My Blown6 Redux

[BonS]

I sold my original Blown 6 to my son-in-law and this is its replacement. I'm looking forward to getting them together for some pics. I bought this bike from its original owner. He'd only put 10K miles on it in 20 years. It's a '97 #610 built in April of '96. He recently commissioned the paint job and upgraded to the latest generation blower/carburetor setup. I bought it about 2 months ago rode it home from Tennessee. I proceeded to tear it down and built it back up the way I want it. The Two Brothers exhaust is a surprise. It's throaty but relatively quiet. For a straight through system it's really quiet. Another surprise is that the carbon fiber canisters stay cool to the touch. You couldn't melt a plastic bag to it if you tried.

[cajunito]

Waaay cool.

[Valkorado]

RADICAL!   

[Dennis from Blythe]

WOW !!!,  that is very nice 

[Jess from VA]

Yow!!!~~ 

Sound clip?

[Chrisj CMA]

Best I have seen yet

[..]

Wild paint 

[Rams]

If it runs down the road like it looks sitting still, hang on tight!!   

[MP]

VERY NICE!

[BonS]

Thanks all! I will do a video walk around. It runs real sweet. I added the left-side K&N air filter setup that lets the blower breath really well so it's happy from idle on up and makes great power with this fresh 10K engine. The previous owner had a box of fouled plugs and I think he was tired of nursing it. The Magnacharger air filter is a joke for these engines. Once it can breath and with some minor tuning to get the mixture right it's a sweet setup and doesn't have an eccentric nature at all. If I ever get a deal on a blower I'm really tempted to do this on my Interstate.

[John Schmidt]

Bon, you really need a paint job that will catch people's eye....something a bit loud and lively.   

Nice setup from what I can tell. I've often wondered about a blown Valkyrie, are different pistons a must for a low pressure installation. Are they reliable enough(read...trouble free) to use in regular long distance cross country trips? And....I hope my wife doesn't get wind of this line of questioning. 

[BonS]

Keeping the boost at reasonable levels avoids the need for forged pistons and rods. It's my understanding that in the early days the blowers had a 2-1/2" pulley that resulted in higher boost and some damaged engines. A 3" pulley is the way to go if you're sticking with stock internals.

I suppose you could add a tensioner bearing and belt to your spare parts list buy they're common items.

The single carburetor is pure simplicity and is a Mikuni HSR-45 that Harley dealers have parts for. I wouldn't hesitate to ride one across the country - and back. MPG is about (+/-) the same as stock.

An Achilles heel might be cooling. Get stuck in traffic and the temperature rises. The radiator fan is smaller than OEM. I have a manual fan switch that I can toggle-on preemptively. I've never had to pull over and cool down or gotten into the red zone yet. Having a water temperature gauge is essential for piece of mind.

A second Achilles heel might be cold weather starting. It's a bit frightful at first but once you know that it will eventually start then you just keep pumping in some raw gas with your right hand and crank until it fires. I've not had a no-start condition in 35-40F situations - just reluctant.

[Misfit]

Nice work Bon. 

[Oss]

I agree with Chrisj  that is about the sweetest looking Valkyrie I have seen

Hope to see it in person in WV

Great job !

[Aries]

How did you get the rims back to a polished condition? Mine too is has just under 10,000 and my rims are the worst looking thing on the bike.

You've built a work of art! That ride is amazing all the way around.

[BonS]

How did you get the rims back to a polished condition? Mine too is has just under 10,000 and my rims are the worst looking thing on the bike.

You've built a work of art! That ride is amazing all the way around.

I cheated! They're chrome. Chrome Pros Plating in Corpus Christie, TX. You can certainly get a great polish on your wheels though. Check out the tech section to find the various ways to make them beautiful again.

[samoanrich]

I was interested in that bike, but my biggest concern was I don't know how to tune them. You got yourself a nice bike at a very good price. Now what are those things behind the mirrors? Hope to see it in person someday. Like to see the other side where the air cleaner is. Look forward to your walk around video.

[BonS]

I was interested in that bike, but my biggest concern was I don't know how to tune them. You got yourself a nice bike at a very good price. Now what are those things behind the mirrors? Hope to see it in person someday. Like to see the other side where the air cleaner is. Look forward to your walk around video.

My first blown Valk was a leap but after taming the first I'm not at all concerned abut the second. The bike was a steal but I did have to sink some more into it to get it where it is now. I sold the Ultimate seat set that it had to help with the expenses. You can check out http://www.2-bseen.com/ about the turn signal/brake lights. I've put them on all my bikes as I like the extra visibility they offer. Plus - I can see when I've left the turn signals on or accidentally have dropped my foot down and might be riding the brakes.

[Pappy!]

Love that bike, exhaust and blower set-up! Am with you.....if I could find a good blower set-up I would be all over it. 
Am assuming you are bringing it to InZane?

[Smokinjoe-VRCCDS#0005]

That paint job is sick 

[old2soon]

THAT my friend is a fine lookin paint job ya there.   What-couldn't make it flashy and easily seen?   Lopokin might fine!   RIDE SAFE.

[Aries]

BonS,

What make and size is the rear tire? How does it perform? I like the tread pattern.

[BonS]

Love that bike, exhaust and blower set-up! Am with you.....if I could find a good blower set-up I would be all over it. 
Am assuming you are bringing it to InZane?

