Converting Gen 2 AE to A engine - is it possible?

[JamesK]

Some pics of the retrofit operation.

Also want to thank wfooshee & rPGoatBoy, et al for the advice and encouragement

Her new (second) birthday is at...

 

[El Toro Joe]

Great to see and hear that things worked out for you James.

 

[escapefjrtist]

Great news, congrats!

--G

 

[HotRodZilla]

That's awesome.

 

[bluesdog]

Damn! Give yourself a pat on the back, bro! It sounds great. Good job.

 

[exskibum]

Most excellent! May you have many more happy miles on that feejer.

 

[Mihalis fjr]

Happy end!

Congratulations!

 

[RossKean]

Fantastic news James!!!

So, what did you replace with new parts? Did the shift drum appear to be worn significantly? Engine sounds sweet in your video clip.

As with most "major" projects; it seems there was more concern and time spent worrying about the job than actually doing it. (At least that's how it works with me.) Here's to the NEXT 200,000+ miles!

 

[mcatrophy]

I love the grin on your face, that says it all.

Very well done.

 

[palerider]

Great job!

 

[Big Sky]

Another first! Determined and skilled FJR owners just get the job done. Congrats! Many more happy miles to you!

 

[rogdeb]

Been following this thread from the start. Great outcome

. Happy riding James.

 

[TownsendsFJR1300]

Excellent!!

I wish I could have been there with the engine tear down/re-build. The hands on experiance digging deep into

the engine IMO, is very, very enlightening.

Thanks for the pic's too. Bike sounds great!!!

 

[wfooshee]

Nice to see that the shift drum was changeable without splitting the case, just taking the oil pan off and middle gear shaft out. I wasn't sure about that, since I had to split my cases anyway after finding the 4th gear damage. Also interesting to see how much different there was in the shift shaft!

 

[JamesK]

Nice to see that the shift drum was changeable without splitting the case, just taking the oil pan off and middle gear shaft out. I wasn't sure about that, since I had to split my cases anyway after finding the 4th gear damage. Also interesting to see how much different there was in the shift shaft!

Wfooshee yes, the mechanic said not having to split the cases saved around 2 hours of labor. He eventually agreed to let me watch the whole process, it was mesmerizing. And having seen that I am that much more in awe of you and others who, not being highly experienced mechanics where smart enough to be able to strip and reassemble that engine - major respect, you guys are awesome!

 

[doug5551]

Thanks for the update.

Great to see and hear the happy ending

 

[rPGoatBoy]

Congrats and job well done, JamesK!

See, if you had listened to me when I told you you should split the cases you'd not have found out that splitting the cases wasn't necessary to convert an AE engine to an A. Hell I didn't know it was possible to swap shift drums without splitting because when I split my cases, I had left the middle gear shaft in place. SO, thanks to you and your new mechanic buddy, you have filled in a useful chunk of information for some other poor ******* that gets stuck with an AE engine and wants to take this route.

Only downside is we didn't get to see what shape the AE transmission was in, but hey, I'd have gone the same route if I found a clever shortcut.

Why'd you take the nose off the bike?

Here's to your born again FJR!

 

[wheatonFJR]

Sorry I've been quiet, but I have great news, the retrofit is done (and working) thanks to the help of a friend and skilled mechanic George Funtech.

AWESOME! The smile that says it all.

 

[JamesK]

Congrats and job well done, JamesK!
See, if you had listened to me when I told you you should split the cases you'd not have found out that splitting the cases wasn't necessary to convert an AE engine to an A. Hell I didn't know it was possible to swap shift drums without splitting because when I split my cases, I had left the middle gear shaft in place. SO, thanks to you and your new mechanic buddy, you have filled in a useful chunk of information for some other poor ******* that gets stuck with an AE engine and wants to take this route.

Only downside is we didn't get to see what shape the AE transmission was in, but hey, I'd have gone the same route if I found a clever shortcut.

Why'd you take the nose off the bike?

Here's to your born again FJR!

The engine only has 11k miles on it, and looking at the various parts and gears I can see that is likely true... For example take a look at the shift forks in the pic below, all the gears we could see inside the engine looked equally pristine, as did the cams. The valves where in spec too, and I swapped in a new CCT (with the green dot).

 

[supertankerm60a3]

Congratulations! I knew you could do it.

You sir, have accomplished a forum first!