[Goldwinger1984]

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I'd like to do some performance upgrades to my 84 GL1200. Has anyone here ever adapted GL1000 heads and cams etc. to a GL1200? If so, what problems did you encounter and what kind of performance gains did you incur? From what I understand the timing belt pulleys are a different size and I know that the ignition system is totally different(electronic vs. point type, cam driven). Any input would be truly appreciated.

Vic

 

[Eamonn1200]

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It won't work. The edges of the pistons on the 1200 come about 0.5mm above the block on the 1200 and will hit off the smaller diameter port on the 1000 head. You could probably file some off the heads but is it worth it? A 1200 head on a GL1000 would be nice but the other way round seems unusual.

 

[Jason]

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Actually it can be done, but the 1200 will run like a pig. I've heard of this job done twice and there were lots of problems. Some of the consistent problems that didn't get cured in either case were;

erratic idling, rough running at mid-high range. More importantly, chronic overheating of the heads, continually failing head gaskets because of the OH. If you really want roasted heads, buy a GL1800 that hasn't had the fix (sorry lads I couldn't resist that one ). :shock::shock:

The bottom line is that I wouldn't even consider touching this job, too many problems. Why not just fit a Nitro kit to the GL1200 instead, I'd say you would get some very interesting moments with that and less problems all round!

 

[Goldwinger1984]

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Thanks guys. I really appreciate your knowledge. It didn't make a lot of sense to me as well because I believed that the 1000 would, theoretically, have smaller ports than the 1200. I got the opposite info from another site for Wings. Regarding the nitrous I priced it already and it's $1200. U.S., then it gets used up real quick and has to be refilled $$$$$.

I do have a turbo that's the correct size for the 1200 and that's one of the reasons I wanted to go with the 1000 heads, for the use of the adjustable advance setup. Any ideas on how I could retard and advance the ignition timing on the 1200 to coincide with the turbo boost?

Thanks again, Vic

 

[QueXpress]

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I have deleted this message because it was a copy of my other one. Sorry about that!:?

 

[QueXpress]

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Jason wrote:

Actually it can be done, but the 1200 will run like a pig. I've heard of this job done twice and there were lots of problems. Some of the consistent problems that didn't get cured in either case were;

erratic idling, rough running at mid-high range. More importantly, chronic overheating of the heads, continually failing head gaskets because of the OH. If you really want roasted heads, buy a GL1800 that hasn't had the fix (sorry lads I couldn't resist that one ). :shock::shock:

The bottom line is that I wouldn't even consider touching this job, too many problems. Why not just fit a Nitro kit to the GL1200 instead, I'd say you would get some very interesting moments with that and less problems all round!

I'm surprised to read this because I have been planning to do this mod since seeing this on the net.
http://groups.msn.com/BackYardBuiltGoldwingsBarGrille/wildmikes81gl1100.msnw?action=ShowPhoto&PhotoID=128

More importantly, chronic overheating of the heads,
Why would this happen?

[sup] continually failing head gaskets because of the OH.[/sup]
What does OH stand for?

Sorry for asking so many questions in my first post. I just want to make sure I understand what I'm getting into.
TIA!

 

[Redwing]

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QueXpress wrote:

[suP]continually failing head gaskets because of the OH.[/suP]
What does OH stand for?

Sorry for asking so many questions in my first post. I just want to make sure I understand what I'm getting into.

Hey QueXpress :leprechaun: Welcome to the best Goldwing Forum on the net. :clapper: Dont be afraid to ask questions on this Forum, :weightlifter:there is no such thing as a silly question here. :jumper:I can answer just one for you. OH means overheating. :clapper:

:walker::18red::walker:

 

[Goldwinger1984]

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Well done Redwing.

Wow, I can't believe that old post is still around. That was long before I became senior Guru here and long before I thought about building a home made fuel injection system for my GL1200.

Sure brings back a lot of fond memories of this site when I first started out here and it sure is nice to see you welcoming all the new guys onto this terrific site.

