Valkyrie gear noise...

[jagjeep]

I'm sure this isn't something new to those of you with a lot of Honda trike experience but it is to me. Currently I'm the proud owner of my second Valkyrie. The first one had just a few miles on it when I bought it and it was an overall great ride. My current Valkyrie is a 2002 standard with almost 60,000 miles and a less than 2 month old Roadsmith trike kit.

It looks and runs great except for one issue and that is I'm hearing what seems to be a lot of gear noise at speeds above 25 or so. I've read on this site and others that a lot of this noise can be reduced by changing to a synthetic oil. Can this be so? And if so, how many of you have had this experience and what synthetic oil have you found to be the best?

Thanks a million for your help with this.

Jagjeep

 

[keepinon]

Valkyrie transmissions are notoriously noisy, all I've had seemed to be between 40-55 mph, 3rd - 4th gear, where I get the whine. If you have aftermarket transmission covers, this will magnify the noise like a megaphone. (But those chrome covers do look pretty)LOL. But I've never had a transmission problem.

I switched to Mobil 1 15w/50, silver cap. I could actually feel the difference in shifting, everything seemed quieter. Many like the "exotics" as I call 'em, Royal Purple, Amsoil, etc, but I wanted an oil I didn't have to special order or could not find at a small town parts store. I'm sure they are good oils, the reviews are good, just not what I was looking for. Many folks run the diesel synthetic oils, Rotella T6? 15/40. It must be good also, it has many users. I also like the 50w of Mobil 1 silver cap in our extremely hot summers down here.

 

[Chumbly]

Synthetic oil (Amsoil), quieted my VTX down a bit and made for smoother shifting. Just make sure that whatever you use, it doesn't have moly (friction reducers), in it...that will screw up your clutch.

 

[3W-lonerider]

I'm sure this isn't something new to those of you with a lot of Honda trike experience but it is to me. Currently I'm the proud owner of my second Valkyrie. The first one had just a few miles on it when I bought it and it was an overall great ride. My current Valkyrie is a 2002 standard with almost 60,000 miles and a less than 2 month old Roadsmith trike kit.

It looks and runs great except for one issue and that is I'm hearing what seems to be a lot of gear noise at speeds above 25 or so. I've read on this site and others that a lot of this noise can be reduced by changing to a synthetic oil. Can this be so? And if so, how many of you have had this experience and what synthetic oil have you found to be the best?

Thanks a million for your help with this.

Jagjeep

couple of questions. i have alot of experiance working on valks so these questions maybe we can track down your extra noise.
#1 do you have kury trans covers on that engine
#2 is it the original alternator ( you may not know that question)

 

[JaysGone]

I ran Mobil 1 V-Twin in my Valk.
Any other synthetic 20w-50 when I couldn't find V-Twin.
Even Wally Mart dino 20w-50 quieted down the gear box.

 

[dogman513]

AMSOIL!!!

 

[jagjeep]

couple of questions. i have alot of experiance working on valks so these questions maybe we can track down your extra noise.
#1 do you have kury trans covers on that engine
#2 is it the original alternator ( you may not know that question)

Lonerider,

#1. It's "virgin" and without aftermarket trans. covers... The only covers at the engine/trans. are those supplied by Honda from the factory. I would suspect aftermarket covers would be suspect for rattles, etc.

#2. As far as I know, the alternator is original. Bought the Valkyrie used a couple of months ago. It has almost 60,000 miles total.

Thanks for your interest in helping.

Jagjeep

 

[jagjeep]

Valkyrie transmissions are notoriously noisy, all I've had seemed to be between 40-55 mph, 3rd - 4th gear, where I get the whine. If you have aftermarket transmission covers, this will magnify the noise like a megaphone. (But those chrome covers do look pretty)LOL. But I've never had a transmission problem.

I switched to Mobil 1 15w/50, silver cap. I could actually feel the difference in shifting, everything seemed quieter. Many like the "exotics" as I call 'em, Royal Purple, Amsoil, etc, but I wanted an oil I didn't have to special order or could not find at a small town parts store. I'm sure they are good oils, the reviews are good, just not what I was looking for. Many folks run the diesel synthetic oils, Rotella T6? 15/40. It must be good also, it has many users. I also like the 50w of Mobil 1 silver cap in our extremely hot summers down here.

Thanks a million for this info. It looks like a lot of riders are using "exotics" to cut down on gear noises. We too in Southeast Louisiana have "bake your eyeballs" hot summers, so the 50w Mobile 1 seems like a smart way to go...

As far as the chrome covers, I agree they look good and dress up the engine/trans. but when you think about it, who really needs to dress up a great looking machine like a Valkyrie? Anyway, I don't have them and probably won't especially if they are going to add to the noise issues.

Again, thanks.

Jagjeep

- - - Updated - - -

Synthetic oil (Amsoil), quieted my VTX down a bit and made for smoother shifting. Just make sure that whatever you use, it doesn't have moly (friction reducers), in it...that will screw up your clutch.

