Test Riding the 1998 Honda Valkyrie GL1500CT Tourer 

Well, thanks for watching!!!!!!

Now, thats some great information right there. Thanks!

Hi Robert! Thanks for commenting. There seems to be a cult following on these classic bikes. I know I was seriously drawn to it. I was planning on restoring an old HD Heritage but I kept coming back to the Valkyries. They are so unique. I have a Pingle fuel tank valve for it. I have been told about the fuel hydro locking situation so I too am very careful about turning off the fuel between stops. I'm getting the hang of the 1-2 shift and can accomplish it correctly about half the time using the preload technique. I just returned from a 3 week trip to the Black Hills Rally in Sturgis S.D. I was on my Indian Chieftain which is my go to motorcycle. I also have a Victory Vegas cruiser that is all hopped up. I have toy hauler pulled with a Diesel pickup for those sorts of trips and I stay a bit after the rally so I can get some rides in without the crowds. But, I'm home now and I'll be disassembling the Valkyrie for the full refurb. I'll be doing videos on that. I have a video on my concept and the parts I have purchased so far if you want to give that a look. Again, thanks for the comment. I appreciate it.

Hi Tony, Yep I can't agree more. The day before yesterday, Paul, a Valkyrie owner and long time rider took time out of his day to meet with me. He's a great guy. I reached out to him, as he's on the VRCC or Valkyrie Riders Cruiser Club Tech 1500 forum. I could see he lived just south of me a bit so I emailed him and he answered right back. We met and he told me the same thing. We switched bikes and we rode ~5 miles together. His bike I felt shifted a bit better than mine, but he thought my bike shifted better than his. Funny. He said exactly the same thing you are about the preloading. So after he took off, I went for ~ 160 mile ride. I'm slowly finding the sweet spot and I found I could get a clean shift about 1/2 the time or more. I think with a little practice and paying attention, I will find the spot you are talking about. Yes, I can feel the preload in the shifter and yep, it's the key. As far as my clutch, we were both sporting fresh clutch fluid, and our clutches felt identical, so I put that concern to bed. Thanks for the comment and the tips. I really appreciate it!

Thanks Chris! I’m glad you are riding along. I’m online ordering parts. I do a lot of that. 😜

No, it's not just you, they sing when they are moving out. Ya, I agree... it's a really fun bike to ride. Very different than I was expecting. Thanks for the input. I really appreciate it.

Ya, it sure is!

Yes they are! A pretty cool bike for sure.

Well, it might be 116,000 so??

@@usethenoodle Aaaah....good point . I hadn't considered that.

Thanks Charlie. Yes, I've been talking to the nice people over at VRCC (Valkyrie Riders Cruiser Club) and several have suggested exactly the same points you bring up. So, I intend to bleed the clutch and install a Shift Buddy to remove the slop out of the gear shifter. Then I will go for another ride to see how it goes. Thanks for the nice comment. I'm glad you are here.

@@usethenoodle I go by f-Stop on the VRCC board and will occasionally post on the 1500 Tech Board. I will post on the Texas Board as well. There's a lot of good information in the VRCC tech archives, but site maintenance is a little lacking. I can see a Honda shop manual in your video. That hunk of paper is worth its weight in gold!

