XT550 Trike conversion upgrades. XT600E swap!

[plevib]

I finished up this trike over a year ago, (http://www.3wheelerworld.com/showthr...n-build-thread) Very happy with the results. Amazing suspension! Very comfy for trail use. Handles well, although the steering is a little on the heavy side. Tons of torque and plenty of power. You are never in the wrong gear, it'll pull out of anything.

Unfortunately the bore on the motor let go after probably 10 hours of riding. I'm surprised it lasted that long given that there was rust lines in it when i threw it back together. Since then I've been looking for rings. GOOD LUCK finding rings for a 82 xt550! I've had 3 companies who say they have it in stock tell me after my order that they are no longer available. I even called wiseco and asked if they could cross reference and get me rings. He said they didn't have any info documented on the xt550 and i'd have to send in my top end to get a custom piston and rings made! $$$

So I started looking for other options. The xt550 was only made for 2 years. The xt600 was made for like 15. Parts, including stock and aftermarket pistons/rings are plentiful. Also.... in the 90's the released the xt600E.



And my machine has a empty hole in its life where an electric starter should go



So this new years day i'm swapping the motors. This will allow me to ditch the quick flip seat, which worked fine, but prohibited me from adding a grab bar. I put a strap on the rear to try to make up for it, but no grab bar is a massive PITA! I need to add a battery box somewhere and I have to rebuild the wiring with the newer cdi and the starter circuit.

I'm also planning on swapping the kickstarter into the E start motor, so if i ever get in a bind i can use it as backup.

I have a couple other small tweaks to make and she'll be ready to ride again!

[big specht]

Why couldn’t you just use another piston from a different bike or year bike? Or how much bigger is the 600 bore than the 550?

[plevib]

I called wiseco trying to find a cross reference but they didn't have any info about a different piston i can use. You can swap the xt600 jug onto the xt550 motor, but you have to bore the cases and by the time i get through the machine work (no machine shops within 300 miles) and acquiring the 600 jug and piston i'll be over the $600 that i paid for the new motor. And its got electric start! Which is a beautiful thing for a trail rig! And in the future, if it needs rebuilt parts are plentiful.


And i mean, the newer motor makes 6 more HP stock (probably 10 more than my wore out 550) It tested at 135 cold compression so I think it'll be a huge improvement

[big specht]

Well yea then yea that is a better deal than screwing with the 550.