[Pug]

http://www.jockeyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=89857

Thats a link to pics of the Bike , so I'm asking can it be done ? and what parts should I look for , or would it be eaiser to either

A , try and find a whole Gearbox with Kicker

B . Buy a Complete New Kicker Kit to add to my Exisiting Gearbox in the 80

 

[Shacknasty]

Ya just need a kicker kit with the gears and a new cover for yer trans. Trust me on this one, ya want a cover that will let you run the old style throwout bearing as opposed to the newer, wafer type.

The Baker kicker gears are pricey but cheaper than a knee surgery when then cheap alternative gears slip.

 

[popelli]

you may have to change the exhaust to get clearance for the kicker

FLH gearbox endcovers have a cut away for the exhaust - right where the kicker gears reside

 

[sixball]

Yep, get the complete kicker kit, and look at the manual's exploded view and you'll see where everything goes. Pretty straight forward.

When running the old style throwout bearing you may also have to change out your ratchet gear. But it's well worth it.

Sixball

 

[66xlch]

Even cheap Bigtwin kicker gears work light years better than Sportster gears. This is completely straight forward and easy. The most likely issue is pipe clearance. Everything else is easy as pie. The monster TO bearing is indestructible, but the radial one will fall apart after only 10-15 years of service, provided you run a real snapring instead of the flimsy "c" clip they come with.

 

[Kuda]

Everyone pretty much summed it up above.

1) Use early style throwout bearing and early cover (put in new bushings and seal).
2) Use OEM gears if you can find 'em, Baker if you can afford them, or TWO sets of V-Twin gears (you'll need 'em, trust me).
3) Use the late model large-offset kicker, the swing out one for oil tank/exhaust clearance.

But your big problem is going to be clearance between the kicker cover and exhaust. At a minimum, even if you can shoehorn it in there, you're gonna have to pull the exhaust every time you pull the end cover (and if you use V-twin gears, you WILL be pulling the cover).

-Kuda
'49 panchop

 

[sixball]

Even cheap Bigtwin kicker gears work light years better than Sportster gears. This is completely straight forward and easy. The most likely issue is pipe clearance. Everything else is easy as pie. The monster TO bearing is indestructible, but the radial one will fall apart after only 10-15 years of service, provided you run a real snapring instead of the flimsy "c" clip they come with.

Your lucky getting 10-15 years service outa those wafer bearing throwout bearings. I usually got about 250 MILES outa them. But thats with a 3 inch open belt drive and foot clutch. I've got a drawer full of them from my bikes and customers after failures. Liberty bell throwout bearing and never look back

Sixball

 

[Pug]

Thanks for the Info

One last Question

If i was to buy it as a Complete Kit who makes it ?

 

[66xlch]

I've only had to replace a couple of radial bearings, and they were all on bikes which had chronic leaking, and they still were 5-10 years old! Granted none were suicide clutches. If you keep 'em full of oil and use snap rings, they last just fine, although the big truck looking one will triple the life expectancy for sure, to like 30-40 years (if not forever!)!

 

[popelli]

Thanks for the Info

One last Question

If i was to buy it as a Complete Kit who makes it ?

Bakers make quality parts

 

[JasonMcElroy]

Your lucky getting 10-15 years service outa those wafer bearing throwout bearings. I usually got about 250 MILES outa them. But thats with a 3 inch open belt drive and foot clutch.

I've been running the wafer style for years and years with few problems.

The trick it seems . . .

. . . is to ensure the throwout knuckle is hitting the thrust washer of the bearing squarely. That is, both fingers are touching at the same time. Otherwise, you're side-loading that delicate bearing and it's no surprise when it fails.

I'm sure you've noticed that the repop throwout knuckles are total fucking garbage. Looks like they hogged out the slot with a dull chisel and a ten pound hammer.

Put a straight edge across the kicker cover gasket surface and drop a mic or caliper end to each finger. Grind 'til they're equal.

There are two reasons I go through this (what must seem like a hassle to some people):

1) My trans/kicker will not fit an early style bearing. Modifying the cover to do so would take too much meat out of it and run an extended length arm on a big motor. No need to make the cover any weaker

2) The repop early style bearings are probably even shittier than the wafer bearings. They don't want to turn for shit (feel the grind when you turn it in your hands) and end up wearing down the rod from spinning. I have a four of them in a drawer from the last ten years and they're all like this.

Luckily I have three real ones also in a drawer for other projects.

Jason

 

[66xlch]

If the radials were that bad, we'd be seeing 10 years worth of bikes all needing new T/O bearings constantly. The truck looking one is clearly better, but the radial works fine if set up correctly.