not getting screwed by the dealership?

Yes it's true.
One of our members noticed that we're from the same town
and had just bought an '82 650 seca for $500.00.
We started talking and found out he had it up at a local
indepedant shop for carb probs. They did the ether test and it was the
dreaded shaft seals. The said they'ed be happy to do them for
$800.00.(yes $800,00) that was just labor.
Having been into my carbs I suggested we give it a go ourselves.

I called the local yamaha dealer to see if they had a seal that
would work from another carb.
They said yeah,prob, but why?we can get you the OEM (superseded)
one for $1.30 a piece. YES $1.30 EACH!
We were still skeptical untill the carbs were on the bike and she
was going down the road like a cat on fire.

THATS RARE!

 

BUT... you didn't even TRY to have the dealership actually work on the bike...

(Not that you should have, but I'm betting it would have been more than $800 if they would even touch it.)

 

No, as stated, the $800.00 quote was from an independent shop.

The seals where from the dealership-I have no idea what their
labour costs would be but i've delt with both for years and
know the dealership usualy is much more then the independent.

I didn't bother with asking the independent shop about the
seals because they take weeks before you get the parts
and the last time I used them only two of the five parts
I ordered came in and they where both wrong-after
waiting three weeks!

But our new member did not know all this and went there for
help.

 

I love my dealer (Interstate Cycle in Cornelius, NC). I always call them with the part number, ask availability and price and order accordingly. They tell me which warehouse it is coming from and how long. I use the parts manuals on the Yamaha web site, so I know "we" are looking at the same part. Sometimes the number will supercede and they will advise accordingly. Looking up your own part number is always preffred when searcing as well. Speed and Sport is your best bet for obsolete Yamaha parts and you can log onto their web site, look up the number, see how many they have in stock and how much. Most of your online dealers also have the provision for shopping by part number. It sure makes life easier and if I supply the number I don't get the wrong part!

 

Sorry if I was unclear on the issue-my buddy and I did the work in
his garage-$800.00 was $300.00 more then he paid for the bike.
I had a total Knee replacement last month so I was a bit slow getting
around but we got them done as fast as the shop said they could and
for the cost of the seals ( $1.30 x's 8! ).I won't let a shop touch my
bike and have seen many friends get totaly hosed by shops.
But it's thier bike and some are just to lazy to do it themselves.

 

It's funny (or sad depending how u look at it) how that works. Doing it themselves takes an hour while having some1 else do it takes a full weeks salary. Play with my bike for an hour or work 40hrs, tuff choice!?

 

I'm not a fan of taking anything to a shop. You need to understand that if they can do a service for you that you can't or don't want to do you should expect to pay not only for the mechanic they hire but the insurance and building and all the other overhead they have. So if the shop charges 100 plus an hour thats not bad concidering most auto shops are at 130 plus.

If you think labor rates are high now just wait untill all these new business taxes take effect. Like all business they just pass the costs along.

MN

 

That's why I'm glad I have a friend out here that is a professional bike mechanic that does side work for a fraction of the cost. Dealership wanted $90 labor per tire to change them. My buddy did the pair for $60. That's $120 that stays in my pocket!

 

Well, I spent many years in dealerships and I will say that I only worked with 5 mechanics in 15 years that I would let touch my bike. That was a long time ago. I get asked how I can afford my restorations and the answer is simple. I do ALL the work myself. Paint, blasting, engine rebuilds, brakes, wheels, tires, polishing aluminum, seat covers, all of it. The only things I don't do is welding and machine work heavier than valves or honing. I have friends that send it all out on their restorations and spend a fortune. I just can't see it. These bikes just aren't worth major expense. I hate to say that, but it's true. Besides, it feels great when I'm done.
Having said that, I still buy everything I can from my dealer. I want him to be there when I need parts.

 

before you start castigating everyone in this boat, remember that there are many people who A) arent mechanically/electrically inclined to do this work, B) dont have the space/room to do more than simple maintenance (oil change, chain maintenance) C) dont have the time due to work or family commitments...

MAYBE they believe in supporting the local economy hoping to keep someone employed who might just spend some money at a friends convenience store or at the local mall or continue to take the local newspaper, that there kid delivers...

i like spending the LEAST amount i can for things but like Louis Griddley Wu says TANSTAAFL. (actually he says TANJ) but i had to attribute the quote to someone...

im paying a guy $130 to mount and balance two tires for me on my REX. hes got the equipment and hes got the time and the expertise. i have none of this...

 

You're thinking of Heinlein -- specifically, The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. "TANJ", I think, falls more into the Larry Niven universe.

 

There are many people that either have no:
1, money
2, time
3, skill
4,tools
5,many other reasons for having to use a shop.

If aything in my post led anyone to believe I'm anti mechanic then
I need to work on my communication skills-

I won't let a shop work on my bike because of exactly what Yamasarus,
Pauluminous and LTDave stated.

I've worked in a shop and next week, may be starting an appentiship
at a harley shop ( ok, stop rolling your eye 's,or laughing-it's a rough economy and i've been layed off almost a year and I'm extreamly gratefull for the chance to get back to work! )

But the point of the thread was the great price of the OEM throttle
shaft seals. I guess I sounded like the $800.00 labor job
was the point-it was not. It's a long job if you haven't done a xj
carb rack before and the independent went by his books 8 hr
labor guide.

But then again another friend got totaly hosed when he had a leak in his drive
shaft seal and was talked into a rebuiled for a $1000.00.

 

Actually, that's about right when you also consider carb removal and re-install...which someone who is working on carbs for someone else is going to do (no one works for free, except great friends and state prisoners!).

Of course, if you're going that deep into the carbs, you should probably spend the extra 4-8 hours to take them completely down, clean everything internally and externally, refurbish or replace other components as needed, etc........and now you're at 12-16 hours total job time.

And then don't forget the synch and colortuning time.......

 

Well, I think the point is "I wasn't willing" to pay $800 for something I caould do myself. Having worked on Bugs and such I knew I could do the work, and reading on this site with all the help and instructions would let me get it done. Probably over the winter, not a weekend, though. So when I found out my buddy was on this site and had re-done his carbs it was a great opportunity to get back together and fix the bike.

I happen to be more of a visual learner and now know how to do carbs

Parts and I having worked in machine shops and me on CNC machines in particular managed to get it done, he's better with the written discription, and without a lot of pictures here to help (throttle shaft's) i wasn't sure what process to go through exactly. We got it done and it works/runs great.

As far as pictures as soon as I can re-size them and label them I'll throw them up on the site.

Ken

 

I got nothing wrong with shops but you better expect to pay a lot. I know one reason that people dont do their own fixes is that they are intimidated. When I first got my bike there was lots of work for me to do on it (Most of which I knew how to do) But I was scared I was gonna break something. Eventually I got over it sense even if it all went to hell I was only out $300 but its a bit scary busting that first nut.

You get over it quick if you don't got any cash though. There is no way I could afford to pay someone else to work on my bike.