xr650 conversion question

[Beau]

has anyone tried turning a xr650 into a big red?

i love my big reds but wish they would be a little faster.

i have seen a few turned in to x's but having the utility hitch and racks would be interesting as well.

i assume an 83 big red would have to be used for the read axle. other than that would it be much different than doing the x conversion?

[tripledog]

A lot of good info here. Enjoy!

http://www.3wheelerworld.com/showthread.php/166302-My-XR650L-conversion?highlight=xr650l

[Beau]

the info is on the page of the guy who built it. but i cant see the pictures for some reason. i get red x's for pictures. still didnt see anything about trying it with a big red to get the utility racks and trailer hitch. maybe the pictures explain my questions but since i cant see them it doesnt help much.

[RapidRick]

I'm confused, but I'll try and help. Are you wanting to put a xr650 motor into a big red frame? for extra power?

[Hunter_2268]

Hi every I'm just getting started with my new love TX for the add

[Beau]

rick no i am not wanting to put a 650 in a big red.

i have seen where people take a 650 dirt bike and convert it to a 3 wheeler using 200x or 350x rear fenders and modified extended arms.
i am wondering if someone has done that but left a big red rearend or modified one so that it can be used as a bad ass utility trike like the big red.
i dont care all that much for jumping and flying around. i am more interested in trail riding and even though a 250 big red would more than adequetly fit the bill why stop there when you can have a 650.

[tripledog]

Beau, I used to have the same problem with the images failing to show. Do you perhaps have a dial-up internet connection? When I had dial-up, most images wouldn't load.

[Beau]

not dial up. its just his pictures and maybe one or 2 other members that i have noticed. i just figure its the file format they are using.

[RapidRick]

Forgive my ignorance, but isn't a BR a shaft drive?


rick no i am not wanting to put a 650 in a big red.

i have seen where people take a 650 dirt bike and convert it to a 3 wheeler using 200x or 350x rear fenders and modified extended arms.
i am wondering if someone has done that but left a big red rearend or modified one so that it can be used as a bad ass utility trike like the big red.
i dont care all that much for jumping and flying around. i am more interested in trail riding and even though a 250 big red would more than adequetly fit the bill why stop there when you can have a 650.

[Beau]

the 250 i mentioned is shaft drive but i was thinking more along the lines of pre 84 which was chain drive but only 200 no 250.

[Samjp22]

this sounds like the beginning of a frankentrike, 650 motor, BR 250 rear end but chain driven?

[Beau]

i guess it kinda would be. chain driven. trailer hitch. and 250 plastics. geared for towing but with a 650 motor it should still run pretty quick.

[RapidRick]

Well from experience a 500-650 motor will barely squeeze into a 350x frame and the motor cavity in a BR200 frame is smaller than a 350X frame. So not without extensive frame mods will the motor even begin to fit.

or you could graft the front and the rear of the BR to the motor cradle of the XR/XL.

If you need a SxS comparison for the size differential I could probably arrange that for you.

Is it possible sure, with enough time, money, and talent. However not easily.

[Beau]

i am thinking more of using the xr650l frame and trying to convert that to a trike. maybe try to adapt the 200e arm to it.
i know it will be big. probably similar from going from a 110 to a 250 or a 70 to a 250.

that is kinda what this guy did. used his 350x frame and the bike frame. http://www.venustel.com/~muddogs/showcase.htm

[fabiodriven]

Making a 650 trike is a fantastic idea, but what you're trying to do just isn't going to work. You will never get the 650 engine into a Big Red chassis, it's just too big. You said using the XR frame with the 200E "arm"? As in swing arm? The 200E doesn't have a swing arm so what arm do you want to incorporate from the 200E? If you want to make a Big Red with an XR engine, you'll need a completely custom frame. The XR frame is too tall being a bike frame to get you the ground clearance you will need. The XR frame is fine for the street or "cleared" trails, fairly smooth I mean, but it's limited to those kinds of areas.

Turning the XR650L into a trike is one thing. Turning it into a utility trike is going to be a completely different project and much more difficult and expensive. You're talking about a completely custom machine with just the engine being supplied. You would have to fabricate the frame, swing arm, and many, many things in between.

[RapidRick]

Yep, nice conversion. I have something very similar, but in the "raw" stages.

[Footy]

I had a 1983 Big Red. I was the most unstable vehicle I have ever owned. It flipped over while in the back of my pickup while hauling it. I rode it on a trail one time and flipped it 5 times that day. It stayed on the farm with an ag sprayer on it for the rest of its time with me. The absolute last thing a non suspended big red needs is the be faster.

[Bren_downe]

Sounds like you should get a Taurus…

[Footy]

Sounds like you should get a Taurus…

I acutually tried to sldie oen of those too. Imposible unless you use the parking brake.

I like to ride fast and the big red was having none of that. With an xr650 engone nothing less than a trip to the ER would be a given.