Honda Valkyrie Bobber: Rough Beginnings (Part 1)

honda valkyrie bobberI bought my Honda Valkyrie bobber as an unfinished project. The previous owner left the bike in rough shape. I will explain the issues in this post. In the next post, I will explain what I did to solve the problems. I, also, plan to take my F6 Valkyrie deeper into bobber territory.

Rear fender MIA

The previous owner hacked the bottom part of the rear fender off, just below the rear tail light opening.

They then installed an rear motorcycle light like the one below, which works well.

ANKIA 40-LED 40W Motorcycle Tail Light Integrated Running Lamp Brake&Turn Signal Light with License Plate Bracket for Harly Motorcycle Street Bike Cruiser Chopper (Red)
  • Voltage: DC 12V;Wattage: 40W (1W/LED);Material: LED + Metal License Plate Bracket + PC Lens
  • Can be used as a running & brake lamp,turn signal light and tail light
  • Fits Most Motorcycle, Street Bike, Cruiser, Chopper such as Harley / Honda/ Kawasaki / BMW / Yamaha / Suzuki / Ducati / Benelli / Aprilia (may need tiny modification for some models)
  • 5 wires connection system.:(Black for Negative, Red for Brake Light, Yellow for Running Light, Blue for Turn-Left Signal Light, Orange for Turn-Left Signal Light)
  • Package includes: 1X Motorcycle Integrated Tail Light with License Plate Bracket

Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Unfortunately, the installer did nothing with the original rear light opening except put a little Duck tape on it.

Valkyrie exhaust

The bike had a pair of headers installed, which ended under the foot pegs. There was no muffler. It was loud.

Although the noise was bearable, the bike was not tuned for those shorty headers. It popped and sputtered.

I can see a set of Cobra 6 into 6 pipes or glasspacks on my shorty headers are in my future.

No products found.

Clutch master cylinder leaking

The master cylinder cover was not from original equipment manufacturer. It was a bulky piece that had slots for nickels, dimes, and quarters.

I took it apart to find the diaphragm damaged, which explained why the bike leaked clutch fluid.

Starter switch broke

The starter switch broke on the Valkyrie, so the previous owner wired in a push button switch and mounted it with zip ties on the handlebars.

Speaking of handlebars

The drag bars on the bike currently clear the gas tank, but at one time they didn’t.

And nobody seemed to care because the gas tank has two scratches and small dents from when somebody locked the bars while turning.

New bars will probably be in my budget.

Find the best deals for parts here to complete your Honda Valkyrie bobber.

Updates

After finishing the next part in the build, I will leave a link to it here. Also, check out the post I did with Honda Valkyrie forums and resource links if you have a similar project.

Originally posted 2023-01-06 18:19:31.