Thanks Chumbly. Seems like a lot of riders are using synthetic oil...

Jagjeep

- - - Updated - - -

I ran Mobil 1 V-Twin in my Valk.
Any other synthetic 20w-50 when I couldn't find V-Twin.
Even Wally Mart dino 20w-50 quieted down the gear box.

Thanks JaysGone for the info.

Jagjeep

- - - Updated - - -

AMSOIL!!!

Thanks for the info....

Jagjeep

 

[3W-lonerider]

Lonerider,

#1. It's "virgin" and without aftermarket trans. covers... The only covers at the engine/trans. are those supplied by Honda from the factory. I would suspect aftermarket covers would be suspect for rattles, etc.

#2. As far as I know, the alternator is original. Bought the Valkyrie used a couple of months ago. It has almost 60,000 miles total.

Thanks for your interest in helping.

Jagjeep

ok so no on the trans covers. if thats the case i would agree with try changing oil. alot of valk riders are using shell rotella or mobil one. i personally had good luck with castrol till they changed the formula. can't remember what i put in last time. thinking about trying royal purple. but heres the case. your not going to totally get rid of that gear noise because valk transmissions use square cut gears and they like to whine. changing oil will reduce it but not get rid of it.

 

[jagjeep]

ok so no on the trans covers. if thats the case i would agree with try changing oil. alot of valk riders are using shell rotella or mobil one. i personally had good luck with castrol till they changed the formula. can't remember what i put in last time. thinking about trying royal purple. but heres the case. your not going to totally get rid of that gear noise because valk transmissions use square cut gears and they like to whine. changing oil will reduce it but not get rid of it.

Thanks Lonerider. I agree that a lot of riders are using Mobil 1, etc., so perhaps doing the same would be the course of action for this Valkyrie. If this gets rid of most if not all gear noise, I could live with it. In fact, my first Valk had a little gear noise and that was OK...Thanks again.Jagjeep

 

[JaysGone]

Given the choice between the 3.
Mobil 1 15w-50 or V-Twin my 1st and only choice is the V-Twin.
Amsoil between V-Twin.
The Amsoil has the most ZDDP (Zinc dithiophosphate) of any oil in it.
Much better for your valves.
CASTROL GTX 20W-50 if you prefer a dino oil.
Also very good.

If you cant tell.
I come from a very long V-Twin back ground.
The Valk was my 1sy foray into multi cyl engines.

 

[jagjeep]

Re: Valkyrie gear noise... & OIL SELECTION

Everyone,First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who responded with their recommendations as how to reduce this problem. Second, I'd like to report back on what most suggest to reduce the "gear noise" from the Valkyrie. Replace the non-synthetic with a full-synthetic oil that's the same SAE Grade (10W40) and Service Classification (JASO MA) recommended by Honda.Also, since Mobil 1 was often mentioned, I contacted their Corp. office and got their recommendation.Based on all of this, I decided to use the (Mobil 1 Racing 4T 10W-40). It's a little expensive ($8.99 to $10.99 per quart) but I can find nothing but positive reports about it. It meets or exceeds the requirements of JASO MA, has no friction modifiers/reducers, and is designed to help provide the proper frictional characteristics necessary for wet-clutch common engine/transmission systems.Again, thanks for your help with this.Jagjeep

 

[jagjeep]

Re: Valkyrie gear noise... & OIL SELECTION -- (100% IMPROVEMENT)

Everyone,First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who responded with their recommendations as how to reduce this problem. Second, I'd like to report back on what most suggest to reduce the "gear noise" from the Valkyrie. Replace the non-synthetic with a full-synthetic oil that's the same SAE Grade (10W40) and Service Classification (JASO MA) recommended by Honda.Also, since Mobil 1 was often mentioned, I contacted their Corp. office and got their recommendation.Based on all of this, I decided to use the (Mobil 1 Racing 4T 10W-40). It's a little expensive ($8.99 to $10.99 per quart) but I can find nothing but positive reports about it. It meets or exceeds the requirements of JASO MA, has no friction modifiers/reducers, and is designed to help provide the proper frictional characteristics necessary for wet-clutch common engine/transmission systems.Again, thanks for your help with this.Jagjeep

REPORT: 4/27/2014, As a follow up to the above and a few spring time miles, I can say there has been a 100% improvement and an almost complete elimination of any gear noise after switching to MOBIL 1 RACING 4T 10W-40 oil. I highly recommend using this product !

 

[keepinon]

Thanks for your report on the oil. I'll probably try it next time. I did listen to the "whine" during the Texas Trike Reunion rides last week, but still had a blast.

 

[jagjeep]

Thanks for your report on the oil. I'll probably try it next time. I did listen to the "whine" during the Texas Trike Reunion rides last week, but still had a blast.

It really does work great...

Safe riding...

Jagjeep

 

[tfdeputydawg]

Mobile 1 T4 for motorcycles, not the one for V-twins as I have 6 cylinders
Smoothest shifting I've experienced from my Wing.
Available @ AutoZone