Service for a 1998 Valkyrie Tourer.....New member/owner

[TN Rebel Soul]

Hey, All! New member to VRCC; first time Valk owner and Tech Board post! Bought a 1998 Tourer last summer with 19,700 miles; regularly-serviced by previous owner. I've put about 300 miles on it since; been in dry storage since December with full tank of gas with Sta-Bil and battery removed. Any suggestions for servicing before serious riding season begins?

[Sodbuster]

Hind sight being 20-20 and it being a new to you Valkyrie I would personally check out the rear splines or have someone else do it for you while you're standing there watching how it's done. This seems to be the one area that gets neglected and also put back together incorrectly.

[CASABROKER]

+1 on the splines other than that ride it. Welcome aboard you'll love all the info on this site.

[YoungPUP]

Usually start my season by adding my favorite flavor of fuel system cleaner to the crapped out fuel in the tank.

[john]

19,700 miles               
ride it           

[huge]

Ditto on the splines.  For your benefit as a new Valk owner, the splines referred to are the drive splines in the differential (rear axle assy) and they need to be lubricated periodically.  I do mine every spring.  The recommended lub is Honda's Moly 60 paste available at any Honda shop.  It isn't pricey and a tube will last forever.
This is an important service item and if your bike hasn't been done recently, get it done.  You can also do it yourself, but you will need a Clymer manual, several metric tools, a bike lift and a jack to lower and raise the rear wheel which weighs a ton.  It isn't too complicated.  Hint, It will be MUCH less hassle if you remove the exhaust pipes first.  (Remember to replace the six exhaust gaskets).
Good luck and enjoy your Valk.
Final piece of advice.  Always carry a nickel when you ride so that you can balance it on the engine while you rev it up.  It astonishes the Harley guys!

[9Ball]

check color of brake fluid..if tea or coffee colored it's due for a change.  Quick and easy and very important.  I like to change my coolant every 2 years especially if I'm planning any long distance trips or will be spending time in very hot climates (Sturgis comes to mind).

Other than the obvious (good tires) enjoy the ride.

[Chiefy]

Take 1/2 hour (or less) and tighten all the clamps between the carbs and the airbox.

[Sodbuster]

Hint, It will be MUCH less hassle if you remove the exhaust pipes first.

It's NOT necessary to remove the exhaust to perform rear drive service .... all you have to do is remove the shocks and raise the swingarm to pull the axle. Also, as been stated many times by the SME's (subject matter experts) you loosen the four swingarm nuts first and tighten them LAST !!!!

[F6MoRider]

If you have some reading time, check out ShopTalk http://www.valkyrieriders.com/shoptalk/ as it has a ton of good info on basic and general maintenance and some other related stuff.  You can also search the techboard when you have questions and the results may surprise you.  They were very beneficial to me as I just tore down my rear end (replaced the rear tire, cleaned the splines, new o-ring seals, new brake pads) and did a lot of other maintenance work (coolant, brake fluid changes, air filter, s-plugs, oil and that little brass washer in the clutch that lets you start in gear that Honda has marked up 300 percent above the exact same part Suszuki sells under a diff number).  Most of what I didn't know and needed to know was either available here in the discussion threads or in the Honda Service Manual (torque values, locations of moly past and the kind, and the thrust washer and hub lube reqmts).

Always feel free to post here with questions and someone will share what they know on the subject just be aware some feel strongly about certain topics (kind of oil, moly or no moly, etc..) and the standard buyer beware exists; your results may be different.

Enjoy the ride.

[sandy]

Your removed battery should have a maintenance charger on it all winter. I have a CTEK but DEKA has a good one. Battery Tenders are popular too.

[TN Rebel Soul]

Wow! Thanks for the advice, everyone! I will definitiely take notes from you and get started, with Clymers manual in hand. I have indeed read a lot of the Tech posts and Tech Talk on the VRCC site and it is incredible the amount of knowledge and help everyone has been. Looking forward to more posts!  (and I'll carry that nickle, too...saw it on YouTube!)

[9Ball]

Wow! Thanks for the advice, everyone! I will definitiely take notes from you and get started, with Clymers manual in hand. I have indeed read a lot of the Tech posts and Tech Talk on the VRCC site and it is incredible the amount of knowledge and help everyone has been. Looking forward to more posts!  (and I'll carry that nickle, too...saw it on YouTube!)

I have both Clymers and Honda service manuals and prefer the Honda manual over the Clymers.  The Clymers has some different pictures/angles and appears to be slanted to those with less mechanical ability (this is strictly my opinion...no offense meant) whereas the Honda manual assumes you have more advanced mechanical skills.  You can download the Honda manual from Dag's VRCC website.

http://valkyrienorway.com/download.html

Good luck and enjoy.

[Bill anderson]

Install a fuel filter.

[TN Rebel Soul]

Thanks! I'll download the manual (need all the help I can get) and install a fuel filter, too.