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[HogBreath]

Your description of the sorry service you received from your dealer is par for the course anymore. Seems to me it's very rare to find anyone that truly cares and goes the extra mile. Let me re-phrase that. I don't expect the extra mile. I'd be satisfied if they would simply do their job. In my experience it doesn't matter if you are spending $20 or $200,000, the service, or lack of, is pretty typical. If I went to a doctor with chest pains, and he told me I needed a heart transplant, you can bet your ass I'll get a second opinion. Make informed decisions and follow through. My dealer told me my SEUC and every dresser they sold had leads for the battery tender to be hooked up w/o taking the seat off. I bought a battery tender and guess what? No leads. Not a big deal, so next time I had it serviced, I asked them to install the leads. I get it home, go to hook up the tender, guess what? No leads. $35,000 trade for the bike, I'm satisfied, a $10 set of leads pisses me off. Just the way of the world anymore. I think everyone is spending too much time on message boards to do their job. LOL, excluding present company of course.

[Puzzled]

Since one of best friends is in the service industry I get to see a glimpse of their side. Management is on their case, more work, less pay, less perks. The good techs are leaving for better jobs or career changes. This gets passed down to us unfortunately, the consumer.

Just like I posted above you need to trust your tech and feel comfortable with him. Don't be afraid to ask for a certain tech. Build a relationship with him as he will know what kind of customer you are and take care of you (hopefully). OR at least that is the way it is with my bud. He has customers ask for him. This is not always do-able as it can interfere with the rotation of the jobs but it doesn't hurt to ask.

[SPIDERMAN]

Since one of best friends is in the service industry I get to see a glimpse of their side. Management is on their case, more work, less pay, less perks. The good techs are leaving for better jobs or career changes. This gets passed down to us unfortunately, the consumer.
Just like I posted above you need to trust your tech and feel comfortable with him. Don't be afraid to ask for a certain tech. Build a relationship with him as he will know what kind of customer you are and take care of you (hopefully). OR at least that is the way it is with my bud. He has customers ask for him. This is not always do-able as it can interfere with the rotation of the jobs but it doesn't hurt to ask.

   This is the crux of it IMO  The stealer is charging you $80 -$90 an hour and the tech is getting at best $20 and meager if any benefits. Hard to work under those conditions and not be bitter after awhile. I think that's why the best start their own shop. I don't know where this ends. I support the Indies, but with both of my bikes under ESP, it doesn't make for a lot business. And you know sometimes I think that H-D's ESP is as much about that as it is making more money from the customer. Stop and think of it. The more bikes you sell and keep under warranty, the fewer there are to support the aftermarket Indy shops. I know, I've got a bit of Oliver Stone in me, but if you heard my stealer and his employees talk about the local Indy shops you'd wonder yourself. I serioulsy considering cancelling the ESP on both of my bikes, putting the money I get back into my savings account and taking my bike to Moreland Choppers when it needs work. It's sad for me to read this thread and realize that Big Moose H-D has probably become just another dealership with the same BS crap going on that goes on everywhere, but to be honest, this is not the first story I've heard about them doing chit like this.

B B

[JW]

   This is the crux of it IMO  The stealer is charging you $80 -$90 an hour and the tech is getting at best $20 and meager if any benefits. Hard to work under those conditions and not be bitter after awhile. I think that's why the best start their own shop. I don't know where this ends. I support the Indies, but with both of my bikes under ESP, it doesn't make for a lot business. And you know sometimes I think that H-D's ESP is as much about that as it is making more money from the customer. Stop and think of it. The more bikes you sell and keep under warranty, the fewer there are to support the aftermarket Indy shops. I know, I've got a bit of Oliver Stone in me, but if you heard my stealer and his employees talk about the local Indy shops you'd wonder yourself. I serioulsy considering cancelling the ESP on both of my bikes, putting the money I get back into my savings account and taking my bike to Moreland Choppers when it needs work. It's sad for me to read this thread and realize that Big Moose H-D has probably become just another dealership with the same BS crap going on that goes on everywhere, but to be honest, this is not the first story I've heard about them doing chit like this.

B B

I am going to talk with them and see what they have to say soon, I hope next weekend.  I will post once I do and let you know since I am in your old stomping grounds and I know you're interested.

Moreland choppers, youre in North County--best part of SD imho.  To folks in SD, North County is like country.  It was country before, what a place, with all those beautiful little beach towns.  Everything has to grow, even Southern Maine just keeps getting busier.

[JW]

Update.

