Good Morning,
I own a 1990 883 sportster that I have had for 14 years and I would like to get more power from this bike, I have read many articles concerning the 1200 upgrade and I am still not decided which way to go.
If I opt for the wiseco reverse dish kit would that mean that In the future If I wanted to do head work I would have to change the pistons as well.
Can I do head work with this upgrade or does the wiseco kit perform best with the standard 883 heads.
Compression;
I have read most articles proposing to use the 9.5:1 compression wiseco pistons and other opinions opting for the 10.1: compression.
which would be best.
My bike has done 60 thousand Ks and had a hone and new rings only 12000 ks ago, would the higher compression be advisable.

Regards

Good Morning,
I own a 1990 883 sportster that I have had for 14 years and I would like to get more power from this bike, I have read many articles concerning the 1200 upgrade and I am still not decided which way to go.
If I opt for the wiseco reverse dish kit would that mean that In the future If I wanted to do head work I would have to change the pistons as well.
Can I do head work with this upgrade or does the wiseco kit perform best with the standard 883 heads.
Compression;
I have read most articles proposing to use the 9.5:1 compression wiseco pistons and other opinions opting for the 10.1: compression.
which would be best.
My bike has done 60 thousand Ks and had a hone and new rings only 12000 ks ago, would the higher compression be advisable.

Regards

I've had the Wiseco 9.5:1 dished conv. for the last 19K mi. I just had an indie do the heads to compliment the pistons. Full 1200 dia valves, port,polish and flow. Also milled the .020 to get another .5 on the compression, bringing motor to 10:1 total.
By all means do the 9.5 conversion. There is still plenty of fun down the road when you get the bucks.
p.s. He did the milling and cleaned the piston tops at no extra charge.

Thanks for your advice, when you did the wiseco conversion with the standard 883 heads how was the power, could you notice a significant increase, did you loose any top end performance.

Thanks for your advice, when you did the wiseco conversion with the standard 883 heads how was the power, could you notice a significant increase, did you loose any top end performance.

The power you feel is dependent on the cam you choose. Once the heads are done "CORRECTLY" you can choose a torquey cam (N-2), A horsepower cam (N-8), or something in between (N-4). I went in between, I wanted some good TQ and HP. I felt a very signifigant power increase, and an added 1,000 rpm to my top end performance.
Excuse me. I just reread your question. What I just told you related to my heads and cam.
As far as the wiseco conversion (from stock) The power increase was not signifigant, it was STUNNING ! My HP went from 43 to 60. My torque went from 45 to 81. Top end performance was the same, mainly because the heads were still the same...But the low end...That's a whole 'nother story
My wrench told me not to exceed 3k rpm's for 400 mi. as a break in. I could feel the motor strainin' to let loose just keepin' it under 3k.
That was the longest 400 mi. I ever rode.
My only regret was that I didn't do it sooner.
I added a bunch of enhancements to compliment the conversion and insure that I got the maximum benifit, I.E., Pingel Fuel Valve, Thunderheader 2:1 pipe, carb fully Dyno Jetted, Dyna 2000 Single Fire Ign., Screamin' Eagle Air Cleaner, ETC>
I never had a Stage One Factory 1200 come close to me.
Most satisfactory... :laugh

Hey Maddog. Does this mean you got ypur heads done and back on the bike? If so, you likey???

Hey Maddog. Does this mean you got ypur heads done and back on the bike? If so, you likey???
Yuppey...I can't give you a full review 'cause I just drove home on Wed. The roads are crappy Barry.
But Saturday is supposed to hit 47* and I intend to put her fully thru her paces.
A full report will be forthcoming..Have no fear.

The roads on LI are ok to ride on? I'm only a couple hours away from you and I wouldn't take my bike out yet. Still snow and slush everywhere. Well, it's still apart and I can't ride but still...

The power you feel is dependent on the cam you choose. Once the heads are done "CORRECTLY" you can choose a torquey cam (N-2), A horsepower cam (N-8), or something in between (N-4). I went in between, I wanted some good TQ and HP. I felt a very signifigant power increase, and an added 1,000 rpm to my top end performance.
Excuse me. I just reread your question. What I just told you related to my heads and cam.
As far as the wiseco conversion (from stock) The power increase was not signifigant, it was STUNNING ! My HP went from 43 to 60. My torque went from 45 to 81. Top end performance was the same, mainly because the heads were still the same...But the low end...That's a whole 'nother story
My wrench told me not to exceed 3k rpm's for 400 mi. as a break in. I could feel the motor strainin' to let loose just keepin' it under 3k.
That was the longest 400 mi. I ever rode.
My only regret was that I didn't do it sooner.
I added a bunch of enhancements to compliment the conversion and insure that I got the maximum benifit, I.E., Pingel Fuel Valve, Thunderheader 2:1 pipe, carb fully Dyno Jetted, Dyna 2000 Single Fire Ign., Screamin' Eagle Air Cleaner, ETC>
I never had a Stage One Factory 1200 come close to me.
Most satisfactory... :laugh

Mate,
thanks for all your comments.
That's the way Iam gonna go, just one more thing compression what would be best the 9.5:1 or the 10.1:1, the bottom end cost big dollars so I don't want to put too much pressure on it but I want to get the most performance out of the mod and I understand higher compression means more HP.

10 to 1 is not to much stress on the bottom end. You should be fine and the extra ooomph will be a bonus.

The roads on LI are ok to ride on? I'm only a couple hours away from you and I wouldn't take my bike out yet. Still snow and slush everywhere. Well, it's still apart and I can't ride but still...

Barry...We had a little slush this morning, but it turned to rain and washed the snow away. Tomorrow and sunday are supposed to be sunny in the mid 40's. I'm gettin' squirrely so I intend to ride both days for mental health reasons. The main roads are all clear, so if I stick to them I should be fine. The worst that could happen is I might have to hose the bike off (salt).

Mate,
thanks for all your comments.
That's the way Iam gonna go, just one more thing compression what would be best the 9.5:1 or the 10.1:1, the bottom end cost big dollars so I don't want to put too much pressure on it but I want to get the most performance out of the mod and I understand higher compression means more HP.

Barry's right...10:1 is no problem. To be honest with you, at the time of my conv., I didn't know 10:1 dished were available and I probably would have gone that route myself. There was no XLFORUM around at that time to help me bone up on my options.