electraglide

[joshj]

Hi, my son just bought a 89 electraglide and wants to turn it into a fatboy look.loose the box and sides, solid wheels,change the seat and tank(for clocks) any pitfalls,problems or has any one done this type of conversion? we couldnt find a fatty at anywhere near the price he got it for.

[Wide]

Only think I can think of is keep an eye on axle size.

Should be a cool project

[junior]

couple of things....

a fatboy is on a softail platform while the touring bikes are an fl platform. keep that in mind when looking for parts. primary difference being that the fl's have exposed rear shocks while the softys have hidden rear shocks. seats, tins, and all are different between the two as well.

fl trees are ugly, since they were never meant to hang out in the wind. the fx/softail trees are nicer looking, but they cannot interchange with the fl frame due to steering geometry issues. however, some aftermarket companies do make milled trees for fl platformed bikes. you'll have to look around for some if you ditch the fairing.

wide mentioned axle sizes- when shopping for wheels, you have 3/4 in axles front and rear.

also- the wiring harness will have to be revisited if you ditch the fairing as there is a lot of spaghetti under it that will have to be re-thought.

not to say you can't do it, but you'll have to think it out some...

let us know-

j

[joshj]

cheers guys, i thought the frames are different,i kne about the axles and the shocks, the wiring i could handle, the bodywork and paint aswell. cheers for the heads up on geomitry. think he wants to go down the rk route after thinking about it.

[joshj]

any one know what tripple trees i can use or will a fatboy type cover fit ove the standard top clamp. cheers

[junior]

the fatboy/softail parts are different dimensionally. you'll have to search google for something as i've never done this personally...

j

[joshj]

cheers guys, will have to buy a chrome headlight tins to see if they fir or have to be adapted. josh

[joshj]

got the offer of a pair of fatboy tanks with h and speedo.the speedo works from the gearbox and his works from the front wheel, will it work ok?

[junior]

they are apples and oranges (speedo-wise) the trans drive speedos are a 1:1 ratio and the newer 21" front wheel units are 2240:60. 5 speed trans does not have a drive gear for that speedo (ratchet and rotary top 4/5 speeds do). the tanks are probably from a shovel bike (if a trans driven speedo) and will require some massaging if you are using an evo frame...

j

[joshj]

cheers junior, will need to look for a front wheel speedo drive