Hey guys, newbie here.
I know the 1200 conversion thing has been discussed to death, but I haven't heard the other side of the story:
If I don't convert my 1994 883XLH to a 1200, how do I make it pull a bit harder and faster, or is what I've got, all I've got.

Some facts:
- stock carb, stock air cleaner, stock pipes? (they look and sound more like S.E.)
- 25 000kms (= 15 500miles)
- small oil leak in top end

The bikes in good shape but just feels a bit tired.
(throttle reaction time is slow)
Would a new top end gasket kit and/or some rejetting do the trick?
A better breathing air filter?
Eliminating the deceleration cable?
I guess I should do a compression/leakdown test first?

I may well end up going with the 1200 (I think I'm sold on NRHS), but I'd like to see if there's another angle that may save me a bit of money.


Thanks in advance.

 

The stage 1 upgrade with pipes, high flow air filter and a carb tune/EFI tune/X14iED will do wonders for the power.

 

Yeah, you want to get more gas and air in and more exhaust out. You could probably change the front pulley but that would hurt you top end. Still not a bad idea unless you do a lot of freeway driving.

 

Not sure if I wanna change the gearing. I do a lot of city driving.

What's an X14iED?

 

It's for fuel injection bikes. YOU would need a carb tune.re-jet after said mods...

 

+1. Good exhaust and good air cleaner, get it tuned on a dyno. If you opt for a 1200/1250 kit in the future, you would want these anyway.

 

Buy a can of Seafoam additive and run a couple tanks of gas, bet that brings back a lot of lost power. 15,000 miles is nothing on a Sportster engine if it's been operated and maintained with care.

I've got a 1991 883 with carb kit, slipons, and SE air filter, definitely worth the money. Owned it since new, so I know how it performed with each change. Ran some Seafoam for the first time ever a couple months back and it made the bike run much better after just 10 minutes of driving!!!

8 bucks for a can of Seafoam, cheapest upgrade out there.

John

 

Do NOT remove the deceleration cable. It has nothing to do with reducing power. Its a safety feature.

15K+ miles is not a lot of miles at all. A major tune up plus doing a full stage 1 to the bike will help wake it up.

Using thinner or thicker gaskets in the top end will not increase power in a stock motor. Changing out the gaskets is only useful in setting the "squish" for optimum tuning. squish = distance between piston and valves making sure they do not touch.

A 1200 or 1250 kit with a good tuner, cams and complimenting head work is what pulls it all together.

Unfortunatly....saving money and more power do not go hand in hand.....

Call Dan (the owner) at NRHS and he can help you get the best bang for your budget.

 

Do the 1250 conversion. I can't help but shake my head at people who pay the same price for the 1200 conversion. Then do the cam/head work.