half ton
Legendary Knight
yep ... all in £525Are we talking service only or service plus valve adjustment battery tyre sprocket and pads
What have you done to your bike today....
- Thread starter BAD LUCK DUCK
- Start date
Don the Don
Legendary Knight
Same here, just had some cam locking pins made by a mate and I will continue my own serviceing, but not everyone has the ability or facilities
Old Nick
Legendary Knight
Pretty much spot on Jez
And based on some of the fixed servicing charges I’ve seen I was expecting a fair chunk more
There's nothing "reasonable" about main dealer servicing costs Marty. If you can do it yourself, not only will you continue to save a fortune. You'll also know the job has been done correctly
I've heard numerous tales of techs starting bikes from cold & listening to the valve noise. An experienced tech can usually tell if they are too tight & easily tell if they are too loose.
But the customer still gets a bill for the proper check with gauges
Old Nick
Legendary Knight
Crikey I want to use your dealer mate
where are they??
Old Nick
Legendary Knight
Without facilities or know how I’d still be doing this in three months time and fucking the bike at the same time - happy to tinker unless there’s a chance I’ll bugger the bike up
Don the Don
Legendary Knight
That term is branded about far too much
I've heard of much worse prices Nick.Pretty much spot on Jez
And based on some of the fixed servicing charges I’ve seen I was expecting a fair chunk more
If it was a triple with bodywork that needed to be removed. My guess would have been over £1000
Yep!
I'd have far more faith in a guy with a topless girlies calendar in his office & tea/coffee mugs that have previously undiscovered forms of life growing in them. Who thinks latex gloves are for dentists & surgeons
chas
Legendary Knight
I reckoned a couple for a 100 quid boot and a twenty pound sprocket fitted and 275 for the serviceAre we talking service only or service plus valve adjustment battery tyre sprocket and pads
Last edited:
That's reminded me of selling a kit car to a guy years ago.
He turned up with a 2' long screwdriver & proceeded to put the driver end on the rocker cover, & the plastic end to his ear.
It was obvious he hadn't got a Scooby Doo why he was doing it, or what he was listening for.
He caught me trying not to laugh & fessed up that his mate had told him to do it. But he didn't actually know what he was listening for
It was an old 1.6 Ford Pinto engine. Not the most high tech or quietest motor ever made.
He purchased the car, drove it 200+ miles home & phoned me to say he loved it. And his mate had signed off the engine with a clean bill of health
Edit...
Here's the car in question
A Morgan look-alike with modern ish running gear 
Not very fast, but stylish IMHO.
I fitted black/silver number plates after these photos were taken. They completed the classic car look.
Last edited:
Old Nick
Legendary Knight
chas
Legendary Knight
If I sub a spanner job out I'd rather give it to a Mechanic
Sarky B’stard
Legendary Knight
Mechanics are few and far between.
How does it go? 'You can't get shitter than a KwikFit fitter'.
Diagnosis and repair has given way to 'sell the idiot a new one. More of a new one than they actually need.'
Funnily enough was in just such an establishment in Edinburgh a few years back as the back box had literally just dropped off my wife's Jazz. They stuck it on the ramp while I waited. A couple of minutes later it was the 'Yes we can do that for you Sir, £950.'
"Oh yes,"I said "& how did you get to that?"
So he waves the online catalogue from Cat all the way back. ""You're going to have to show me"
"Well you're not really allowed in the workshop....."
"Show me."
Anyway after I had borrowed his screwdriver and demonstrated the soundness to my own satisfaction I told him thank you and goodbye.
On the way out the old boy who had been in for a puncture repair was getting the winter tyre sales pitch. I butted in politely to enquire if he took his baby Nissan out of town much. He said not. I said in which case you don't need winter or crossover tyres the benefits are completely marginal in town and if you never go over 30.....By the way these guys get a commission on everything they sell you. He smiles and we left one after the other.
To be fair the middle section was slightly tired so I farted all the way home and bought the middle and back boxes for maybe £75 online and it went to the crusher with them. I believe I may have broken a nail fitting them.
How does it go? 'You can't get shitter than a KwikFit fitter'.
