What does xlch and xlh means when talking about motorcycles?

Question

for a harley, does xlch mean kick start only with magneto?

Answer 1

XL = Sportster

XLCH = Kick-start Ironhead Sportster. (Rumored to stand for "California Hot" or "Competition Hot" because the kick-start bike was lighter.)

XLH = Electric start Sportster.

The short answer is "Yes" XLCH does mean kick-start only, but not necesarily with a magneto.

Both magnetos and breaker ignitions were available on Sportsters from 1959-1968.

They stopped putting the magnetos on Ironheads in around ‘68 or 69 and the breaker ignition was the only option in '70. In '71 they moved the ignition to the side of the cam chest.

Not all of the CHs had magnetos. A lot of the CHs had magnetos because a battery wasn't needed for the ignition system. (The lights ran off the generator.) No starter and no battery = lighter street racer. But magnetos don't put out much spark until they spin fast. Kick-starting a CH with a magneto can be difficult. Kick-starting a CH with an advanced magneto can be dangerous. *chuckle*. The Fairbanks Morse magnetos on Sportsters didn't have an automatic ignition advance. The magneto was manually advanced and retarded - usually by twisting the left handgrip.

There were also two different versions of the breaker ignition. One version had an automatic (centrifugal) advance. The other had a lever to r****d the breaker plate.

BTW, I noticed your screen name is Bronson... If I'm not mistaken Bronson (from "Then Came Bronson") rode a late 60s or early 70s XLCH with a breaker ignition.

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Answer 2

Sportsters: Models beginning with X are Sportsters. These descend from the K series, 1952-56. The XL series started in 1957. They are "unit construction" (engine & transmission share a common case). X was in the normal series, following the U and V used for flathead Big Twins. L stood for high compression (7.5:1 in 1957). In 1958 came the XLH with H meaning Higher-power or High-compression (9:1) or Hot. Also in 1958 was the XLCH: The C in XLCH was intended to mean "Competition", but the late Hal Robinson used to claim the CH on his bike stood for "Charley Horse" because it was highly modified and had enough initial ignition advance to kick back rather severely.

The Sportster engines were originally actually 53.9ci. (883cc) but were designated as 55ci. This was upgraded (in 1970?) to 61ci (1000cc), redesigned in '73 but still 61" and stayed relatively unchanged untill the 74" evo version. The 883 and 61" were both produced the first year of the 883. Options for Sportsters abounded but these same letters have been used since 1958 in various combinations, plus the XLCR (a "cafe racer" style, with bikini fairing) and the XLT (Touring, with bigger tank, thicker seat, and hard bags straight off the FLHS), both produced 1977-1978 only.