@@charlieseligman3176 Yes, I bought a used copy of the Factory shop manual on eBay for $16.00! Can you believe that? It's in very good condition and has even been updated in places by someone adding adhesive backed updated pages over the original pages in a few places. It's one of the best written and illustrated service manuals I have ever seen. I have some posts up on the 1500 Tech boards under Craig9409. I've done a fair bit of rural motorcycling in Texas. I have a Toy Hauler and I have had my Indian Chieftain back and forth to Florida for Daytona Beach Bike Week seven years running, and my Victory Vegas one year prior to that. I always enjoy my excursions in Texas, especially down around Gonzales, and the East side around Lufkin. The Fredericksburg area is very nice. I learned about a caper called the Baxter Curve Train Robbery on a remote Texas historical placard south of Fort Stockton on one ride, and then was able to ride over and look at the grave of the robbers in a town cemetery down the road. It didn't go well for the robbers, one of which was a guy called "The Tall Texan" a Ben Kilpatrick, who was a member of Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch earlier in his life. This after passing a whole pack of ferrel hogs tilling up the side of the highway that rapidly scattered into the next field, as a Roadrunner ran past. Only on a motorcycle will you go where you'd never have gone, seen and learned things you'd never have seen nor learned and met such amazing people you'd never have met, who seem to walk right up to you. I'm standing on the sidewalk one morning in Nacogdoches looking at the map on my phone, and an older lady walks up and says, "So whats your story?" We proceeded to sit together on a sidewalk bench and have the nicest talk for the next hour about her town and her life there. She told me an amazing tale of the morning the space shuttle Columbia violently fell to earth there. Texans are amazing and I have met some very memorable people on those180ish mile loop rides out of some obscure RV Park. I could go on... But I'm going to bleed that clutch, install the Shift Buddy and maybe go for a rip to see if it helped. I appreciate you taking your time to comment on my recent video. Thank you. Please check in any time.

Yes, one ride and I'm loving it. It's a classic!

How do you keep the interstate in good running order if your main bike is the tourer?

I ride them both ,I don’t like it when they just sit and I’m always cleaning waxing and going over them, motorcycles have been my life

Did it. It didn’t change anything. Thanks though!

Hi Ann, Yes I agree. I love the bike. It's a cool old classic like no other. It's fun to ride and has spectacular power. Yes, the trans is pretty clunky. I had another Valkyrie owner ride it and I was expecting he would say, Ya man you have a problem... no, he says "I think it shifts smoother than mine". Well OK. I'll not crack open the case. I have sort of figured out the sweet spot on the 1-2 shift. Preloading the shifter seems to help also. Thanks for weighing in on it for me. I appreciate you. Craig

Yes on all counts. It has crossed my mind that the clutch wear could possibly be the cause. The manual says the clutch can be serviced without removing the engine, but it is a lot easier with the engine out of the bike which in any case, it will be. So yes, I will look at the clutch first. It resides under a cover on the back of the engine. You may be right on that. But... how will I know there isn't more to it? The engine will be out, and to not look over the gear clusters means I could well miss the problem. While splitting the engine cases isn't a party, I just feel it should be done to be sure I don't get the bike back together, only to find the problem was indeed inside, and I have to pull the whole motor apart a second time to repair it. Catch 22. I'll have plenty of time to do a thorough job, so I might as well take a look to see what issues may lay deep inside. In the end I'll sleep better as I reassemble the bike. If the problem is there, it should be pretty obvious. The manual gives the service life requirements of everything. They have you using a caliper, micrometer and dial indicator to check wear and runout of all bearings and components, such as the shift forks. Gear wear is usually very easy to spot just by the eye. Yes on the bags. I have decided to keep those on the bike. They are just too handy not to. They are in very nice condition as well. No cracks or damage. I'll send them with all the rest for paint. They are easy to remove if wanted. Not like the quick release hard bags on the Indians, but still easy enough. Thanks for watching and the great feed back!!!! I appreciate you.

@@usethenoodle I agree that you do need to get deep into the engine and definitely inspect and replace as necessary the gears. Might as well go all the way and look at everything. That way, you'll not regret not doing it later on and maybe have to go back in. Do it right the first time!

