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That. Besides, some people have more time than money, and others have more money than time. Me, I have the tools, a fair amount of wrenching experience, and have the money to pay a dealer, but sometimes, I just can't be bothered.
Agreed.
Too, it makes warranty claims SOOPER easy, if it ever comes to something major.
My 2008 Cadi, I do almost all the work by myself (when I have time) - no warranty on the Cadi. But with the Harley - as long as the warranty lasts, I'd rather just pay the dealership. This is the first new bike I've ever had, and the first one with a warranty... and the first one I've let the dealership work on.
I'm just old school. Before I was 10 years old my pops had me helping him do things like change the oil in his cars, exhaust stuff, help with some mods he did on his Alfa Romeo like pull the DOHC cover, wrinkle black paint it, grind down the raised letters.
So as I was a teen I got into doing my own car maint...oil, plugs, filters, ...leading to brakes, water pump, oil pump, headers, dual exhaust, suspension mods, ignition system upgrades, radiators, transmissions, drive shafts, read ends, put in your own stereo, amp, 6x9 speakers, etc etc
Fast fowards a few decades and I still do that stuff.
Part of what I like about Harleys..."old school tech", like working on a tractor. At least the older Harleys. I've had my engines tore down, transmission out, rear swing arms out, front end out, swapped front ends, brakes, tanks off, gauges/wiring, primaries apart.
I trust myself and close riding buds I wrench with cuz they own old bikes and wrench themselves.
To me it's part of the old school culture...and I enjoy it. And it makes riding more enjoyable. And I like if something goes wrong on the road, I'll simply pull over and wrench on it right there and get my bike to a point where I can ride home..I don't feel helpless or stranded.
That insurance commercial where the kid has a flat tire on the side of the road, on the phone with his dad...and you hear his dad ask if the kid found the tire iron..and then asks "You know what a tire iron is, right?" And the kid holds up like a...dunno what, but it's not a tire iron and mutters a fake "uh...yeah".
Last edited by YeOldeStonecat; May 14, 2018 at 03:37 PM.
Other than "MMI," where can someone learn to wrench on motorcycles? G'pa? Dad? ok, sure, there's that. What if they didn't wrench? How many community colleges offer "motorcycle mechanics" classes today? Any high schools offer any vocational classes at all? Anyone take welding in high school, that's NOT from the 60's or 70's? Those classes have been eliminated.
I've noticed recently that dealerships have been taking advantage of this "lack of knowledge" by increasing their shop rates to crazy levels. $135/hr isn't unusual anymore. Remember the $22 oil change? (3 holes.) Now, it's $250-300. Sure, oil costs more, but not 15 fold. They're taking advantage of rider's ignorance, all the way to the bank.
Getting 100k miles out of a car used to really be something. Today, anything less than 250k (and without EVER doing any internal engine work) is a disappointment.
...funny you say that. We have a 2002 E150 that has never had a problem except for replacement of the coil packs a couple of years ago. Sixteen years and I've never once opened the cowling to look at the engine! I keep it maintained and simply expect it to work, and it does.
I can't imagine owning a bike and not wrenching on it.
Seems to go hand in hand to me. However, I do know my limitations, but have never taken any
of my bikes to a dealer over the last 45 years.
If I had a major engine of trans problem, I would go to an indy, but thankfully nothing
like that has happened yet.
Same with my old cars, I HATE giving money to someone for something that I'm absolutely capable of doing on my own.
However, some jobs at by age with a bad back are much better left to the mechanic.
I have an awesome friend who does all sorts of work, mechanical, body and paint, interiors, bikes, hot rods, etc.
And he works for $35 an hour!! For that money, HE can do the springs and shocks in on my 64 rag,
springs can be a real PITA, no thanks.
One limitation is paintwork, I used to paint cars when I was a kid, but I'm afraid that my paints jobs these days wouldn't
be quite up to par.
The day comes that I can't wrench my own bike anymore, it's time to hang up my leathers.
Don't get me wrong... not begrudging... I was curious more about if there were specific issues with Harleys.
