsafe. I do ride double some times, as i would my rocket, the only thing with riding double is that with the extra weight of here on back right over the rear tires it gets alot of traction. u-turns are really hard with her because it just wants to push straight. ON to what everyone wants to know the speed. I thought i new what 55mhp sounded like, but after riding for a while my buddy flaged me down to inform me that i had been running around 75mph. The rpms where not really that high, so i'm thinking it could easly do will over 85+mph, but keep in mind this thing is a trike and i have no interest in going that fast.

[350XJEDI]

:drool:thanks for the update , enjoy:beer:beer:pics::pics::pics:

[BeersBuds&Mud]

hall ya!! get'er rag!! :lol::pics:

[Vito]

That is a awesome build great job

[lilgsxr1000]

Another UPDATE:
yesterday i got pulled over. the DEC gave it a try. when i passed him going down the highway i just new he was the man for the task. Just after passing him i seen him hit his brake lights. So i turned my turning signle on and just waited for the fun to start. After running my plate he came to talk to me, and the fun began. He already seen it had a road plate on it, and not a offroad one. Or plates are diff colors for on or off road. From that point he just scratched his head. First words out of his mouth, I have never seen a atc keep up with trafic like that so i had to see what was going on. i smiled and asked him if he would like to see some of the paperwork for it, and he did. After checking the vin i told him what it was and what i had done, he just smiled. He asked me if the dmv knew, i replied yes it was there idea, then asked me if my insur knew about it, again stated they where aware it was converted into a trike. The final question out of his mouth, how fast does it act go, you where easly staying with trafic around 55mph so what is the top speed. Now there is no way i'm going to tell him well ser i can easly crank 80+, so i simply stated that 55 was hard to stay at, it likes to go a little faster:) he smiled and let me go on my way. just before we parted ways i stated to him "you made my month, i had been riding this every day just waiting for the moment to get pulled over, i had passed over 12 cops and not a one of them had the ball$ to pull me over, he was the first". He told me to enjoy my hol weekend i told him to do the same.

[just ben]

Another UPDATE:
yesterday i got pulled over. the DEC gave it a try. when i passed him going down the highway i just new he was the man for the task. Just after passing him i seen him hit his brake lights. So i turned my turning signle on and just waited for the fun to start. After running my plate he came to talk to me, and the fun began. He already seen it had a road plate on it, and not a offroad one. Or plates are diff colors for on or off road. From that point he just scratched his head. First words out of his mouth, I have never seen a atc keep up with trafic like that so i had to see what was going on. i smiled and asked him if he would like to see some of the paperwork for it, and he did. After checking the vin i told him what it was and what i had done, he just smiled. He asked me if the dmv knew, i replied yes it was there idea, then asked me if my insur knew about it, again stated they where aware it was converted into a trike. The final question out of his mouth, how fast does it act go, you where easly staying with trafic around 55mph so what is the top speed. Now there is no way i'm going to tell him well ser i can easly crank 80+, so i simply stated that 55 was hard to stay at, it likes to go a little faster:) he smiled and let me go on my way. just before we parted ways i stated to him "you made my month, i had been riding this every day just waiting for the moment to get pulled over, i had passed over 12 cops and not a one of them had the ball$ to pull me over, he was the first". He told me to enjoy my hol weekend i told him to do the same.haha very cool! I will build one for the street someday but I should wait until I can drive legally first. I have some more work to do down your way. I hope you are around when I come down to do it. I really wanna see this thing. P.S thanks for all the parts and being so trusting ,lucky for you I am an honest guy

[350XJEDI]

:cool::beerThats very cool .. I am impressed , so your build is meeting all the design spec's !!:wondering:) sweet!! keep us in the loop:Bounce:Bounce,vid's :crazy:,pic's at cool locations!!!:pics::pics:

[lilgsxr1000]

No prob glad i could help with the parts. If you still have my number get at me a few days ahead of time and we can see if i'm in town or not, you missed out because i have been off the last 3 weeks from work, and i have been riding just about every day. as for vid, i have shot some first point of view with my gopro, but with nothing happening when shooting vid i didn't upload anything. I dont have many friends with bikes anymore we all got back into riding dirt, and most of them sold there bikes.

[lilgsxr1000]

Well I'm about to close on a new house, and i'm not getting to ride my trike anymore, this house is going to be a project, and i'm not going to enjoy the trike, so i have decided to put if up for sale, I have alot of time and some good money invested in this, so before you go offering some offers just keep that inmind. Its located in Cayuga NY if someone wants to see it in person

[lilgsxr1000]

http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-39_79_zps6361c22f.jpg (http://s1170.photobucket.com/user/lilgsxr1000/media/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-39_79_zps6361c22f.jpg.html)
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-18_913_zps16a6850d.jpg (http://s1170.photobucket.com/user/lilgsxr1000/media/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-18_913_zps16a6850d.jpg.html)
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-09_945_zpscddc756d.jpg (http://s1170.photobucket.com/user/lilgsxr1000/media/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-09_945_zpscddc756d.jpg.html)
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-57_152_zps7c9e929e.jpg (http://s1170.photobucket.com/user/lilgsxr1000/media/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-57_152_zps7c9e929e.jpg.html)
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-28-02_454_zpsdc17e69b.jpg (http://s1170.photobucket.com/user/lilgsxr1000/media/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-28-02_454_zpsdc17e69b.jpg.html)
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-47_451_zpsb2cd2f23.jpg (http://s1170.photobucket.com/user/lilgsxr1000/media/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2014-01-17_12-27-47_451_zpsb2cd2f23.jpg.html)
http://i1170.photobucket.com/albums/r532/lilgsxr1000/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2013-05-17_14-38-38_670_zps696f162c.jpg (http://s1170.photobucket.com/user/lilgsxr1000/media/XR650%20Trike/Honda%20xr650/2013-05-17_14-38-38_670_zps696f162c.jpg.html)

[czac]

great job on the build! I was just thinking about this the other day... How can a regular trike be street legal and an ATV not be, you know, if you added blinkers and lights and all that... is it because they are smaller? harder to see maybe? My neighbor had a Harley trike and had no problems with it while registering it... Quads too? why cant you have a street legal quad? you can by one of those bikes with the one wheel in back and two up front but you cant register an ATC type trike?

[lilgsxr1000]

3 wheels legal, 4 wheels not legal. just the way it is in new York and a lot of other states. Also the big manufactures stamped there atc titles off road use only. cant change that! Same with atv's, and a lot of dirtbikes, there stamped off road use only from the factory.