The other half

[vibrac]

I think we Vincent owners sometimes forget how lucky we are with our bikes
Two items on consecutive pages of classic bike brought it home to me they were both on pages I don't read much called 'metric fixes'
on page 80 an owner of a 1991 Yamaha FZR1000 EXup wanted 4 O rings for his carbs fuel feed the best price found was £8.85 each
then on page 81 an owner of a 2003 Triumph was after a new idle speed control valve the item was used on bikes up until 2020 but is no longer available
Food for thought indeed

 

[Speedtwin]

Recent purchase of another make of British bike has highlighted how lucky we are as far as spares and a good owners club spares company.

Al

 

[LoneStar]

Yes, we're in remarkably good shape on the spares front. Not quite up there with the more popular models from Norton, BSA and Triumph, but not far behind.

Part of the problem with Japanese classics is that the makers often used different components on each model, even where they could have been standardized - for instance, silencers, headlamps, switch controls and handlebar levers. The result is many parts are small-volume and not worth reproducing. This contrasts with the British approach, in which manufacturers like Lucas and Amal supplied the same components not only for different models in a line, but across manufacturers.

I've always been puzzled by the Japanese approach, as it seems at variance with manufacturing economy.

 

[Chris Launders]

A glance at the Brough Superior club spares price list would give you a heart attack then, how about £205 +VAT etc for a rear sprocket, a lot of the excessive prices are due to someone having purchased the Brough Superior name and enforcing the copyright and dictating the prices

 

[Speedtwin]

My main problem with other owners club spares schemes is getting your hands on spares quickly.
VOC order spares and couple of days I have them cracker.
Prices fair enough service very good.
Professional yes we are truly spoilt.

 

[vibrac]

When it comes to Japanese parts it always pays to double check I had a Yamaha Serrow trail bike it's a grey import i needed some finicky plastic gubbins I had snapped up some muddy lane. I had the part number but also went into shock when I found the cost.
I put the bit together photographed it did a google image search and bingo there it was with a different yamaha part number for a moped and a fraction of the cost.
I don't believe that its inefficiency more like maximising profit
My dad used to say back before decimalisation "buy a nut for a push bike its a penny, buy the same nut for a motorcycle its a shilling, buy it for a racing motorcycle its a £1" (He did not like me racing)

 

[bmetcalf]

Maybe 30 years ago, a US car magazine had a mention that some Ferrari switch or something was 10X the cost of the identical FIAT part. Also, an Aston Martin DB6 has TR4 taillight lenses.

 

[erik]

Please don`t forget the social side of the medal!We are like a family here and we know each other and can not only talk about the spares ,we can talk about to fit them and making things better.In the huge Honda ,Yamaha or whatever group it is completely different. Erik

 

[ClassicBiker]

I think we Vincent owners sometimes forget how lucky we are with our bikes
Two items on consecutive pages of classic bike brought it home to me they were both on pages I don't read much called 'metric fixes'
on page 80 an owner of a 1991 Yamaha FZR1000 EXup wanted 4 O rings for his carbs fuel feed the best price found was £8.85 each
then on page 81 an owner of a 2003 Triumph was after a new idle speed control valve the item was used on bikes up until 2020 but is no longer available
Food for thought indeed

Currently attempting to purchase parts for any bike more than ten years old is akin to searching for the Holy Grail. Dealerships just do not stock parts for bikes that old. If you are not mechanically inclined you will also be S.O.L. in getting a dealership to work on it. Last year I was working on a friend's neglected '82 Yamaha Virago. Among the parts causing the major problems was a leaking vacuum operated fuel tap. A Chinese knock off item was purchased as a factory replacement was unobtainable. Unfortunately it failed to function correctly, the spring that the diaphragm pulled against was stronger than original. Thus it did not flow enough fuel to allow the engine to do anything but idle. The aftermarket rebuild kit which for what it cost was ridiculous in price and upon inspection did not appear to have the correct parts anyway. You couldn't even turn it to the "Prime" position as it hit the tank seam. The solution was to adapt a manual valve from another model.

My dad used to say back before decimalisation "buy a nut for a push bike its a penny, buy the same nut for a motorcycle its a shilling, buy it for a racing motorcycle its a £1" (He did not like me racing)

You might be surprised how true that statement is. When I worked as a counter man at an auto parts store, the parts book listed parts based on model and cross referenced what other vehicles from that manufacturer used that part and under what part number. So if it fit a Chevy sedan, Biscayne, Impala, Caprice, it was one price, if you asked for it for a Corvette, a bit more, if it also fit a Cadillac even more. Front brake calipers come to mind as they didn't even bother changing the part number. So if you asked for a part for an Impala and I didn't have it in stock I could get you the Corvette or Cadillac part, and charge you more. But if you were to pull them out of their boxes and lay them side by side there was no difference.

Steven

 

[bmetcalf]

My local HD dealer won't work Evolution motor Harleys, too old! I don't know when they stopped production.