With a lean build, salt-and-pepper beard, and arms covered with tattoos of a dragon, tiger, eagle and motorcycle wheel, Larry Valle looks every bit as much the cool rebel as the Hollywood icons who inspired his passion for two-wheelers.

“Steve McQueen in ‘The Great Escape,’ Marlon Brando in ‘The Wild One,’ and Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper in ‘Easy Rider’ — they were big influences when I was growing up,” said Valle, 58, owner and operator of Big Kahuna Motorcycle Tours & Rentals in Waikiki.

“Evel Knievel was my hero. Whenever he was on TV, my eyes were glued to the screen.”

Valle not only built a business around motorcycles, he’s also a serious collector. He owns 40 motorcycles of different makes, models and ages, dating as far back as the World War II era and worth up to $40,000 each. He’ll display three of his antique motorcycles at the Hawaii All-Collectors Show on July 16 at Blaisdell Center.

Growing up in Queens, N.Y., Valle got his share of scrapes, cuts and bruises from riding minibikes and dirt bikes. He said that even at that young age, he loved the adrenaline rush he got from riding those frisky two-wheeled machines.

As he grew older, he moved on to motorcycles, a passion that continued when he “found the paradise I had been looking for” during a visit to Oahu in 1991 and never left.

He started collecting motorcycles about 15 years ago. Some are used for his business; the rest, including five antiques, are in his personal collection. He and his buddy, Glenn Domhoff, restored the vintage bikes and they’re all operable.

Valle’s favorite is a 1947 Harley-Davidson Knucklehead, which he bought from a friend who is a high-ranking Navy officer. Over the course of 10 years, whenever Valle saw his friend, he would ask if he was ready to sell the motorcycle. Each time the answer was no. Then three years ago, Valle received a phone call from his friend: “Hey, Larry, are you still interested in the Knucklehead? If so, I’m ready to sell it.”

“I couldn’t get to his house fast enough to seal the deal,” Valle said. “He moved around a lot; the military would send him to Japan, the mainland, back here. He got tired of moving the motorcycle whenever he got transferred.”

Mint-condition Knuckleheads with original parts can demand more than $100,000. According to Valle, an original gas tank recently sold for $18,000. Antique restorations can go on for years because it can take that long to find original parts. Although reproductions are available, collectors prefer originals because they increase the value.

Craigslist, eBay, word of mouth and websites such as cycletrader.com are a few of the ways to get leads on motorcycles and parts available for sale. For Valle, the search is as rewarding as the actual transaction.

“If I want something, I’ll spend the time and effort that’s needed to look for it,” he said. “I love the hunt!”

Valle rides his motorcycles as often as he can, even the antiques, which are not known for their comfortable ride and require more skill to operate.

“Being on a motorcycle is the best stress buster after a hard day’s work,” Valle said. “You jump on it and take off. The wind is in your hair and face. It’s liberating! It throws all the negative stuff out of your head. You still have problems, but while you’re on your bike, you feel absolutely great!”

Three of Larry Valle’s antique motorcycles will be displayed at the Hawaii All-Collectors Show:

1942 HARLEY-DAVIDSON WLA

Although the 1942 Harley-Davidson WLA was manufactured in small numbers beginning in 1940, production skyrocketed after the U.S. entered World War II the following year. More than 90,000 were made for the military. The motorcycle was patterned after an existing civilian single-rider WL model.

The “A” stands for Army, and it was tailored to Army specifications. For example, surfaces were painted olive and accessories included an ammunition box and a rack for radio equipment.

All WLAs produced after the attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, were given serial numbers with a 1942 factory date, regardless of when they were actually built. That might be because the Army ordered so many of the bikes with the exact same specifications.

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1947 HARLEY-DAVIDSON KNUCKLEHEAD

The 1947 Harley-Davidson Knucklehead ranks among the most sought-after classic American motorcycles. It marked the transition from a hot-running, side-valve “flathead” engine to an overhead valve engine, which was more reliable and more powerful and solved the heat problem.

Introduced in 1936 during the midst of the Great Depression, the new motor was nicknamed “Knucklehead” because its valve covers resembled knuckles on a clenched fist. When the U.S. entered World War II in 1941, most manufacturing materials were diverted to the war effort, including the steel, aluminum and rubber used to make motorcycles. As a result, production of Knuckleheads plummeted. In 1940, 4,000-plus were made compared with just 158 in 1943.

Today, Knuckleheads built during the low-production war years (1941 to 1945) are worth more than other years. 1947 was the last year this motorcycle was manufactured.

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1959 HARLEY-DAVIDSON HUMMER 165ST

In 1948, Harley-Davidson unveiled the small, sturdy DKW RT-125, whose design was based on drawings Germany gave to the Allies as part of World War II reparations. Model 165 appeared in 1953 with a larger engine, but the motorcycle was still classified as a “lightweight.”

Growing foreign competition impacted Harley-Davidson dealerships across the country. Dean Hummer, who owned a dealership in Omaha, Neb., began letting his Model 125s and Model 165s go with little profit. Word spread, and before long he was outperforming all of his counterparts.

In 1955, Harley-Davidson began offering a version of Model 165 that was stripped down to bare essentials. It didn’t even come with a battery, horn, turn signals or brake light, but company executives hoped a lower price tag would translate to higher sales. They decided to name the new motorcycle “Hummer” in honor of its top seller at the time and produced it until 1959.