interchangable parts?

[Jelmo11]

What parts can change from special to regular or vise versa I'm talking like sissy bars seats etc ect

[cywelchjr]

If your talking seats and sissy bars and such, pretty much nothing.

[XS1100_OEM4ME]

Parts

Lots of motor and trans parts can be switched, with some work, some trim items can be switched, seats and such, not without serious mods as the clearance is so different from bike to bike. Of course, handelbars / leavers / grips, mirrors and such, some brake parts and and rear wheel parts, front also, but not fenders and parts effected by the forward mounted wheel mount on the Special, I have heard of tank swaps to give better range to a special (some petcock changing / work there) Telling us what you are trying to change, would help us alot

What parts can change from special to regular or vise versa I'm talking like sissy bars seats etc ect

[Jelmo11]

Well first I wanna take the fairing and cargo rack off I have a after market saddleman king and queen seat but I need to find a headlight and bucket along with signals I like the vtx style headlight but not sure if it would work I have found. A lot of sissy bars for the original xs11 but not so much luck with the special so I might be stuck fabricating one. I have already put highway pegs and crash bars on it but I really hate this fairing and trunk box anyway just trying to get a feel for my options. Also you said the fenders cannot be switched?

[crazy steve]

Basically, the parts that can be swapped easily among all XS models are running gear parts; engine/trans/middle drive, swingarm/final drive, carbs (with certain caveats), wheels (again, with caveats), most electrical components, fairings.

Parts that can be swapped with usually minor mods are fuel tanks, gauges, handlebar controls, saddlebags.

For everything else, you usually need to stay with the specific model you have. Aftermarket accessories like sissy bars/racks, parts will fit either a standard or a special, not both. Considering the relatively short production run these bikes had, there's a confusing amount of variation in parts. A good 'rule of thumb' is anything that bolts to the bike from the engine forward will interchange (with the exception of the forks/calipers, as the special and standard forks/calipers are totally different and you can't mix parts), and anything behind the motor will be model-specific.

It can drive you crazy....

[Jelmo11]

Thanks again steve but will a universal soft bag fit u know the back saddlebags and how much modifying do you think it would take to change the light to a deeper vtx style and anyidea on how much it costs to chrome a sissybar?

[Jelmo11]

And can I change the pipes to anything louder without rejetting

[crazy steve]

There's a lot of variation in saddlebags, and most 'soft' bags are supposed to be used with an under-support (which you'll never find for a XS) to keep them out of the wheel/suspension/exhaust. As to the taillight, I don't know what a VTX light looks like so I can't offer any advice on that.

Chroming? Costs have gone sky-high in recent years, so if you're looking to build a sissy bar (and own/have access to a stick welder), I'd suggest making it out of stainless steel rod and weld it with E308 stainless welding rod. Easy to use, and polishes up to a near-chrome, rust-proof finish. I'll send you a PM with a few more details...

Exhaust? If you have a decent original exhaust system, leave it alone! Those are getting very hard to find, so once modified, you'll pay big $$$ to replace. You also won't do any better than that in terms of ease of tuning/power, and if all you're after is 'louder' expect to take a hit in performance. If yours is rotted out, MAC is the only inexpensive replacement available (about $400), or some fit stock Harley take-off mufflers to the stock head pipes. There's other aftermarket exhausts out there (Campbell X-pipe for big $$$), but you'll be looking pretty much in the used market.