I agree.... how unusual that we all three have Sportys and 2003 Dyna Anny models. That is indeed strange! Good taste runs through the same pipe, is all I can say.

I dug out my original owners manual to see what it had in it under specifications and was surprised to find this:
The 1971 XLCH is shown with the ignition switch mounted on the right side just above the center oil tank. All that is shown on the left is the choke **** and horn and of course the bracket for that is like yours.
Ditto that for the XLH depiction.
I do know that there was an early model and a late model 1971 because of some minor differences in the clutch. Mine is a late model because of the clutch retainers used. Perhaps at this point the switch was moved to the left side and had the bracket modified to accept the switch mounting? Only a very old line HD person or someone who is a greater detail nut than me could answer that question!

The XLH is shown with a 4 gal gas tank and no mention of a 2.2 gal tank being an option. That does not mean it was not an option, and your 2.2 is certainly a fact of life, so the XLH must have had some kind of option for this tank. The 1971 XLH also is shown with a windshield, crash bars and white fiberglas
saddlebags...........pg

 

i know ive seen a chrome cover for where your ign. switch is located(on the left), so im kind of thinking that that was a stock location. id bet that the 2 locations have to do with different option packages, or something of that sort.

and i certainly havent a clue where to find someone more knowledgable than u, blake, on the stock workings of old ironheads...

 

You are probably correct about that Wes. Most likely the switch location went with a certain option. I am still curious how your bike came with the 2.2 gal tank instead of the 4 gal model. Back in 1969 the XLH and the XLCH were still different models and the Motor Co had not yet begun to blend the two into a single machine. I guess by 1976 there was only one model of ironhead.
Good trivia question here.....In what year did the XLH and the XLCH become one machine? I know the 1974 models were still separate, but how soon after did they merge into one bike?..........pg

 

Well, to tell you the truth, im not certain that the tank was not swapped onto the bike before my dad purchased it. the paint isnt factory, and i know an xlh front end was swapped on..

 

OK, thanks for that info. I feel better now. I am 99% certain that an option was not available for a tank choice back in 1968 thru 1971. I do know back then the factory did not build to order as I am sure they do now.
If you wanted a 4 gal tank you had to buy an XLH. If you wanted a 2.2 tank....you had to buy the CH. I grew up with that stuff, and that was the way it was back then. The only option that became available after the late 1950's into the very early 1960's was you were given a choice of paint colors that a dealer could order.
If your tank paint does not match then it was a swap out after the purchase. An easy customize step, and it had a great effect on the appearance of the machine. You also had to watch for gas stations more intently........pg

 

here is something to add to the mystery.. i went to jpcycles to see if they had application years for the ignition bracket cover.. http://www.jpcycles.com/productgroup...7-63E325062F83
seems like the left side key is for 72-up cycles.. which would fit in with the late/early model 71 theory.. part manuf usually round up when mid model year changes happen(you should see the issues i have with my 2001.5 volkswagen gti)...

so this might tell you more specifically that you have a late 71 model??? or maybe we are way off.. who knows??

i did hear that the right side ignition ads 2 whp to the bike... wes 1, blake 0 !!!!

 

That makes sense for a model change in mid 1971. I got the mid/late stuff from my repair manual covering the clutch. There was a different type of retainer used after a certain point and mine had the later type.
Oh, I was so smug about that one! I had the later model 1971. There is a good chance the switch position was changed to the left side at that point and continued on after that. Good detective work Wes!
Now about this so-called claimed 2 hp increase you have over mine......#%!*^#!..Just say it ain't so! I cant stand it, to be caught on the short end of hp...Ha-Ha.....pg

 

My '74 didn't have a four gallon tank when I got it, I put a 3.4 gal. on it and that was about a gallon larger than what was on it, no idea what it had from the factory.

1979 was the last year for the XLCH, after that was the XLH and the XLS Roadster