Attex 4 Stroke Swap

[jpswift1]

After seeing Hydromike's Attex 4 stroke swap I decided to go the same route with my poly body green Attex. My machine is a 4 chain version and Im afraid engine clearance would be an issue since I plan on using the stock engine cover. I did see someone use a flat black low profile hood scoop on top of their cover when a Briggs was installed in the machine and it looked very nice and not very distinguishable. Has anyone did a 4 stroke conversion on a 4 chain model Attex? If so do you have pics? I saw Whipper's sideways air cleaner on his springer and I thought that that might be able to save me a few inches by eliminating the tinwork up top on the engine. Any info on swaps would be appreciated. Thanks!

[George]

Hey Jeff,

I did one too. I put a 16 hp B&S in one of my Chiefs.

There are some pics Don took in 2006 on Joe M's site.

Copper Ridge

There's also a shot of my Son and I coming out of the river at Ledges that Lifold posted on this site.

http://www.6x6world.com/gallery/showphoto.php/photo/349

I went with aluminum diamond plate to cover the rear. I was thinking of painting it black to get the original look back but it occured to me that the reflective surface might keep the engine cooler under direct sunlight. I fabricated a vent to collect the hotair and force it out of the engine compartment. It's bolted to the underside of one plate and is just above the clutch. I've also talked to Mark (JerseyBigFoot) about an idea he's incorporated in his conversion. He used an Argo duct that mounts to the intake side of the B&S fan to draw cool air in from outside the engine compartment. Keeping the engine area cool seems to require the most planning.
My only regret so far is that I went with a 16hp. I think I should have gone 18or higher.
I spoke with RC about getting the engine to fit under the original cowling. He said you can lower the engine but I don't know how. It's only about 2 inches above the chain to begin with. There was a picture of an Attex on his site that had a conversion. The air cleaner popped through the hood a little but it looked cool anyway. The exhaust had to be routed through the rear of the tub but that was also done very nicely.

My machine does not look as pretty but I set the plates up to act as a cargo area. I keep a small toolbox on it and my camera bag. I had an adapter made so that my B&S engine bolts to the JLO motor mount. I can pull the engine and have the machine back to it's original specs in about 2 hours if needed.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you need anything else.

[whipper-ag]

Hey Jeff the carburator on my attex springer is not stock, It's an after market 2 barrel that Performancde V-Twin uses. It says NIKKI . Thats the only markings on it. The intake manifold is aftermarket too' What size motor are you using?Personally I would leave the hatch cover off and let it get some air.I do understand how you would want it covered where you live. It's much warmer here. I'm working on a turbo briggs, you might be interested, I'll let you know how it works out. Still waiting for that air bud pic. Get out there and do some riding.

[hydromike]

Keeping the stock engine cover during a 4-stroke conversion on a 4-chainer is tough. I think it could be done, but as you already know, you're seriously limited with engine choices if you don't want to spend a lot of moolah. You do have options, though...
The biggest issue (again, as you already know) is the engine mount plate location that needs to be where it is b/c of the chain routing. What you could do, is add another chain idler that would route the chain downward, making it course along a more horizontal path on it's way from the T-20 back to the rear axle. It would be a bit of work, and I personally don't like the idea of yet another idler sprocket. Another option would be to modify the intake one way or another. You're about S.O.L. with a carbureted setup on that high mount, though. EFI would begin to help, but even the EFI Kohler is one tall mutha. I could have made that engine fit under the stock engine cover, but it would have taken a bit of fancy duct work, and I wanted to keep it open so she could see the stars at night...

I've just finished putting in the same Argo intake shroud on the Kohler. It works fantastic. It's amazing how much air that engine moves. It really sucks.... :oP I dont' think I was having cooling issues before, but now their's pretty much no chance of it. Getting air bubbles in the EFI system... now that's another point. There's a lot of sloshing around in the tank, and the darn machine is really not horizontal that much, so the intake is sucking air often.

My final word.... if you MUST have a big 4-stroke in the machine, find a 6 chain setup, reroute the chains somehow, or make it a true 'ute and leave the engine cover off in favor of a flat-bed. You can do all this without seriously hacking a beautiful machine.

The final, final word? A 484 would bolt right in...

~m

[George]

I've just finished putting in the same Argo intake shroud on the Kohler. It works fantastic.

Mike,

Can you get a picture up?

Thanks

[hydromike]

Yeah, I'll try to remember to bring my camera home from the office tomorrow and get a couple pics. I had to cut/weld/grind a few spots in order to get it to fit, and the machine is dirty (like always), so the pics won't be flattering.

Trailing off topic...
I got a lot more done on your cage today too, George. The next step pis to get one of my spare bodies up there to get a couple final measurments and finish all the welding. That TC frame welded beautifully; even my Dad commented how nice it was. Arrow straight.... It ought to roll over nicely.
Sorry, no pics of it, either..
~m

[jerseybigfoot]

Here are some shots of my 18 Briggs conversion cooling inlet made from a Argo frontier duct. very little trimming required.

[jpswift1]

Thanks for all of the great tips and information everybody! Jerseybigfoot, is that a 4 chain model that you have that 18 HP in? I will be yanking the frame out soon and getting the prep work done on everything within the next week or two. I have just about all of the parts needed for the restoration ready to go except for the engine/clutch/wiring. The stock engine cover looks really nice and it also keeps branches and debris out of the tub when you're out on the trails, so those are the main reasons I want to keep it. George's diamond plate looks great on the yellow machine, but I think I would want to keep everything on my machine black and green.

This is the first poly body Attex I have owned (all others were ABS). That polyethelene is VERY flexible an it seems super durable. The underbody of the machine is perfect and free of any cracks so this machine is a perfect canidate for a nice clean 4 stroke swap in my opinion. Again, thanks for the info so far and I will be sure to keep everyone updated.

[jerseybigfoot]

Its a 6 chain frame in a 4 chain body. The 6 chain frame needs the corners trimmed to fit the poly body. There is lots of clearance under the deck with this setup. Its also easier to flex pipe the exhaust out the original muffler then target the tailpipe out the back. Mine is out the back in the upper body. Removing the the deck hinge bracket makes routing the exhaust easier.

[George]

It ought to roll over nicely.

~m

Hey!...Hey...let's be a little more positive, shall we!!!

I hope you also found time to fix any...ummm... bent axles that you might've found when you opened up the barn this morning.

I guess buying TC was a good investment. I was only thinking I'd use the sporockets when I got it.