Diagnosis and repair has given way to 'sell the idiot a new one. More of a new one than they actually need.'
Funnily enough was in just such an establishment in Edinburgh a few years back as the back box had literally just dropped off my wife's Jazz. They stuck it on the ramp while I waited. A couple of minutes later it was the 'Yes we can do that for you Sir, £950.'
"Oh yes,"I said "& how did you get to that?"
So he waves the online catalogue from Cat all the way back. ""You're going to have to show me"
"Well you're not really allowed in the workshop....."
"Show me."
Anyway after I had borrowed his screwdriver and demonstrated the soundness to my own satisfaction I told him thank you and goodbye.
On the way out the old boy who had been in for a puncture repair was getting the winter tyre sales pitch. I butted in politely to enquire if he took his baby Nissan out of town much. He said not. I said in which case you don't need winter or crossover tyres the benefits are completely marginal in town and if you never go over 30.....By the way these guys get a commission on everything they sell you. He smiles and we left one after the other.
To be fair the middle section was slightly tired so I farted all the way home and bought the middle and back boxes for maybe £75 online and it went to the crusher with them. I believe I may have broken a nail fitting them.
half ton
Legendary Knight
MARLIN ? Or Merlin...can't rememberThat's reminded me of selling a kit car to a guy years ago.
He turned up with a 2' long screwdriver & proceeded to put the driver end on the rocker cover, & the plastic end to his ear.
It was obvious he hadn't got a Scooby Doo why he was doing it, or what he was listening for.
He caught me trying not to laugh & fessed up that his mate had told him to do it. But he didn't actually know what he was listening for
It was an old 1.6 Ford Pinto engine. Not the most high tech or quietest motor ever made.
He purchased the car, drove it 200+ miles home & phoned me to say he loved it. And his mate had signed off the engine with a clean bill of health
Edit...
Here's the car in question
View attachment 14242View attachment 14243
View attachment 14241 A Morgan look-alike with modern ish running gear
Not very fast, but stylish IMHO.
I fitted black/silver number plates after these photos were taken. They completed the classic car look.
Merlin.
I think the V5 said Merlin Roadster 2+2?
From what I can recall. The rear seat was more like a large parcel shelf.
smib
Legendary Knight
This is why I never keep a new bike longer than two years.... I've never hit the big service mileagePretty much spot on Jez
And based on some of the fixed servicing charges I’ve seen I was expecting a fair chunk more
MartytheMartian
Legendary Knight
Ach servicing ain't so hard to do yerself. If you've not got any shed or garage then lift the carpets and wheel the bike into the house and do it there. A decent, basic tool kit is all you need plus a bit of time, patience and a Haynes manual and follow the manual to the letter and take your time. It's a doddle really. I had a mate in Glasgow who used to do his servicing in his flat, ON THE EIGHTEENTH FLOOR!!!! The trick was to wheel the bike into the lift then lift the front wheel until the bike was vertical and it just fit in. He did try taking his Motocrosser down the stairs once and it didn't go well so, after that he always used the lift and, as his flat had a concrete floor there were no worries of oil seeping down to the neighbours.
On the screwdriver side I knew a brilliant mechanic years ago and he used a screwdriver as a stethoscope to listen to the engine at various places and the guy had a musician's ear. I swear he could tell you the gap at the valves by listening and he would be spot on when it was measured. He was a genuine master mechanic on both bikes and cars. He was the local 'go-to' guy for anything to do with fixing cars and bikes.
On the screwdriver side I knew a brilliant mechanic years ago and he used a screwdriver as a stethoscope to listen to the engine at various places and the guy had a musician's ear. I swear he could tell you the gap at the valves by listening and he would be spot on when it was measured. He was a genuine master mechanic on both bikes and cars. He was the local 'go-to' guy for anything to do with fixing cars and bikes.
That's often a curse, not a blessing.
MartytheMartian
Legendary Knight
Aye he had three other excellent mechanics working with him, including his brother and they were all permanently up to their eyes in work. Being a mate though he let me use his workshop (it was a big place) to work on my bikes and, of course, I would ask his advice ( read as - get him to sort the tricky stuff while I learned from him) when I was working on anything.