Seeking Mechanic Ref for PNW

[Slauhaus]

I hope this is the correct place to post. I live in Bellingham WA and my 97 Valk has not been working for some time. I'm not knowledgeable enough to do the work, and no one in town will touch my bike. Does anyone know of a good Valk mech in the PNW that I can take my bike to? I am close to Vancouver BC, but at this point I am open to anything. Once bike warms up it spits, and backfires something awful, and loses power, becomes un-rideable. I have recently had the carbs "re-done" by a local mechanic, problem got worse. I'm at a loss here. Thanks for any help you can provide. I love the site, I've been lurking on it for years but this is my first post.  Hope I didn't break any protocols by a shout out for help. Thanks.

[0leman]

I am at the other end of Oregon so can't help on find a shop.  You might want to post on the Tech portion, as ask questions.  Lots of good advice there on working on your Valk.

[msb]

Ron and Byron at 3D Cycle in Abbotsford BC (just across the border from  Sumas) are very knowledgeable with 1500's in general and also familiar with our Valkyries. They currently service mine for things I can't  (or don't have time to) do and a couple other of our BC members' Valks as well. Reasonable as far as labor rates go, and have also given me advice over the phone when doing things on my own. Had new rubber, u-joint installed and rear end service done in May prior to my ride to Billings for InZane while I was out of town on business, and they sent me photos of components to show the shape they were in before re-assembling.

Even if you go to a mechanic for work, post any issues on the Tech Board first....there are many who will offer up very helpful diagnosis,  suggestions, specific fixes, etc....far more knowledgeable than any dealer mechanic on this particular bike . Good luck...

[gordonv]

Welcome Slauhaus, you also might want to post in General a Hello (I haven't looked yet, incase you did).

Lets start with the easy stuff first. I'm busy weekends till further notice, so don't have much time to drive down to Bellingham for a "ride".

How old is your fuel in the tank? Over 8 months, drain, and get half a tank (2.5 - 3 gal) of fresh fuel. Since you have problems, try to stay away from any ethanol fuel. Go to wally world, and get a can of Berryman B12 carb cleaner. Empty half the can in to half the tank. Start bike, let it run for a length of time you are comfortable to let it idle for, 10 min +/-, turn off, let sit over night.

Your rough running, is it only while idling, or while running at speed (3K rpm)?

I suspect the usual plugged ports in the carb or carbs, remember you have 6 of them. Most problems can be fixed by running multiple doses of carb cleaner through the carbs. Nice thing about this is that it's done while riding.