@@millerke6771 Ya, well there may be hope. I have been talking to a lot of die hard Valkyrie guys on the Valkyrie Riders Cruiser Club forums. Several told me the Valkyrie has a hard 1-2 shift naturally. One guy said before I begin the tear down, to install a Shift Buddy on the shift shaft to take out the play, and be sure to "shift it with authority". Not to baby it. I happen to have a Shift Buddy in my new parts collection, so I'm going to install that and go for a ride. But, I also believe as you suggest it could be the clutch which is where I'll look first. I'm going to pull the motor so I'll do it then. But the clutch can be serviced with the motor in the bike. I ordered a few special tools which are required to service the clutch. A couple of the others look pretty easy to fabricate. Also, I'm going to rebuild both the clutch master cylinder and the slave cylinder on the rear of the motor as they might be the issue. Maybe the clutch actuation or throw is insufficient due to an issue in one or the other the clutch actuation cylinders. If all that checks out, I'll have to assume it's in the trans. I'd really rathe not split the cases if I can help it.

Thanks Keith. Yes, Thats what most are saying. The preload is an important part of shifting these bikes. I appreciate you weighing in!

Hi Charles. I read your post in detail. Ya, what to do if you need a certain part and no can find? It's frustrating. I too took delivery of a second engine. My idea was to use that engine which I was able to hear on a video of it before it was removed from the bike. They say it's got a good transmission and I was able to watch them shift it rapidly with no grinding. So, I bought it. I did this because I felt it would keep my project moving along and then I could use the original engine for more channel content when I do it's rebuild. I still don't know what is causing the 1-2 shift issue and a lot of people tell me its the nature of the beast. I just don't believe it could be that bad. I'm betting it's a defective fork or drum. But... now I'm selling my house and trying to buy another about 30 miles away which has a wonderful large shop building. So my Valkyrie is on hold for now. That's why I haven't added any videos on it recently. Back to your question. I guess you have to be diligent at watching for barn finds, used bikes on sales sites like e-Bay and bike wreckers. Who knows you might score a used part from a wrecked bike. I know you have already done some of this but, ya a good machinist might also be the ticket. Give these guys a try. pinwallcycle.com/ and see what they have for the Vulcan. If there is anything I can do from up here in the USA, please ask. I'm not sure if I can do that much but I'll give it my best shot. I have procured a lot of Valkyrie parts so far. Good luck on your projects and let me know how it goes. Warmest Regards Brother...Craig

Hi Bryan. The project is on hold for several months. I moved to a new home with a proper shop. The hitch is the shop is unfinished. That is where my energy lies at the current moment. I'm hoping to have the shop done by early to mid summer. Following that, yes, I will be back to doing the videos and the restoration. As to parts, you have to hunt around but so far so good. Warmest Regards!

Good question. We are all wondering that. I've been talking to the kind people on the VRCC forum. There is a lot of speculation. The odometer says 16,400. So... 16,400 or 116400? I just don't know. But looking at the timing belt cover which is shiny all around, and not road blasted dull... I'm saying 16,400. Why is the trans having an issue at such a low mileage? I don't know that either. Abuse? Lack of service? Just a bit of bad luck? A factory defect? Not sure. Perhaps the low mileage is due to an early transmission issue? But no worries, we'll get that trans right back in good working order. Stay tuned! There is plenty more to come in this full resto-mod Valkyrie project.

@@usethenoodle sounds pretty smooth for a locomotive:)

@@OOOUZ she pulls like a locomotive and purrs like a pile of warm kittens!

@@usethenoodle im sure she does.. got a chance to ride one for a short while with only 20000 miles and for great price. Too big and impractical for my needs at the time.

@@OOOUZ I had never even seen one outside photos online before I bought this one. I have 2 other street bikes. A Victory Vegas 8 Ball which is slightly modified for high performance and an Indian Chieftain. I bought this one for a resto-mod project. I'm a tinkerer and so I though it would be fun to see what I can do with it. I have finally mastered the strange 1-2 shift issue which turns out to be a trait. I'll be beginning the tear down soon as the fall weather sets in and my outside activities wind down. Sturgis is over and that was a 3 week trip with my Chieftain in my toy hauler. I hope. you will check back to my channel from time to time to see how this project goes. Thanks for commenting!

Your channel has no videos, and so you feel the need to criticize me? Your credibility sucks. Buzz off.