Evolution of a Bumblebee Tourer
Posted: Fri Jan 29, 2021 8:49 pm
Anybody take pause at that title? No? Well, I thought I'd post this note for a couple of reasons. 1)To show off a little... 2) and to let folks know that Honda never made a 1997 Valkyrie Tourer with the Black/Yellow Bumblebee color combination. It was only offered on the Standard.
So, I had to make one. I'm pretty sure there are only a handful in the world. And I have one!
I bought my '97 way back in 2015. Sold my '84 Aspencade right after buying it. (I kept the black '78). Purchased from a Mesa, AZ police officer, I was shocked to find he had the popular Cobra 6 into 6 pipes on it...with NO BAFFLES! They looked great and I liked them, but the very first thing I bought for this bike was a set of baffles for those pipes.
Here's how it looked the day after I bought it. Maiden voyage if you will. LeatherLyke bags and Tourer windshield came on the bike. For a while, I ran the full naked solo look. But Mama liked riding this bike and I got tired of switching back and forth between solo and rear seat and rack. Besides, this is a road bike and a road bike needs carrying capacity. The next summer, a buddy and I took a trip to Colorado and I grew to hate two things on that trip. The Cobras and the aftermarket LeatherLyke bags. So, I set about seeing what I could do about that. As luck would have it, an older local gentleman was "triking" his Tourer and was selling all the take-off stuff. I made out like a bandit - except for the color. At the same time, I had an opportunity to buy a very desirable set of Viking pipes that would go great with the Tourer bags. While the bags were out for paint, I installed the Vikings. To be honest, neither the guy selling them nor I realized what they were. I just knew I was getting large diameter equal length ceramic coated pipes with 36" glass packs. $150! Used, they go for almost a grand. Like I said, I made out like a bandit. Imagine my surprise when I realized this!
I also put on a Mustang seat and a few farkles, but that's pretty much it. Oh and I've put on right at 30k miles.
So, I had to make one. I'm pretty sure there are only a handful in the world. And I have one!
I bought my '97 way back in 2015. Sold my '84 Aspencade right after buying it. (I kept the black '78). Purchased from a Mesa, AZ police officer, I was shocked to find he had the popular Cobra 6 into 6 pipes on it...with NO BAFFLES! They looked great and I liked them, but the very first thing I bought for this bike was a set of baffles for those pipes.
Here's how it looked the day after I bought it. Maiden voyage if you will. LeatherLyke bags and Tourer windshield came on the bike. For a while, I ran the full naked solo look. But Mama liked riding this bike and I got tired of switching back and forth between solo and rear seat and rack. Besides, this is a road bike and a road bike needs carrying capacity. The next summer, a buddy and I took a trip to Colorado and I grew to hate two things on that trip. The Cobras and the aftermarket LeatherLyke bags. So, I set about seeing what I could do about that. As luck would have it, an older local gentleman was "triking" his Tourer and was selling all the take-off stuff. I made out like a bandit - except for the color. At the same time, I had an opportunity to buy a very desirable set of Viking pipes that would go great with the Tourer bags. While the bags were out for paint, I installed the Vikings. To be honest, neither the guy selling them nor I realized what they were. I just knew I was getting large diameter equal length ceramic coated pipes with 36" glass packs. $150! Used, they go for almost a grand. Like I said, I made out like a bandit. Imagine my surprise when I realized this!
I also put on a Mustang seat and a few farkles, but that's pretty much it. Oh and I've put on right at 30k miles.