QueXpress, you can make anything work on anything you want, but, I personally don't think that the 1000 heads are a good choice for the 1200 as Jason states. Just too much time and expense for the benefits derived unless you truly enjoy tinkering like I do.

Vic

 

[QueXpress]

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Redwing wrote:

QueXpress wrote:

[sup]continually failing head gaskets because of the OH.[/sup]
What does OH stand for?

Sorry for asking so many questions in my first post. I just want to make sure I understand what I'm getting into.

Hey QueXpress :leprechaun: Welcome to the best Goldwing Forum on the net. :clapper: Dont be afraid to ask questions on this Forum, :weightlifter:there is no such thing as a silly question here. :jumper:I can answer just one for you. OH means overheating. :clapper:

:walker::18red::walker:

Thanks Redwing!

 

[QueXpress]

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Goldwinger1984 wrote:

Well done Redwing.

Wow, I can't believe that old post is still around. That was long before I became senior Guru here and long before I thought about building a home made fuel injection system for my GL1200.

Sure brings back a lot of fond memories of this site when I first started out here and it sure is nice to see you welcoming all the new guys onto this terrific site.

QueXpress, you can make anything work on anything you want, but, I personally don't think that the 1000 heads are a good choice for the 1200 as Jason states. Just too much time and expense for the benefits derived unless you truly enjoy tinkering like I do.

Vic

Hi Vic!

QueXpress, you can make anything work on anything you want, but, I personally don't think that the 1000 heads are a good choice for the 1200 as Jason states. Just too much time and expense for the benefits derived unless you truly enjoy tinkering like I do.

I enjoy tinkering on motorcycles as much as I like to ride them. My present bike (Valkyrie 2000 Tourer) has been completely modified. I'm now picking up parts for my next project (GL1200 street custom).
I am thinking of using the heads from a 1975 GL1000 for the following reasons:
- the 1975 GL1000 has the hottest cam (GL1000, GL1100, GL1200)
- the 1975 heads have solid lifters versus hydraulic ones. The redline is between 8500 to 9000 compared to 5500 to 6000 for the GL1200 with hydraulic lifters. This reminds me of the lifter set up on our Valkyries compared to the one on the GL1500.
- The diameter of the intake valves on the 75 GL1000 is 38 mm compared to 36 mm on the GL1200. The exhaust valves are the same for both models.
- The carb venturi on the 75 GL1000 is 32 compared to 30 for the GL1200. I intended on using the 75 GL1000 carbs for a while, and then installing a pair of Weber IDF downdraft carbs (40 or 36).
Other mods will follow but for the time being, I must make sure that I'm not way out in left field with this head swap. If any of the above reasons for making this mod do not compute, please let me know. I tend to believe that this engine would kick ass ... but I could be wrong (It wouldn't be the first time!).

Thanks for the welcoming! It is very appreciated!

 

[Goldwinger1984]

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I think one of the reasons it doesn't compute from my perspectiveis due to the fact that the 1200 has the wrong gear ratio to match a modified high rpm engine. The large valve and port engine would run terrible at low rpms and if you used a GL1000 rear gear you'd most likely break it.

The GL1200 has a factory rated 7500 rpm redline and I have spun my own 1200 up and over 8000 rpm on many occasions when I had open pipes.

Maybe you could consider a GL1500 rear gear (same ratio as 1200 but a lot beefier)transplant then look for a supercharger to work on the 1200from Ebay and then you'd have something really exciting that you could easily drive in traffic everyday. And if you added NOX you could smile at crotch rockets at the stoplights.:cheeky1:

Vic

 

[QueXpress]

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Goldwinger1984 wrote:

I think one of the reasons it doesn't compute from my perspectiveis due to the fact that the 1200 has the wrong gear ratio to match a modified high rpm engine. The large valve and port engine would run terrible at low rpms and if you used a GL1000 rear gear you'd most likely break it.