I talked to the general manager.  As is typical here in Maine, he seemed like a good guy.  He was apologetic.  He, of course, couldnt explain why this happened but took my name and is going to investigate.  He wants to keep a good reputation.  He knows I didnt buy the bike there, but said that didnt matter, that the service business was just as important to him.  I appreciated his sincerity. I hate bitchng.

Now that I had that conversation, Im not sure I feel any more confident.  Whats he gonna say once he investigates, the guy completely srewed up because he partied the whole night before and thank God it wasnt something that killed you, hopefully that wont happen again.  If I get the same mechanic, will it be, oh, heres that dichead who complained about me, then who knows what might happen.

You know, a guy like me, back into motocycling after a 27 year break, driving down the road often with my wife on back, I gotta trust someone else. Im not a mechanic (i have rebuilt a couple of engines in my youger day, but you loose the touch when you dont  do it) I think I'm gonna drive to the mechanic that I know, that I helped out in the past (completely unrelated to motorcycles) and that I trust will do right by me because I did right by him, even though its 125 miles away. Thanks everybody for your comments.

[SPIDERMAN]

Update.

I talked to the general manager.  As is typical here in Maine, he seemed like a good guy.  He was apologetic.  He, of course, couldnt explain why this happened but took my name and is going to investigate.  He wants to keep a good reputation.  He knows I didnt buy the bike there, but said that didnt matter, that the service business was just as important to him.  I appreciated his sincerity. I hate bitchng.

Now that I had that conversation, Im not sure I feel any more confident.  Whats he gonna say once he investigates, the guy completely srewed up because he partied the whole night before and thank God it wasnt something that killed you, hopefully that wont happen again.  If I get the same mechanic, will it be, oh, heres that dichead who complained about me, then who knows what might happen.

You know, a guy like me, back into motocycling after a 27 year break, driving down the road often with my wife on back, I gotta trust someone else. Im not a mechanic (i have rebuilt a couple of engines in my youger day, but you loose the touch when you dont  do it) I think I'm gonna drive to the mechanic that I know, that I helped out in the past (completely unrelated to motorcycles) and that I trust will do right by me because I did right by him, even though its 125 miles away. Thanks everybody for your comments.

You know Seegmon you are 100% correct All my talk about having worked things out with San Diego H-D after I had a similar chitty experience and all this time, all of the wrenches were jackin with my bike. I'm telling you, I'm puttin LD on the lift Saturday and going from front to back with a microscope. Elvis gets that all the time so I know it's good. Anyway, screw all the concilliation chit I preached. If you have a jackass experience move on I say, move on.

B B

[JW]

I'm puttin LD on the lift Saturday and going from front to back with a microscope. Elvis gets that all the time so I know it's good.
B B

That's it.  When you do it yourself, you know its done right.  But that's only if you have the skills, and I wish I had them.  I rediscovered my love for motorcycling and I know i just cant live without it from this point forward.  I hate depending on others for something that's so important--for your health really.  If youre car breaks down, so what, have it towed.  But when something goes wrong on your bike at 70mph, its not pretty. I think all of us should have the rudimentary skills to do what youre about to do, go over the whole bike, know what youre looking for, and make sure its flight ready. So, i now have to figure out what tools I need and how Im gonna learn this myself without screwing the bike up. That will take time and in the meantime ill have to trust someone else.

[iski]

That's it.  When you do it yourself, you know its done right.  But that's only if you have the skills, and I wish I had them.  I rediscovered my love for motorcycling and I know i just cant live without it from this point forward.  I hate depending on others for something that's so important--for your health really.  If youre car breaks down, so what, have it towed.  But when something goes wrong on your bike at 70mph, its not pretty. I think all of us should have the rudimentary skills to do what youre about to do, go over the whole bike, know what youre looking for, and make sure its flight ready. So, i now have to figure out what tools I need and how Im gonna learn this myself without screwing the bike up. That will take time and in the meantime ill have to trust someone else.

Seegmon - Believe me, I share your concern.  When we are riding on a mountain road with no guardrails and scraping boards, it's not the best time to find out 'somebody' did not use Loctite on the sprocket bolts the last time the rear wheel was off the bike.  I trust the folks who wrench my bike, but it never hurts to go over an area just to make sure its as expected.  Not sure this addresses your internal engine concerns....

BB & others here knows lots more about this stuff than me.  Still does not mean we should not/cannot go over our own bikes.  After washing I go over everything visually and check bolts, nuts, screws, etc. for proper torque. Every bolt every time?  No, but after you ride one for a while you figure out which areas need attention more than others. Buy a service manual for your bike to get torque values & assembly instructions, etc. Maybe you can find them online but a manual with picture diagrams is usually helpful for me.  With the bike on a lift or jack you can look for anything out of the ordinary and then address it as needed. My 2 cents.

