What's the difference in Sportster Motors?
 

Post Iron Head. 86-94? 95-03? What's the difference in those two motors? Both are Evo's. But there has to be a difference. Right?

Here is a pretty cool link.

http://www.sportster.org/history/

The link is great. Most of the changes are subtle and is one thing here, another there. Overall, they're mechanically the same thing since they're all EVOs, but a lot of electrical and other small upgrades have been made over the years for reliability and durability. It's not something distinct you can really point to except for the rubber mounting, which was in '04 on.

I think the rubber mounting was to reduce vibration.

Great link. Thanks a bunch.

Seems like that link used to be a "sticky" on here.

they switched to 5 speed transmissions too from the 4

Carb to fuel injection in 07+. That's a pretty major change. Most folks I've seen break them down like this.

4-speed XLs (pre-95)
5-speed solid mount XLs (95-03)
5-speed Carbureted XLs (04-06)
5-speed EFI XLs (07+)

Also there are some cam differences in the engines. from 95-2000 all XLs had D-grind cams with different mesh "colors" (if you have "green" gear mesh teeth you would need a set of D-grind cams with "green" mesh to replace them. "Yellow" mesh would not work) with the 1200S (1998-1999) models having W-grind cams. From 2000 - 2003 all the cams went to a finer gear mesh and became interchangable with the 883 and 1200 having D grinds and the 1200S having the W-grinds. (With a 2000+ cam gear you could convert the older bikes to the new gear mesh.) From 2004+ all 1200 XLs went from the D-grind cams to W-grind cams. In, I think, 2007 all XLs (883s and 1200s) went to the W-grind cams.

Also, in 2004 the ignition systems changed and the sensor in the "nose cone" was no longer required. However the cams used in those engines still had the tapped hole in the center of Cam 2 to attach the timing cup used in the earlier engines. Sometime in 2005 Harley stopped drilling and tapping this hole even though the recess for it remained in the cam. Thus a 2007 W-grind cam could not be used in a 2001 1200 even though the gear mesh and fitment were identical but a 2000 cam (D or W) could be used in a 2007 XL.

Don't know if the link covered this in detail. I only know this because I did a 1200 conversion on my 1999 and had a hell of a time trying to find the right W-grind cam set to work with it.

I don't know much about the differences. But I do know that the alot of the 2004 and newer parts don't work on my 2003

its a dead link!