what the differenses between a 73 xlh and xlch? How do you know its a eirly or late year model?
thanks again

 

This lady doesn't know **** except how to look something up:
[*]The XLC & XLCH (Competition/California Hot)
[ul][*]Larger ports and valves[*]High domed pistons[*]Light ended tappets[*]Magneto ignition [/ul]Starting in 1958, then follow the changes?: http://www.sportster.org/history/index.shtml#1973

 

Almost no difference at all between the two models.
The greatest difference is that an XLH is always going to have an electric starter, where the XLCH may not. By 1973 the Sportster was well on it's way to becoming a single model. H-D moved slowly, but steady to accomplish this and by 1974 it was a done deal. In 1973 you had a choice of large or small gas tanks on both models. In the older models (1971 and earlier) you did not have this choice and the tank was what confirmed the model at a quick glance. CH had the 2.2 and the XLH had the 4 gal tank with a side mount oil tank to allow for the larger battery needed for the elecrric start on the XLH.

There were no engine differences in 1973 at all. The only way to tell an XLH from an XLCH is to look at the engine number.
The XLH engine number is going to start with a '3A' designation.
The XLCH engine number will start with a '4A' designation.

All that garbage saying the CH stood for 'Competetion Hot' is just that.....garbage. I have heard others claim it stands for 'California Hot' and that the first CH's were sold only in California. More of the same garbage. Just rumor perpetuated through time.
The Harley factory has not ever said what the designations stood for, and I have been a student of the Sportster since 1957, and the K Models before that..............pg

 

Thank yas does anyone know if there supposed to come with Kicker and what models are just kickers

 

Last year with kickstart was 1979 (XLCH). Last year with XLH kickstart was 1967 - after that, all XLH's were electric start only.

 

thanks, i got one more quest what was the years you could get kick only in the 70s
thanks again

 

For a kick start only in the 1970's that is going to only be found on an XLCH model. 1970 to 1974 were right hand shift models, 1975 and later are left hand shift models. 1975 was the first year for left hand shift to meet federal standards and this was done with some cobbled hardware. So, you may find a 1975 model with a right hand shift. That would be one where someone removed the garbage hardware and made it a right shift. In 1976 the shifter shaft came out on the left side and there was no converting these (and later years) to right hand shift.......pg

 

thank pinion for all your help. I still am alittle lost about the kick starts do all xlch come kick start only. and if thats the case i am having a hard time finding one thats only kickstart

 

In general during the '70s, XLCH were kick only. But that doesn't mean there weren't any XLCH that also had an electric starter, too. And in general during the '70s, XLH were electric start only. But the operative words are "in general" because I've seen XLH with electric and kick. And I added kick starts to at least 5 XLH bikes that I remember,my dad had a '73 XLH with both, and his last bike was a '72 XLCH with both.

Clear as mud, right?

 

HDP...
Yes it can be a little confusing. Let me say again that my Sportster knowledge is pretty good from 1957 up through 1974. After 1974, I try to leave those bikes to others who know more than I do.
So, here was your question: 'I still am alittle lost about the kick starts do all xlch come kick start only. and if thats the case i am having a hard time finding one thats only kickstart'
[color="#000000"][color="#0033ff"][size="4"][font="arial"]Here is my answer: An XLCH made before 1972 will not have an electric starter.
Any bike you find with an electric starter, consider it to be an XLH model, not a CH.
Again, check the engine number.....3A means an XLH, and it will have an electric starter. The electric starter requires a large battery which is located in the center of the frame, which means it has to have a right side mount oil tank. That is what an XLH looks like.
4A in the engine number means it is an XLCH, and this will only have a kick start lever. The CH only needs a small battery and that will be mounted on the left side of the frame. The CH will have a center mount oil tank located in the same place where the large battery on an XLH sits. That is what an XLCH looks like.
The engine number is the only way to determine if you are looking at an XLH or an XLCH. There is no other way to determine that.
In the late fifties and very early sixties the XLH and the XLCH had many very visible differences. You could the difference when one flew by you just by looking. The XLH looked like a road bike. Period. The XLCH looked like you could ride it straight off the highway and onto the dirt track and start making hot laps. This is exactly what many CH riders did.
So the next thing you know the XLH riders were starting to put CH headlights on their bikes, along with a 19 inch front wheel and change out the fenders for those of a CH to make their bikes look a bit more racey. But they were always stuck with the electrical starter, the big battery, and the side mount oil tank so it was easier to tell one from another, even with the 'custom work' performed on the XLHs. Well, if you follow the history of a Sportster you can see where Harley Davidson had the intention of merging the Sportster into a single model machine. They did succeed in doing just that, although it took a good many years to accomplish the feat. Certainly by 1979, or perhaps a few years before that the merge had been completed.
Didn't mean to get off track:
Someone could conceivably take a kick start only XLCH and install an electric starter on it, but it is very doubtful if you will ever see this because it is a very difficult conversion and it is very expensive to purchase the needed parts to do it. Just look at it this way: If you see a Sportster with an electric starter on it, then take it as an XLH model. It is not a CH. If you need verification on that, go to the engine number and see if it is a '3A or a 4A'. There were more XLH machines made than XLCH, so I would think the majority of the bikes you will come across will be XLH models, especially for the 1970's years. If you are looking at the 1960's, then a fair portion may be XLCH bikes, but sadly there are less and less of those great old machines left because after all this time they have been chopped, butchered up and have wound up in a #3 wash tub as a bucket of parts being sold piecemeal at a swap meet somewhere. Yeah, I know, I am opinionated.

Now, I hedged my answer just a bit, so return up to that statement I made.
I said earlier that any XLCH made before 1972 will be kick start only. This is true.
What I am not sure of is this: In the years 1972 through 1974 was there a factory option of having your XLCH fitted with an electric starter