[Jbbrown73]

I realize most of you are taking yours to the dealer for service because of warranty.  That was another reason I bought an older bike.  Mine has no warranty therefore I do my own service.  Besides, for what they charge you for labor I can buy the few oddball tools and service manual and be money ahead. 

[SPIDERMAN]

So long as this thread is sort of segueing into a discussion about doing your own work, I'm going to offer a couple of tips.

A picture is worth a thousand words.  - - - depends on the picture. The Service Manual has a lot of pictures that are very tightly framed ( meaning you don't see the surrounding are) Buy a Parts Manual specific to your year and model H-D. The PM has exloded views of everything with dotted lines that show you how things go together in a way no text can. Some things, just seeing how they work is understanding, some things the Service Manual is needed to understand the procedure in doing what you want ie : take this part off first, then that part next etc. Reassemble in this manner etc. To be perfectly honest, the vast majority of mechanical work on a Harley-Davidson comes down to having the courage or confidence to get started and follow through. Mechanically speaking a push rod air cooled engine is not rocket science. Now as Beagle will tell you, this theory goes out the window for me whenever there's electricity involved, but that's ok, I can't know everything. In any event, start small, do your own maintenance and then move on to something like taking your wheels off and having the tires mounted at the shop and then reinstalling the wheels yourself. Here's a great job to really learn a bit about your bike and have tremendous satisfaction in completing. Change out your inner primary yourself. It really isn't hard. Requires a compressor and 1/2" air wrench and some big sockets for tools. The Service Manual details the various components pretty good. Should take a novice the better part of a day.

One final piece of advice. Whenever, wherever you find yourself working on your bike for whatever reason. Tell yourself up front that you are going to spend the time to do the job correctly however long that may be. That you are not going to get upset and frustrated and if you do you are going to walk away, have a cool drink and chill until your patience returns. Do that and you will do well.

B B

[JW]

So long as this thread is sort of segueing into a discussion about doing your own work, I'm going to offer a couple of tips.

A picture is worth a thousand words.  - - - depends on the picture. The Service Manual has a lot of pictures that are very tightly framed ( meaning you don't see the surrounding are) Buy a Parts Manual specific to your year and model H-D. The PM has exloded views of everything with dotted lines that show you how things go together in a way no text can. Some things, just seeing how they work is understanding, some things the Service Manual is needed to understand the procedure in doing what you want ie : take this part off first, then that part next etc. Reassemble in this manner etc. To be perfectly honest, the vast majority of mechanical work on a Harley-Davidson comes down to having the courage or confidence to get started and follow through. Mechanically speaking a push rod air cooled engine is not rocket science. Now as Beagle will tell you, this theory goes out the window for me whenever there's electricity involved, but that's ok, I can't know everything. In any event, start small, do your own maintenance and then move on to something like taking your wheels off and having the tires mounted at the shop and then reinstalling the wheels yourself. Here's a great job to really learn a bit about your bike and have tremendous satisfaction in completing. Change out your inner primary yourself. It really isn't hard. Requires a compressor and 1/2" air wrench and some big sockets for tools. The Service Manual details the various components pretty good. Should take a novice the better part of a day.

One final piece of advice. Whenever, wherever you find yourself working on your bike for whatever reason. Tell yourself up front that you are going to spend the time to do the job correctly however long that may be. That you are not going to get upset and frustrated and if you do you are going to walk away, have a cool drink and chill until your patience returns. Do that and you will do well.

B B

Thanks Spiderman for those words of advise.  That is experience speaking and I appreciate that.  My next step is to get the right tools.  With this wonderful sight, I should be able to use the search engine and get all the info I need.

[Twolanerider]

Yes, a picture is worth a thousand words.  And a Big F*****G Hammer fills up the rest of the page.


At least sometimes it seems to work out that way  .


The guy who wrote "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" never really worked on his own bike.....[/move]

[SPIDERMAN]

Yes, a picture is worth a thousand words.  And a Big F*****G Hammer fills up the rest of the page.


At least sometimes it seems to work out that way  .


The guy who wrote "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" never really worked on his own bike.....[/move]

That's cause the book was really about reconnecting with his son and coming to terms with the parts of his life he was dissatisfied with.

[Twolanerider]

That's cause the book was really about reconnecting with his son and coming to terms with the parts of his life he was dissatisfied with.

That man is just so literal sometimes......