harley dealers...and spare parts .

[arveno]

I have heard many many time that " harley dealers network is the reason why i ride a hog " .

I own 2 shovels and i maintain then myself , i do not need HD dealer ... i do my own wrenching and i order parts on line . ( dealers do not carry anything for old bikes )

I got a 02 RK , and as the shovels i take care of it myself , pretty easy to maintain tho.

Last night i realized i need a set of wheel bearings for the rear wheel , soooooo i called this morning 4 ( four ) dealers in my area and  NO ONE have them in stock . :o

I do not live in the middle of the desert , i am few miles outside "the big apple " .

I bet if i was looking for a doo doo rag or a chrome set of controls of some leather chaps ,or a harley dildo yeahhhh they have it in stock LOL

aH... btw some hd dealer told me they do not carry parts for such a old bike , lol a 2002 is considered old ??

LMAOOOO

Rant over.

Ciao !

[Kev m]

I'm a little surprised they don't have a wheel bearing in stock but that seems to be the business model these days (i.e. order when needed).

Still, I bet every one of them can have it in a day or two.

[arveno]

I'm a little surprised they don't have a wheel bearing in stock but that seems to be the business model these days (i.e. order when needed).

Still, I bet every one of them can have it in a day or two.

well, you gonna be surprised they told me to call back on Wed !  :o

I was just thinking  : i am 1000 miles from home , riding in the wind... my bike need wheel bearings and i think ... screw it , i just go to the local hd dealer in town and in an hour i will be back on the road...


Not !

U gotta check in at the local motel because they have to order your wheel bearings LOL


Now , i just wanted to share a funny episode , i do not want to start a thread of hd haters etc.... Please.....

[Lannis]

I'm a little surprised they don't have a wheel bearing in stock but that seems to be the business model these days (i.e. order when needed).

Still, I bet every one of them can have it in a day or two.

Here's a retail question related to that, sort of.

Needed a grease cap for my Husqvarna commercial mower, pretty common wear item.   Went by the dealer, they didn't have it in stock, they could order it and have it in two days and it would be $9.50.

So I said no thanks, went home, ordered it from Jack's Small Engines.    $2.95 + $3.95 shipping = $6.90 and it was here in the exact same two days, laying next to my back door on a patio table.

WHO is making the extra 50% on the part that the local dealer wanted?   It comes from a warehouse just like Jack's - Jack's has to stock it, handle it, matter of fact they actually HAVE it ready to send to me, not send it to a dealer so they can mark it up for doing NOTHING.

If brick-and-mortar stores become nothing but places for me to have to drive to to order parts that cost 50% more than I can get them sent to MY house, they're doomed.   There had better be some stocked parts and some service there that I can't get anywhere else .... like my Honda shop and them straightening out my rotor for me .....

Lannis

[Arizona Wayne]

A few years ago I needed some fork gaitors to put on my German bike to ward off the small insects around there on the fork seals, so I went to the local Harley dealer.  I told the burly guy behind the counter I needed some fork gaitors for my bike.  He had no clue what I was talking about.  ::)   Ended up getting them at a Suzuki store.  ;-T

[Kev m]

DAMN WED! SERIOUSLY?  :o

That's ridiculous.

And yeah, it does call into question the "advantage" of having so many dealers.

I still think you've got a better shot at being near a dealer that will have or can get the part with some reasonable timeframe the more dealers you have...

...but it's not black and white.

Hey, there's always U-HAUL...

[arveno]

i just noticed that those gigantic dealers are full of clothes and gadgets but do not carry simple things like bearings and such ....
I wonder if i need a clutch cable LOL do they have to order it ?

If I call and ask if they have a gay biker costume i bet they have it in stock all colors all sizes LOL

Anyway i can live with out them , already found the bearings at a local motorcycle REPAIR shop .

[Charles in Lake Charles]

aH... btw some hd dealer told me they do not carry parts for such a old bike , lol a 2002 is considered old ??

The local HD dealer won't even work on an Evolution bike.

[Kiwi_Roy]

Riding across the Cascades a wheel bearing collapsed on my EV.
I rode back to Concrete and went into an independent Harley shop run by Father & Son (not a dealer)
They couldn't help me with a bearing for the EV but he did have them for Harleys and gave me several places to try
I was most impressed by their helpful attitude so mention the shop to any Harley guys within earshot.
 

Just as well Guzzis don't need more than one bearing per wheel  ;D

[rocker59]

If brick-and-mortar stores become nothing but places for me to have to drive to to order parts that cost 50% more than I can get them sent to MY house, they're doomed.   There had better be some stocked parts and some service there that I can't get anywhere else .... like my Honda shop and them straightening out my rotor for me .....

