Is this how you change the spark plugs?

[John Schmidt]

My neighbor came over and kibbitzed for a while, I told him I was changing the spark plugs. He said "John, you might have gone too far, it's not that difficult." 

The right side belt tensioner had to be loosened to gain access to the impulse generators mount...allowing me to remove the rubber insulator where the wiring entered the top of the casing. That's easier than trying to follow the wiring(with the motor still in place) up to where it's all tied together with copius amounts of black tape. Now that the motor is out of the way I can separate those wires for easier access upon installation of the Wing motor. As usual, the hard plastic baffle behind the fan and the rubber apron both created a problem. In the past I've trimmed the plastic piece for easier handling but the hump that covers the t'stat housing is still in the way. I get around that by having the bike frame high enough to allow coming in from underneath so I don't have to slide the motor in from the side which runs into that hump. You have to kinda hold the baffle out at the bottom so the t'stat housing slides in place in front. Attaching the radiator hose involves another couple pargraphs here so suffice it to say...the radiator gets moved. I've noted some minor things to be addressed before installing the Wing unit, I might have to transfer it from the lift table to the jack since it goes slightly lower than the table. Time will tell, stay tuned. I'll work on it more in the coming days since the weather prognosticators say it's going to get warmer.

When the time comes I'll be putting this motor up for sale.

[old2soon]

      I may have asked this before but taking the reverse mechanism off the wing engine and puttin on the valk Not an option? Anywho Glad you got the valk engine out!  I will add this fer ya john. Still be Very CHOOSY bout How you park the trike once you have reverse on it!  I alredy Know You KNOW this BUT my 12 G/W is just a matter of switchology to access reverse!  The lever setup on the 88 G/W is alright But the 12 G/W has me Spoiled!  B T W thanks fer the update! RIDE SAFE.

[John Schmidt]

Dennis, it's an involved process to add reverse to the Valk motor. You have to remove the engine and pull the back end off, kinda like repairing busted gears from a hydrolock. You then have to insert the additional gearing up near where the starter engages, then put it all back together...and reinstall the motor. I figured if I had to do all that, I'll just find a good Wing motor with it all in place so no need to pull anything apart. In my case I ran into a problem...the starter gear needed for reverse was busted so I ended up pulling it apart anyway. After getting it all back together I tested the reverse function and it worked fine, so I went ahead and reworked the entire Wing motor with new gaskets and o-rings everywher(except head gaskets), new belts and tensioners, new coolant hoses...the works. The Wing motor has inserts at the mounting bolts location, those I'll have to cut down the length to fit. It's been a long process, delays from cold weather, health issues...albeit minor, travel...a bunch of things. Then to top it off, I had to create a shfting mechanism to engage & lock it in reverse when needed. Then add an easy method of disengaging it when done. I have that installed now so the last thing seems to be the special starter motor wiring that allows revers to work but not at "high speed"...nothing like backing down the parking lot at 20 mph on a trike.    I'll continue to work on the project as time and energy allow...time I have, energy??? 

[old2soon]

    Copy on the energy issue!  My well what I pass off as breathing has become way more "fun"! Not fun but you know where I'm headed. Most importantly NOT No how a complaint as this was self inflicted! And I'm thinkin here I'll more likely than not cage it Again to an Inzane!  1 day last week was in the mid 80s humid and rolled the windows down to see what would happen. I gutted it out for 25 miles I was on my O2 BUT it did Not FEEL RIGHT at all! Gonna try again BUT not expecting much difference on he 12 G/W trike!  BUT no mater How it goes I'm plannin on being at I 25!  I've also heard-wanna make GOD laugh? Tell him your plans! RIDE SAFE.

[Jess from VA]

John, I'm amazed, impressed and a little jealous of your mechanical skill set.   

I do the best I can with routine maintenance and upkeep, but must take my machinery to pros for all the rest.

Please keep us updated on your progress on this monster project, and be careful and take care of yourself  (that thing looks heavy  ). 

[John Schmidt]

Jess, yeah it's heavy. When I was young and in my prime, I could bench that weight all the time. Now, I pick up one end and roll it...the bench that is. If you recall, I wanted to try and drop the motor without removing the tank & airbox. Was almost able to do it, probably could next time cuz I learned a lot this time. I've removed/swapped motors on a couple Valks in the past but never tried it without removing those items so figured nothing ventured...nothing gained. I was able to do it without pulling the carbs. Our weather looks to be warming a bit(a small bit) this next week so will be able to spend more time in the garage. 

[John Schmidt]

The damaged finger is healing nicely and I've been able to spend time in the shop the last couple days. The Wing motor has special inserts in the motor mounts, basically a short metal tube embedded in rubber and in turn embedded in a slightly larger metal tube(8 total). The Valk uses something similar(2) on the lower mounts and are listed as a separate item, so guess what's not available any longer. So, I pressed them out of the Wing motor and modified the length of the inner tube to make them useable on the Valk. I'm assuming all those being rubber embedded on the Wing were for shock absorption. Motor mounts are now ready, assuming I've not overlooked something. One thing I struggled to disconnect is the small audio ground wire attached to the back of the starter. It was so short(4") I couldn't get my hand in there to disconnect the 2 pin connector while the wire was still connected to the starter. Was finally successful using a pair of long needle nose...one to hold the connector and one to squeeze the release tab. Once out, the starter was free to remove but now the screw holding the wire to the starter would not move. I soaked it with some Blaster penetrating oil and tried it again today with no luck. So, I cut a slot in the screw and used my hand held impact screwdriver, finally came loose. The main problem with disconnecting it was due to the wire being only 4" long, barely enough length to reach from the starter to the receiving connector. So, out comes my collection of factory type connectors from Vintage Connections in California and I built a new ground wire about 11" long. A 4" wire compared to an 11" gives you more room to work. I don't have much style but what little I have I don't like it to be cramped.   With the messed up finger I can't lift weights or use most of the machines at the gym so will be using my down time to mess with this project for a few days in a row. I've bumped it a couple times, tends to get my attention even with gloves on over the patch. I'm about ready to try hanging the motor in the frame, still have to decide where and how to install the different starter cableing which includes a third connection for the resistor pack which governs speed while backing.

[Valkorado]

Pretty damn amazing John!  Watching this project with great interest and respect.

[flsix]

John I may have missed it, what year G/W motor are you using?

[John Schmidt]

John I may have missed it, what year G/W motor are you using?

Believe it's ' 96 or above, someone looked it up for me once but wasn't last week so not sure.