Harley Davidson XLT 1000 Touring Sportster "Baby Dresser"

American Iron Magazine August 2005  review

One of the great things about Harley-Davidson is the serial number identification nomenclature. One look at "the numbers" can tell you a heck of a lot about that particular motorcycle. You can determine year of manufacture, model number, place in the production run, and so on and so forth. In past issues if American Iron Magazine we have covered this topic in detail. These articles are a good reference for deciphering your Harley-Davidson.

I bring up the topic of naming because our feature bike this month is a 1977 Harley-Davidson Sportster XLT. You have no doubt heard of the XL and XLCH, both standard issue Sportsters. And maybe you've even heard of the XLCR, which was the Sportster (XL), Café Racer (CR), but did you ever hear of an XLT? The T stood for Tourer, and Harley did, in fact, manufacture a Sportster Tourer in 1977. This is a very rare bike - only 1,099 units were built. It is so rare, in fact, that even the archives have very little on this model.

A January 28, 2003, letter to the owner of our feature bike, Terry Brown of Fridley , Minnesota , perpetuates the mystery. "The 1977 XLT was not a standard production model that year, consequently, we have virtually no information on it. It doesn't appear in the literature or even the retail price list. We have only photocopies of a few pictures," writes Harley-Davidson Archivist Tom Bolfert.

"It had a Super Glide gas tank, compact windshield and a larger seat than a regular Sportster," continues Bolfert. "The tank logos are the same as the other 1977 models. We don't have any history on the individual bikes. A total production of 1,099 XLTs were build in 1977."

Although the XLT never appeared in advertisements or sales literature, it was pictured in the factory repair manual. A lot of stories have sprouted up about this bike and its origins. One interesting theory states that it was initially intended as a police model, a smaller, more versatile unit for traffic control work, and a competitor to the Kawasaki KZ100 that was gaining popularity at the time. As of this writing, that theory is unverified, but it falls into the intriguing realm of possibilities. Other Sportster "experts" have actually discounted that H-D ever made a touring Sportster in the 1970s, but here we have proof that it in fact did.

Terry was able to track down a June 1977 road test of the XLT in the British publication Motor Cycle Mechanic. The test bike was apparently a consignment machine to the UK dealers, and the author was fairly impressed with the XLT. He closed his review with, "In terms of performance alone, the XLT could never be worth two and a quarter thousand pounds, and yet this living legend has an indefinable magic no other bike possesses." High praises from the otherwise stuffy British motorcycle press of the 1970s.

In further researching the bike in preparation for its restoration, Terry contacted Kirk at Sporty Specialties in Fullerton , California , who knew of the XLTs and had salvaged a few in the 1980s and '90s. He mentioned that many of these bikes ended up at Harley dealerships across the country and were stripped of their bags, windshields, etcetera, and then sold as standard Sportsters when they were unable to sell in their original configuration.

Our feature bike was purchased new in Minneapolis , and the original owner immediately removed the windshield, bags, exhaust system, turn signals, and more. The bike was repainted and then sold to a second gentleman who owned it until the early 1980s. Some motor work was done, and it was then sold to Terry, who rode the bike until the mid-1990s and then parked it with occasional use thereafter.

In 2002, Terry turned to his brother Brian to restore the bike for him. Brian spends his spare time restoring muscle cars and classic vehicles and was happy to take on the task. He convinced terry to return this rare bike to stock but with updated internal technology that did not distract from the originality of the motorcycle. An inventory revealed that most of the special one-off parts were still with the bike but things like the exhaust pipes, bags, and windshield would have to be found. The Internet was a great help and that was where the brothers found Kirk at Sporty Specialties, who had the windshield, rear bag hangers, 2-into-1 exhaust, NOS pegs, rear signal mounts, and a host of other hard-to-find parts. Once these parts were located, the restoration began in earnest. The motor/tranny was dropped off at American Motorcycle Works in Sioux Falls , South Dakota . Larry and Moose went through the entire package, replacing valves, guides, rings, and seals, as well as detailing the motor. Stock gears were put back in the transmission, as was a new clutch.

While that was happening, Brian detailed the frame, polished all the chrome, and replaced wiring and any other moving part that was worn out. The sheet metal was shipped to Valley Springs Body Shop, where owner Don, son Eric, and master painter Rick dove in. The metal was meticulously prepared and the Police Arctic White was applied. Mary at Jim's Harley-Davidson in Canton , Ohio , helped Brian locate the original and reproduction decals and stickers. Brian then reassembled the machine, and it went back to American Motorcycle Works for the initial firing and tuning. The 1,500-mile break-in went flawlessly, and Brian then returned the bike to Terry.

Further research turned up another XLT owner, Brian Boettcher, and arrangements were made to meet at the Harley Hundredth in Milwaukee . The Brown boys rode over together (Brian on his 2003 Dyna) and sat together for hours comparing machines. Much was learned, and the two machines were united 26 years after they rolled off the line in Milwaukee . (Boettcher was the one who had heard from his local dealer that the XLT was originally intended for police use.)

If anyone has any further information on the XLT, Terry and Brian would like to hear from you so they can continue to compile as complete a picture as possible on this rare machine. Our XLT feature bike proves that rare and interesting Harley-Davidsons still exist out there. They can be affordable and are a heck of a lot of fun to research and learn about. Go forth and discover!

Source American Iron Magazine August 2005