I had a Sportster before and didn't do much to it. I had a Honda VTX and there was a large forum of people modifying - I took it apart completely and completely customized it - learned to wrench on it. I just don't see the same level of mod help as I did with the VTX. Maybe Harleys just don't need the same level of modding.
People still build Harley's just not many of them do it here. I've built several motorcycles in the past but things being what they are in my life at this time I don't do that much work on my bikes anymore. One of the reasons is that I don't have anything worth spending a lot of time and money on anymore. I'm a die hard chopper guy and my interests will always be in Pans and Shovelheads. These days arthritis being what it is I ride a 1993 Heritage Classic. The Softail part is OK but I've never been an Evo guy and never will be. Being that I'm not in love with the bike even though it looks pretty damn good I have no real interest in it other than starting it and riding when the mood suits me. I tinker with the little stuff just to prove to myself that I can still do things that most people can't or won't and to occupy my time. For example. I've taken an interest in a really nice remote oil filter system that I could easily in stall for for a little over $300. My goal is to do the same thing but to spend less than $100 and still have it look just as good just because I'm a C.O.B. I'm almost there.
Anyway, if you want to hang with the Harley builders you have to visit the right forums like Backstreet Choppers, the Shovelhead forum or the Chopper Builders forum. Even try Chop Cult . There's a few decent guys on there building some good bikes. Enjoy.
I think back to what it was like 50 or so years ago. To ride meant you were forced by necessity to be competent in the maintenance of your machine.
Time was, "wrenching" meant something like solving a no-start problem, curing some horrible mechanical noise inside the motor, or repairing a catastrophic failure.
And, quite often, along the side of the road. But, you knew your bike and had the tools and the confidence that you (and your buddies) could get you up and running, sooner or later. It was understood that it was all part of the program.
Back in the early 70's I learned to wrench my bikes because I couldn't afford not to and it became a hobby of mine. This was my 72 sportster, back then we chromed everything including the frame. I haven't rode in 20 years and I just bought a 18 Sport Glide, In the future I'll probably do some minor wrenching , fluids, air cleaner, slip-ons but nothing major. The new Spot Glide is interesting in that you could change the look of the bike, the bags and fairing clip off in seconds no tools needed, so that's all the wrenching I'm doing for now...LOL
I enjoy working on mine when it's something I know I can do. I'm no mechanic but I learned a lot by doing the general work on my '06 Heritage. You Tube is a great source of reference, as is this forum. I changed, fixed, replaced a lot of the parts on that bike, but I never cracked into the engine. The closest I got was opening up the primary to change the tensioner. I learned how to adjust the clutch, regular maint & fluids, brakes, etc, but internal engine stuff is above my pay grade.
On my new Limited with the M8 - I had the fairing off within the first month to change out the bars, so I learned about the front end wiring, heated grips, and how all that stuff comes together. I change out my own fluids and I'll do the brakes when it's time. I have no clue about how a hydraulic clutch works and the M8 is so different from the Twin Cam (to me) so I'm sure I won't be doing as much. I'm ok with that.
Sometimes it's easier to have a pro do it. I enjoy changing the oil on our 2015 Durango, but after realizing that my local shop will do it for about $20 less than it was costing me for oil & a filter, plus I didn't have to get rid of the old oil, it was a no-brainer.
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Slideshow: The bar-and-shield logo shows up on far more than motorcycles, some of the company's most unexpected products have nothing to do with riding.
Slideshow: From the troubled AMF years to modern misfires, these bikes earned reputations for reliability issues, questionable engineering, or disappointing performance.
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Slideshow: The Swiss custom shop has taken a Harley Softail and stretched it into something so long and low that it looks closer to a rolling sculpture than a conventional motorcycle.
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Slideshow: A standard cruiser becomes an intricate metal canvas in the hands of a Swiss custom house known for pushing Harley-Davidson platforms far beyond their factory brief.
Slideshow: Harley-Davidson's challenges aren't abstract; they show up in dropping shipments, shrinking dealer traffic, and strategic decisions that aren't yet translating into growth.