Lannis

Yep.  If I walk into a store and ask for something and the first thing they say is, "I can order it", I turn around and leave.

Hey, I can order it too!  And it will be delivered to my house instead of a dealership miles away that's inconvenient to get to.

I try.  I really do, but it's hard for me to spend my money in brick & mortar stores.  They never have what I want, and it ends up being a waste of my time stopping in to shop, if all they can say is "no, but I can order it"...

The Lean/JIT way of keeping inventory combined with easy internet shopping has had an impact on brick & mortar retailers for more than a decade.  I'm sure it will only get worse for those of us who would really like to do business locally...

[mtiberio]

if you are that close to the big apple, there must be a bearing house that would have the bearing in stock. find out what size it is and call around...

[Triple Jim]

WHO is making the extra 50% on the part that the local dealer wanted?

The landlord and employees at the dealer are getting the money.  It's the result of paying rent on the building and wages to enough employees to handle walk-in customers, etc.. 

A small Internet business can be run by one person, and be located in his house.  I really think this is the way of the future, and "Mom and Pop businesses" need to adapt or fail.  As far as labor services, around here a lot of the decent car repair shops are in a building on the owner's property, next to his house, so they have very low overhead, and beat dealer prices by a big margin.

When I need some bolts or other hardware, I go to McMaster-Carr's web site.  The parts show up the next day with actual cost ground shipping, and the total with shipping is usually lower than I'd pay at the Lowe's in town.  I'd spend more than an hour driving there and back on top of that.

[190 Octane]

I had a similar situation with a new rear tire recently.  I bought a Pilot Activ from Revzilla for $142 and it shipped for free. 

I took it to Cyclegear to have it mounted and the guy behind the counter gives me the spill about a discount on mounting if I buy the tire from them.  Cycle gears price is $206, I bought mine online, paid for a new tube and mounting at Cyclegear and still came out ahead of buying just the tire from them and having mounted at the discounted rate.

Plus they won't take orders over the phone or online with store pickup, so it saved me a the extra trip to Cyclegear it would have taken just to order the tire.

[Lannis]

A small Internet business can be run by one person, and be located in his house.  I really think this is the way of the future, and "Mom and Pop businesses" need to adapt or fail.  As far as labor services, around here a lot of the decent car repair shops are in a building on the owner's property, next to his house, so they have very low overhead, and beat dealer prices by a big margin.

Yebbut, "Jacks Small Engines" is an enterprise the size of McMaster-Carr.   They have every part for every small gas engine and yard equipment ever made, on the shelf.   

They're bound to have a big warehouse, with stacker cranes and storage racks and forklifts and employees and a shipping department and a shipping/receiving dock for parts coming in from the distributor or factory, and stock-pickers, and all that.   Their working capital (unsold inventory) costs money to keep, and THEY have rent to pay or ground leases, utilities, etc.

And they have ALL of it, and their stuff is cheap, half the dealer price, and it gets here immediately.   

So maybe I'm expecting too much of the local shop.   I should only deal with them if they have a SERVICE that they can provide in addition to the part I need.   I'm not going to order the part from Jack's then take it to the local shop to be installed; I'd expect them to "get well" on the price they'd charge for that service.

Why did the railroads go bankrupt in the 50's and 60's?   If you asked a railroad executive what his job was, he'd say "We run a railroad!", when in FACT his job was to provide transportation services - and he didn't know it, and the trucks and airlines ate his lunch, and he was gone.

When everyone was asking Basil Fawlty could they please get the meal they ordered, and could they please have their room now, he blew up and told them to get away and leave him alone!  "Can't you see I'm busy running a hotel here?"   His job was to run a hotel, not to give his paying customers what they paid for.

And I'm starting to see the same thing happen with stores.   What's the job of Brackett's Equipment Company in our town?   They'd probably say "We're running a power equipment store here!"   And that may have been their job once, but that's not their job any more.   And if they don't know it, they're gone and good riddance.   

Lannis

[Triple Jim]

Yebbut, "Jacks Small Engines" is an enterprise the size of McMaster-Carr.   They have every part for every small gas engine and yard equipment ever made, on the shelf.   

They're bound to have a big warehouse, with stacker cranes and storage racks and forklifts and employees and a shipping department and a shipping/receiving dock for parts coming in from the distributor or factory, and stock-pickers, and all that.   Their working capital (unsold inventory) costs money to keep, and THEY have rent to pay or ground leases, utilities, etc.

And they have ALL of it, and their stuff is cheap, half the dealer price, and it gets here immediately. 

