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[Wrongway]

Two thumbs up on the conversion and a wife that wants to ride that much  . Ride safe,  Dave

[JoMo]

Nick nice conversion and a happy wife  win win   

                                            Jo Mo NYC 

[CBW]

nice looking build 

[hdnik]

Many thanks for all of the generous comments.

[nidan]

I saw one at the dealer on saturday , in the parking lot.  The dealer was out talking with the owner about it for quite a while.

[Mr. Wizard]

So the story ends with a happy wife and a garage load of low mile Sporty parts.

Anybody need a swingarm, fender, rear tire and some saddle bags?

Trike looks really nice!

Had a great time selling the take off parts after my conversion. There's always someone in need for a part or two. There is also a site dedicated to trikes. Nice community of people. If you don't already know about it, Click here and introduce yourself.

One note: I found out the hard way that trike drum brakes don't some with self adjusters. Hit the brakes hard shortly before they were broken in and the trike darted to the left almost uncontrollably. Be sure to adjust the rear brakes often or at the first sign of pulling. 

-wiz

[hdnik]

One note: I found out the hard way that trike drum brakes don't some with self adjusters. Hit the brakes hard shortly before they were broken in and the trike darted to the left almost uncontrollably. Be sure to adjust the rear brakes often or at the first sign of pulling. 

-wiz

Thanks for the heads up on the brakes. We are getting sunshine and warmer temps starting tomorrow and thru Easter so it will make it maiden voyage this week. Need to tune the ECM with the new 1200 upgrade/high-flo and exhaust; also work out some adjustments issues for her seat so we will be going pretty easy, but once it's all buttoned up, my girl will surely put it through it's paces

[Mr. Wizard]

Good that you are going to get the trike ECM tuned, hard to find a dyno for a trike, this is why most of us use either a TTS or an auto tuning device. Also, a trike body will reduce the total air flow away from the motor so the heat will be a little uncomfortable during parade or stops.

-wiz

[Chains]

Nice looking conversion, glad your wife likes to ride, my wife has had two bikes, a 1977 low rider shovelhead and a sporster, but now is content on the bike.  Would live to get her on a trike.

[hdnik]

She was a great passenger for years, then all of a sudden she said she wanted her own bike, so she (along with her
girlfriend) took the course, got her liciense and started out on a little Suzuki 250 Marauder. She rode it like she stole it to keep up with me and our friends. WOT 80% of the time to go 50mph.
After a couple seasons she moved up to the XL883L, the only Harley she felt comfortable on given her stature (4'11") and was happy as a clam untill she laid eyes on the Big Harley Trikes. While I suppose she could have riden them, a full turn of the handlebars revealed the she'd have to really stretch out over the tank to keep a grip on the clutch turning right and the throttle turning left... hence the conversion of her Sportster.
I'm proud of her for her conviction. This season will prove whether it was a good idea or not... if not, i'll have no problem selling it and buying her another 2 wheeler, but my suspiscion is the love afair with her Trike has only begun to blossom.

[jimcb1]

what does something like that coast, if you don't mind also did you do the work your self

[hdnik]

Kit was (round numbers) $13500 Canadian painted one colour. The labour to install was $2000 and worth every penny. Lehman only deals thru their Authorized dealers, and in Canada at least, the closest one to me was 4 hours away. From what i understand the coversion must be done at an authorized dealer due to safety standards etc.... really when you think about it, it has to track true and the braking system is replaced as well as engine mounts are different (for torque due to extra twist action with 3 wheels)... for the money... i'd let a pro do it.

[Dan_Lockwood]

Kit was (round numbers) $13500 Canadian painted one colour. The labour to install was $2000 and worth every penny. Lehman only deals thru their Authorized dealers, and in Canada at least, the closest one to me was 4 hours away. From what i understand the coversion must be done at an authorized dealer due to safety standards etc.... really when you think about it, it has to track true and the braking system is replaced as well as engine mounts are different (for torque due to extra twist action with 3 wheels)... for the money... i'd let a pro do it.

I had heard some early rumors about poor handling of Trike conversion, not necessarily the Lehman kits though.

I understood that some were just adding the rearend conversion and not doing anything to the steering head, triple trees.  I believe that the rake/trail has to be changed quite a bit when doing a trike conversion to get the handling correct.

Did they do anything to the steering head on your wife's Sporty?

Thanks.

Also I'm going through a situation right now where my wife wants to ride by herself.  She's signed up for the Riders Edge course here in the St. Louis area at Doc's HD in Kirkwood.  I have purchased a "starter" bike for her to let her get the feel after she has her training completed; they use Buell Blasts.  I bought 2004 Honda Rebel 250 twin with just 96 miles on the clock.  I think she can handle it alright, but really not a good bike to move on with.

I still have my concerns about her being on JUST two wheels.  I feel trikes would not be my first choice someone to ride for anyone that has the ability, skill and desire to handle a two wheeler.  BUT..... I do feel that they are exactly what we need in cases where physically ability or anything else that would compromise safety on a two wheeler.  So time will tell with my wife as to here ability to maintain a confident riding attitude etc.  I think a trike may be an option if all else fails for her.

Other than the 4' 11" stature of your wife, is there anything else that helped her make the decision to go the trike route?  Nice project and I wish her many miles of riding pleasure and safety.

Thanks for posting the project here.

[hdnik]

Dan,
I did a lot af research and there are a few differenet kits out there. There is a big debate on the differences between live axle and independant suspension... pro and cons for both are debated all over the net and naturally all suppliers suggest theirs is the best idea. In the end I whet with Lehman for 3 reasons.
  1. I physically looked at two other kits swing arm and body framing... they all required shims and tons of adjustment at installation. Lehman is an ISO9002 certified manufacturer and the parts supplied almost seem over engineered. Very tight tolerances and perfect fit, and track true and square. Their Patented "No Lean" Suspension made sense to me and you can see how that over-engineered stifness is required.
  2. The fiberglass differences alone would have been enough to sell me on Lehman as well. They use a vaccum form process rather than all hand laid glass. When you run your hand on the underside it's almost as smooth and tidy as the finished side... much like a corvette body... rather than some home made fiberglasss piece. Also the paint was perfect.
  3. The Dealer. ("Trike My Bike" in Windsor Ontario) These guys are all certified by Lehman to do Harley, Honda/Suzuki or both. The guy I dealt with was TOP SHELF. He showed me completed trikes and ones on the go. toured his shop etc etc. Had he been some hack I would have gone running. (see next reply for wife's decision)

[hdnik]

Dan (Part 2)
As for my wife's call to go 3 wheels; I think a lot of it was to be a little unique (We attend a lot of Cruise nites etc with our hotrod and bikes etc). I'm sure she'll be asked many questions at these event this year... so that's cool. I also think trikes are becoming a bit of a trend she finds really appealing. I also think she will feel more comfortable on longer rides. She's been riding for only four years and possibly this gives her a little more confidence... all though I thought she was a very compitent rider alone, in pairs or in a big group... she dealt with it all like a champ and would never admit if she felt any lack of confidence.

Finally the front end: The Big Twins and Hondas get a different triple tree to increase rake help the decrease steering effort. Lehamn has no such part available for the Sportser kit. I have to assume the rake and weight of the Sportster are within spec as there is very little effort required (like almost none) on her trike to go lock to lock with the handlebars.