Stealership "quality" tech(s)...
Thread Starter
|
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 8,129
Likes: 1,981
From: Ottawa, CANADA
Cheers!
Thread Starter
|
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 8,129
Likes: 1,981
From: Ottawa, CANADA
Cheers!
Banned
Joined: Aug 2012
Posts: 14,866
Likes: 31,162
From: Whiskey Falls, Texas
I would trust a Harley Tech about as far as I could throw him.....well, if he was skinny I could probably throw him pretty far....
I have several stories, but the latest being this...I had a blowout on a road trip a couple of years or so ago. I was only about 15 miles from a dealer (which I won't name) and called them to come pick me up. I decided to go ahead and have both tires replaced. Now I remove my wheels and take em to get new rubber installed, so I was the last person to touch the wheels/axles. Fast forward to this past spring and I've ordered new wheels for this particular bike. As I'm installing the wheels I noticed the pinch cap allen bolt on the front axle is completely, and I mean completely stripped and loose. Took it off with my fingers.
I was pissed. Tech stripped the bolt, and instead of replacing it with a damn $2 bolt he didn't say anything and didn't even tighten it up. Front wheel is pretty damn important on a bike!!
I've ordered a tire machine. I do everything to my bike, and now that will include changing tires, unless I'm on the road and have problems. If I do I imagine I will check things over as good as I possibly can before hitting the road.
I'm sure there's good techs out there, but NO ONE is gonna give as much **** about your bike as YOU do!!
I have several stories, but the latest being this...I had a blowout on a road trip a couple of years or so ago. I was only about 15 miles from a dealer (which I won't name) and called them to come pick me up. I decided to go ahead and have both tires replaced. Now I remove my wheels and take em to get new rubber installed, so I was the last person to touch the wheels/axles. Fast forward to this past spring and I've ordered new wheels for this particular bike. As I'm installing the wheels I noticed the pinch cap allen bolt on the front axle is completely, and I mean completely stripped and loose. Took it off with my fingers.
I was pissed. Tech stripped the bolt, and instead of replacing it with a damn $2 bolt he didn't say anything and didn't even tighten it up. Front wheel is pretty damn important on a bike!!
I've ordered a tire machine. I do everything to my bike, and now that will include changing tires, unless I'm on the road and have problems. If I do I imagine I will check things over as good as I possibly can before hitting the road.
I'm sure there's good techs out there, but NO ONE is gonna give as much **** about your bike as YOU do!!
Thread Starter
|
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 8,129
Likes: 1,981
From: Ottawa, CANADA
I have several stories, but the latest being this...I had a blowout on a road trip a couple of years or so ago. I was only about 15 miles from a dealer (which I won't name) and called them to come pick me up. I decided to go ahead and have both tires replaced. Now I remove my wheels and take em to get new rubber installed, so I was the last person to touch the wheels/axles. Fast forward to this past spring and I've ordered new wheels for this particular bike. As I'm installing the wheels I noticed the pinch cap allen bolt on the front axle is completely, and I mean completely stripped and loose. Took it off with my fingers.
I was pissed. Tech stripped the bolt, and instead of replacing it with a damn $2 bolt he didn't say anything and didn't even tighten it up. Front wheel is pretty damn important on a bike!!
I was pissed. Tech stripped the bolt, and instead of replacing it with a damn $2 bolt he didn't say anything and didn't even tighten it up. Front wheel is pretty damn important on a bike!!
THIS right here is the bottom line!
Cheers!
Last edited by Clammy; Jul 26, 2020 at 08:07 PM.
Road Warrior
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,537
Likes: 727
From: Michigan
I have a friend who bought a SG that turned out to be an absolute mess. It was at the dealer and they couldn't get it right so he brought it to the GURU in the next town and I picked it up for him. The mechanic said "no charge, I can't fix it." He said the motor was built by a committee that didn't speak to each other. The EFI wouldn't talk to the ECU and the cams were only good after 4500 RPM's. It was a mess built by a guy with more money than sense. He limped it to the local Harley shop with a RG in his sights. The mechanic came out, started the bike and said the erratic idle was an air leak. He got a good trade-in price and left with a new used bike. I never saw that SG on the floor.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 11,226
Likes: 3,049
From: St.Louis Mo.
I've told this story before, but a dealer here in St.Louis let a friend of mine ride off with the spacer missing on the back wheel after they installed a tire. He almost made it to the highway before all hell broke loose.
Destroyed the belt, pulley, wheel and a bunch of other parts. He's lucky he didn't get killed on the thing. When these clowns work on your bike they ave your life in their hands. And most don't care to pay enough attention to what they are doing.
Destroyed the belt, pulley, wheel and a bunch of other parts. He's lucky he didn't get killed on the thing. When these clowns work on your bike they ave your life in their hands. And most don't care to pay enough attention to what they are doing.
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2009
Posts: 4,315
Likes: 1,663
From: Tampa
The only downside to working on your own bike is there's no official "Service Record" for those stingy buyers who turn their nose up at home mechanics. Oh well, fvck them.
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Road Master
Joined: Jan 2017
Posts: 791
Likes: 386
From: New York
Too bad to hear that....glad you got Reaper back and are working it out....don't get me started on dealer service!!!! I posted a thread a few weeks back about almost wishing I didn't have a warranty on my Dyna that compelled me to bring it to them for certain things, most recently an electrical problem. I am lucky to have a great indy that has over 30 years experience that I've been using for over 20 years. On the bright side looks like you'll have a fresh top end when you're done to put another 100k plus on that badboy!!!
