Harley-Davidson WLC

From CycleChaos
Jump to navigation Jump to search
1943 Harley-Davidson WLC

Tough and versatile aptly describes the military Harley-Davidson motorcycles. This WL was built for the Canadian National Defense and bears the designation "W.L.C.". Eight thousand of these models were built for our northern neighbors.


The Model name breaks down as follows:

  • W : the W family of motorcycles. Harley Davidson (except in very early models) gives a letter designation for each model family. The W series at the time was the newest incarnation of the 45 cubic inches (740 cc) flathead motor, and was developed from the earlier R family 1932–1936.
  • L : "high compression", in the usual HD scheme. The "low compression" W model was only briefly available.
  • A : Army. The company would also produce a model to the slightly different specifications of the Canadian Army, which would be named the WLC. The WLCs differed from WLAs chiefly in the use of some heavier components, usually Big Twin parts, as well as Canadian blackout lighting.