I usually bring my Interstate and pull a trailer. This is my "city" Valk. I've been looking for some bags that I can easily remove without brackets such as LeatherLyke but no luck yet. Without any carrying capacity I don't know how I'd manage. A trailer hitch is cheaper than bags so maybe that's the answer. Now you've got me thinking.

Oh, and I'd sure miss the electronic cruise control . . .Maybe there's room under the tank now  that the carbs are gone . . . It never ends!

[BonS]

BonS,

What make and size is the rear tire? How does it perform? I like the tread pattern.

It's my third car tire and it's definitely the best that I've ridden. It's a Vredestein Sportrac 3 205/60R16. It's very sticky (high silica content) and has wonderful rounded shoulders. They're not easy to find - just like most everything Valkyrie.

[Mr Whiskey]

Sweetlike

[baldo]

That is absolutely the nicest Valk I've ever seen!

[Lamonster VRCC#0001]

Great looking Valk. I would get rid of the windshield as it distracts from the hotrod look of the bike. Looking forward to seeing it in person. 

[BonS]

Great looking Valk. I would get rid of the windshield as it distracts from the hotrod look of the bike. Looking forward to seeing it in person. 

Thanks! I agree, If I were showing it or bar hopping I'd ditch the air wings, windshield and highway pegs. If only I weren't addicted to the creature comforts. I can hear Willow now "comfort breeds weakness"!

[Lamonster VRCC#0001]

Either way it's a great looking bike and the paint is amazing

[DarkSideR]

BonS,

What make and size is the rear tire? How does it perform? I like the tread pattern.

It's my third car tire and it's definitely the best that I've ridden. It's a Vredestein Sportrac 3 205/60R16. It's very sticky (high silica content) and has wonderful rounded shoulders. They're not easy to find - just like most everything Valkyrie.

I have also ridden the Sportrac 3. Hell-of-a-tire. I loved riding it. Problem is they stopped making them years ago. I would suggest looking at the manufactured date.. it could very well be more than 4+ years old. Of course this should only be noted if you worry about such things, otherwise disregard.

[BonS]

I have also ridden the Sportrac 3. Hell-of-a-tire. I loved riding it. Problem is they stopped making them years ago. I would suggest looking at the manufactured date.. it could very well be more than 4+ years old. Of course this should only be noted if you worry about such things, otherwise disregard.

You're right. I bought this one several years ago and have been aging it, like a fine wine, in my garage waiting for its day. I'm not worried about the date code but more by the condition of the rubber. I'm pretty sure that when I die a flaming death that they'll look at the date code, and the car tire, and still only say whether I wore a helmet.   

[DarkSideR]

I have also ridden the Sportrac 3. Hell-of-a-tire. I loved riding it. Problem is they stopped making them years ago. I would suggest looking at the manufactured date.. it could very well be more than 4+ years old. Of course this should only be noted if you worry about such things, otherwise disregard.

You're right. I bought this one several years ago and have been aging it, like a fine wine, in my garage waiting for its day. I'm not worried about the date code but more by the condition of the rubber. I'm pretty sure that when I die a flaming death that they'll look at the date code, and the car tire, and still only say whether I wore a helmet.   

[Aries]

Thanks darksider - I did actually do research after BonS replied and wasn't able to find anything other than a sport track 5. Your info is good to know being that I am currently looking to switch my rear tire out. Any currently available recommendations?

[DarkSideR]

Thanks darksider - I did actually do research after BonS replied and wasn't able to find anything other than a sport track 5. Your info is good to know being that I am currently looking to switch my rear tire out. Any currently available recommendations?

There are things to consider when purchasing D/S tires like;
-Size
-Comfort
-Looks

Why size matters - closest to stock is a 205/60, but the most recent tire I put on my bike is a 205/65. The 65 series tire is a bit taller thus at Interstate speeds the rpms are down 300. Just enough to where I stopped reaching for the elusive 6th gear. I've seen 195/75 on Valks and low profile tires as well.

Comfort! Yes a tire make a diff. With that Sportrac 3 I would coast at 30mph and could feel that tire a whirlin below me. Rounded shouldered tires have proven to be much more comfy at low speeds, and symmetrical treads help to.

Yeah I have bought tires for their looks. In my last efforts to find a tire I generally found the taller tires are not as aggressive looking as lower profile tires. Which is a bummer.

A lot to consider. I am currently running a boring Hankook Optima, but it is smooth, quiet, and has no bad low speed charactoristics. Hope to get 30k out of it.

Mr. BonS sorry to have hijacked your thread, so back to it. Man do you have a sweet looking ride. Get us a clip so we can hear it. MarkT just got a blown Valk, it's awesome to just stand next to one.

[BonS]

It's all cool.   It'll be fun to see what MarkT does with his.

I've never had an older generation blower with the J-tube and all so I can only talk to my two with Mikuni HSR-45 carbs. In my experience it's all about getting it tuned right and that begins with letting it breathe. This pic is from my first blower and I've made them for four blowers to date. Like a well tailored suit it takes careful fitting of the intake the first time. The cuts and custom work here is difficult, exacting and demanding - everything matters - even the petcock. The final fitting is critical and I can only make is "so" close by replication. The final fitting is the key. After all this it's easy to remove and reinstall it with a single hose clamp AND the engine can breath properly and receive cool air. My Baker Air Wings are tweaked to slightly bias the air stream to do this. A good intake, cool air, and some final tuning make for a fantastic result.