Well, they don't have any retail sales floor and staff for that, everything they do is geared toward buying and organizing products, taking orders, taking money, and shipping products.  I bet they're far more streamlined than a vehicle dealer, and they buy and sell in far larger quantities than a dealer.

[old as dirt 2]

local bearing shop carry a pretty darn good selection and normal can get bearings faster than most dealers at a lot less cost.
manufactures don't make bearings they buy them.

[Muzz]

Riding across the Cascades a wheel bearing collapsed on my EV.
I rode back to Concrete and went into an independent Harley shop run by Father & Son (not a dealer)
They couldn't help me with a bearing for the EV but he did have them for Harleys and gave me several places to try
I was most impressed by their helpful attitude so mention the shop to any Harley guys within earshot.
 

Just as well Guzzis don't need more than one bearing per wheel  ;D

To MG's credit, I have found on the Breva at least the bearings tend to be standard type bearings found at any bearing house. The only special I have found is the split-caged needle that 5th gear uses. 

[rodekyll]

local bearing shop carry a pretty darn good selection and normal can get bearings faster than most dealers at a lot less cost.
manufactures don't make bearings they buy them.

This.

There's not a lot you need a branded parts counter for until you get into mfgr-exclusive stuff.  I chat with the guzzi parts counter a couple times a year, but I'm hanging off the NAPA counter like the booger of the day.

[Lannis]

Uhhh- Lannis.  You may want to do your homework about the real causes of some railroads going belly up during that time period before making blanket statements like this. Hint: had something to do with unions and the FRA.

I'm sure there were lots of interlocking reasons.   But one of them was the railroads' inability to change their methods, pricing, scheduling, and cost base to deal with competitors that didn't exist just a few years ago.   They never believed that anyone could compete with them - they had laws on their side, all the government backing they wanted, and 100 years of experience.

I think that, like the British motorcycle industry, that union demands for "more, just more" had something to do with it, but (also like the British), stodgy, stubborn, blind mismanagement had a lot to do with it too ....

Lannis

[Two Checks]

local bearing shop carry a pretty darn good selection and normal can get bearings faster than most dealers at a lot less cost.

manufactures don't make bearings they buy them.

Then they aren't a manufacturer.
Don't say that to SKF.

A few years ago I needed a part for a leaf blower so I called the shop. Didn't have it so I called the maker at the number in the owner's manual. Address in FL. Parts guy comes on the line, has the part and says I would have it next day. I said I didn't need it that fast and didn't want to pay that much for shipping. He laughed and said they were 5 miles from my house in MO. I drve over and picked it up. They do the parts for a lot of the manufacturers. And they have a large facility with all the usual employees with a retail parts counter. I bet you guys who have power equipment have bought from them, Oscar Wilson Small Engine Parts.

[rocker59]

A few years ago I needed some fork gaitors to put on my German bike to ward off the small insects around there on the fork seals, so I went to the local Harley dealer.  I told the burly guy behind the counter I needed some fork gaitors for my bike.  He had no clue what I was talking about.  ::)   Ended up getting them at a Suzuki store.  ;-T

Railroads are subject to lots of Federal regulation and have had VERY strong unions. It's a lot more complicated than you might think, the failures of RRs 1965-1980.

Nevertheless, they haul more tonnage now than they ever did. It's just all bulk. No LCL and no passengers.

I'm sure there were lots of interlocking reasons.   But one of them was the railroads' inability to change their methods, pricing, scheduling, and cost base to deal with competitors that didn't exist just a few years ago.   They never believed that anyone could compete with them - they had laws on their side, all the government backing they wanted, and 100 years of experience.

I think that, like the British motorcycle industry, that union demands for "more, just more" had something to do with it, but (also like the British), stodgy, stubborn, blind mismanagement had a lot to do with it too ....

Lannis

[blackcat]

I need some bearings for the rear wheel on my CX, so I just drove over to the local bearing supplier and they had them in stock. And they are a weird size according to the supplier which of course cost more than normal.

Needed a couple of NGK spark plugs and for some reason they are rare to find around here so I just ordered them on line with free shipping.

[dilligaf]

Funny thing.  Some years ago I quit my local BMW dealer due to no parts support.   Little while back I was in the process of putting the R65 back together and needed a small part.  Gave him a call.  Not only did they stock the part but about 25% less money.  Did some additional price checking and found the 25% number wasn't just a fluke. Now that my local dealer is back to supporting me I'm back to supporting him.   ;-T  :BEER:
Matt

[lorazepam]

I ordered Hepco and Becker pannier racks for my V7 Stone from a site supporter back on February 5th. They are still out of stock, and no time frame for delivery. No idea if I will get them in time for a few trips I have planned. I wonder if this is the dealer, or Hepco and Becker? It sucks to have someone take 450 bucks for a couple of parts, and not have them for almost 3 months. Specialty parts are the ones I always have to wait for.  :'(

[cruzziguzzi]

Yep.  If I walk into a store and ask for something and the first thing they say is, "I can order it", I turn around and leave.