The GL1200 has a factory rated 7500 rpm redline and I have spun my own 1200 up and over 8000 rpm on many occasions when I had open pipes.

Maybe you could consider a GL1500 rear gear (same ratio as 1200 but a lot beefier)transplant then look for a supercharger to work on the 1200from Ebay and then you'd have something really exciting that you could easily drive in traffic everyday. And if you added NOX you could smile at crotch rockets at the stoplights.:cheeky1:

Vic

Thanks Vic! I had overlooked the final drive gear ratio. This is the kind of info I needed. I must think about this for a while before continuing. I'm not interested in tinkering with a blower and/or NOX. If so, it would have been done on my Valkyrie.

 

[Goldwinger1984]

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In that case maybe what you could do is install a four into one pipe and use an offset key in the cam or crank keyways to change cam timing after you port and polish the 1200 heads. Made a big difference on my Wing when I opened the exhaust ports and ran open exhaust. I have since had to install silencers in the exhaust so that my wife would ride with me. Just the silencers alone took 500 rpm off the redline.

Good luck and enjoy your tinkering and most of all drive safe after you get it all hot rodded up.

Vic

 

[DJ]

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Hi QueXpressand welcome to the forum. If you read the info with the link you supplied you can see that the gl1000 heads were heavily modified (different cams etc) first. Just plonking the heads straight onto the gl1200 is bad news. A guy in Germany did this a few years back and he posted on the GWRRA site about all the grief he had with it. OH is overheating, and the German guy had plenty of that for a start.
Of course I can't find the thread on the GWRRA forum now, its become a black hole over there in latter years with some great information getting lost forever.

 

[Silicon Sam]

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Hey Vic, remember the blower setup that was on ebay a while back? It was on a GL1100 if I recall... Don't recall what it sold for, but have you ever seen one in person?

Raymond

 

[QueXpress]

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Goldwinger1984 wrote:

In that case maybe what you could do is install a four into one pipe and use an offset key in the cam or crank keyways to change cam timing after you port and polish the 1200 heads. Made a big difference on my Wing when I opened the exhaust ports and ran open exhaust. I have since had to install silencers in the exhaust so that my wife would ride with me. Just the silencers alone took 500 rpm off the redline.

Good luck and enjoy your tinkering and most of all drive safe after you get it all hot rodded up.

Vic

Thanks Vic!

I will put this project on hold for the time being. I'll keep you informed.

Note:
I have a similar exhaust set-up on my Valk.
http://hammer.prohosting.com/~schutzrs/packs.htm
It's very nice to be able to add/remove silencers as required at that moment.

 

[QueXpress]

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DJ wrote:

Hi QueXpressand welcome to the forum. If you read the info with the link you supplied you can see that the gl1000 heads were heavily modified (different cams etc) first. Just plonking the heads straight onto the gl1200 is bad news. A guy in Germany did this a few years back and he posted on the GWRRA site about all the grief he had with it. OH is overheating, and the German guy had plenty of that for a start.
Of course I can't find the thread on the GWRRA forum now, its become a black hole over there in latter years with some great information getting lost forever.

Hi DJ!
It sure would have been nice to see that thread! Thanks for the input! It is very appreciated!

 

[Goldwinger1984]

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Silicon Sam wrote:

Hey Vic, remember the blower setup that was on ebay a while back? It was on a GL1100 if I recall... Don't recall what it sold for, but have you ever seen one in person?

Raymond

I've held the Magnussen supercharger in my hands Raymond but I haven't seen an 1100 nor a 1200 with one installed yet.

But, here's a Valkerie with a couple of Magnachargers installed;





I don't think you'd need coffee to wake you up if you drove one of these. LOL.

Vic

 

[Silicon Sam]

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Found this too:

http://lamonster.com/

Raymond

 

[QueXpress]

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I know many guys in the VRCC club with blowers on their Valkyries. These rides are awesome to say the least.

http://www.visi.com/~spookshow/files/valkblower.jpg