Hey, I can order it too!  And it will be delivered to my house instead of a dealership miles away that's inconvenient to get to.

I try.  I really do, but it's hard for me to spend my money in brick & mortar stores.  They never have what I want, and it ends up being a waste of my time stopping in to shop, if all they can say is "no, but I can order it"...

The Lean/JIT way of keeping inventory combined with easy internet shopping has had an impact on brick & mortar retailers for more than a decade.  I'm sure it will only get worse for those of us who would really like to do business locally...

That is one of the most succinct and biting indictments of the "predicament" facing brick&mortars that I've ever read.

"We don't maintain stock 'cause folk won't buy it...."

My particular Catch 22:

"I won't buy it 'cause you don't have it in stock"

I don't generally price shop or fret over tax - I know someone has to keep the wheels greased. However, If I have to wait, and wait, and wait, potentially only to be told they can't get it.... That's a different kettle of colored horses.

Sometimes though, I won't be the dealer's huckleberry. I just tried to order a sun roof for our Land Rover. $520.00 to order it from merry old England when I can order one in to my door in 2 days for 20% of that.

Like I said: I generally don't price shop.

HD now, they've been very reasonable in price and well stocked in inventory in my experience. Could be though, I only buy for spurtsters and we have a very competitive year-'round-riding-season market here.

Todd.

[rodekyll]

I go two miles to NAPA instead of across the street to brand X because they argue with me over what I want.  They refused to order in the motor oil I asked for.  First they said they didn't have a 'full case' skw for it.  I supplied the number.  Then they said it was unavailable through their supply chain.  I pointed out that I got the skw from their website.  Finally he told the truth -- he didn't want to special order oil when there were perfectly good choices on the shelf. 

In another attempt to do business with them I wanted EP moly grease to pack cv joints.  The guy said "nobody uses that anymore.  They use plain old drum brake grease."  I said "That's probably why these CV joints failed."  He said "Are you trying to tell me my business?"  I said "Your business is passing parts over the counter per my order and making change.  You're about one argument away from asking "do you want that supersized?"

I haven't been back.

The NAPA guys on the other hand got bored with my constant visits to find the right V belt for a fabbed up alternator arrangement.  So they gave me a stack of everything that might remotely fit and told me to bring back the wrong ones when I had it sorted out.  They've done so many special orders -- some on speculation with the understanding that if it didn't fit they'd eat them -- that they sometimes dial me by mistake.  The other day I got a call saying the linkage pins I'd ordered were in.  I hadn't ordered any.  The guy said "Oh -- they were such oddball stuff that I just assumed we'd gotten them for you."  I guess I've got a reputation down there.

[Arizona Wayne]

Then they aren't a manufacturer.
Don't say that to SKF.

A few years ago I needed a part for a leaf blower so I called the shop. Didn't have it so I called the maker at the number in the owner's manual. Address in FL. Parts guy comes on the line, has the part and says I would have it next day. I said I didn't need it that fast and didn't want to pay that much for shipping. He laughed and said they were 5 miles from my house in MO. I drve over and picked it up. They do the parts for a lot of the manufacturers. And they have a large facility with all the usual employees with a retail parts counter. I bet you guys who have power equipment have bought from them, Oscar Wilson Small Engine Parts.

Recently I needed a SKF bearing for my MP3 rear axle.  Piaggio dealer has them in Texas but charge $9 minimum shipping for any purchase.  ???  Like MG, Piaggio dealers are few and far between.  Went to my local bearing source and they had the same bearing in stock for the same dealer price.  I told the counter person 'this bearing is metric.'   He told me ALL bearings are metric.  I didn't know that, but it makes sense.

[Triple Jim]

Yes, a 1/2" ID bearing is really 12.7 millimeters ID.   :)   Most are really metric, but there are some inch sizes around, probably mainly in small sizes.

[rodekyll]

I've gotten bearings for my fabrication by ordering ODxIDxW, always in millimetric, like 12x18x10 (numbers made up).  Bearings and seals are often stamped with these numbers.

[Muzz]

  He told me ALL bearings are metric.  

I used to sell them and I would have to disagree.  They are made in both metric and imperial.  Some are so close that it is hard to tell sometimes, but they are indeed made in the two types.

I suspect that metric is now the more common of the two and becoming more so.