Rayospeed

Dear moderators/ fellow bikers, I have been a member on this wonderful forum since 2004 and am an avid reader of all the wonderful articles that get posted here and while I rarely post here I have been proud to be a silent XBHP member all these years!! :-) I got to buy my first superbike via this forum..

My tryst with this bike began in 2005 when I picked up a second hand(2001 model) Yamaha 135 (5 speed) and was looking forward to get her modified into a rally spec machine for my own rides. I love the 2 stokers for their immense potency.
I had ordered a lot of modifed spares from Pacer Yamaha for this purpose including a stronger chassis(with added welding at stress points)/ aluminium swing arm/modified ignition unit/ porting and matching expansion.
Now the problems began as I was unable to find a mechanic competent enough to put these together as I did not want to do it myself due to lack of indepth technical knowledge and I wanted to get it done by a professional.
Anyway I took her to a friends workshop who confidently told me he would be able to put her together in no time. After 6 months they were unable to get the bike running right and couldnt figure out what to do!! (they service imported bikes as well!) So after 1 year of waiting I decide to take her back and request Jatin Babkar who always did a good job on my Rd 350's ( I have had 4 of them all sold now) if he could put her together for me which he said would not be a problem..this is back in May 2007!)
After taking my bike he decided that the porting was not done well enough and would need redoing / polishing and hence the expansion would also need to be re caliberated. I told him I trusted his judgement and would go along with him. We replaced a whole lot of parts including the clutch assembly/new crank shaft/bearings/carb etc..( I was going along with whatever his expertise at his job told me)
By Nov 2007 she was finally started up ( I must have made around 30 trips in the meantime to ask him to work on my bike)
My 135 was running really strong even during the run in period and I was really happy with the way she was able to pull away in the 2nd and 3rdgears which is what I wanted in the mid range.. ( she on more than one occassion left the ground in 3rd gear under quick acceleration) the chassis was working well, however the pulsar gas shocks were a bit too stiff..the bike at this stage was cosmetically/mechanically unfinished and I still had a lot more work to be done( i wanted a new set of front forks to be fitted out with dis brakes/ a quick throttle / flat slide carb etc) I wanted to go all the way with this bike and by now I had already spent the following:-
1) Rs 23000.00 - cost of the bike(second hand)
2) Rs 25000.00 - cost of modified parts(new chassi/swing arm/expansion/porting etc)
3) Rs 10000.00 - cost of labour plus other misc parts
I dont regret a single buck I spent on her..as I wasnt concerned on the cost as long as I would get her to my desired state, and this I had told the mechanic as well with due trust and respect to his profession.

I handed the bike back to Jatin in Dec 2007 for the final works to be completed and am to date still waiting to get my bike back from him. He has made me make numerous trips to his garage( i have now lost count) and gave all sorts of excuses/reasons as to why my bike was not getting ready. He claims to not be able to find my bike parts. I even offered to make him an advance payment if was so required.

What I feel really sorry and sad about is the fact that I believe we are all a part of the same brotherhood of biking be it a mechanic or a rider and I have great respect for all the senior bike mechanics in Pune albeit soaring egos! :-)

This thread/post from me is not intended to defame anybody but is written out of my pure frustration at the way we bikers(maybe a handful like me) have had to deal with such unprofessional behaviour from those we once held in high esteem.
I am looking for advise from fellow bikers and also to throw open the thread to any others with similar experiences?

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Rayospeed

Aryan

Query Approved.

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...in search of that perfect world - My Travel Blog :)

n_aditya

Two years and your bike is still not returned to you?

Man this sucks. You will need to give the mech two options with a deadline.

1. fix the bike and return it by so and so date.

2. return the bike and the parts within a said date.

If none of the two are honored by the mech, threaten to lodge a police complaint.

P.S. Even skoda customers dont have to wait this long to get their cars fixed.

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Go Green...

aargee

No mechanics are trustable. They're mechanics not out of profession but to make a living with a very very few exception. Someone was in discussion with me other day on a different thread to treat all the mechanics as friend/brother...my foot!!! I hope my other friend reads this & becomes aware of the reality.

I don't have similar experience, but I've learned enough about all these horrors. I too am rebuilding my RX, but in a way bigger budget than what you've estimated. Trust me, I too was a novice on technical when I started, but at this juncture, except the engine I'm confident of fixing on all other parts which means, suspension, cylinder, head, swing arms, wheels & little electricals.

Trust me, if you've a motorcycle in running condition, it only takes a day to replace new parts & get it running. I'm empathetic for your situation; try to take back the motorcycle & start actively participating in this community. Trust me, you'll learn things in no time. This is my experience with xBHP.

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Patience pays...The Vulture's virtue is patience and the bird always get it's food - Wise man saying

This is not a bakery. I don't sugar coat anything. If you ask for my opinion...then that's what you'll get. Don't be mad when it's not what you want to hear

Rayospeed

Hi Aditya, I have already used the options 1. and 2. and I really didnt want to take it as far as a police complaint, but I guess I will now have to look at it as well..Its really unfortunate that these things have to take such unfortunate turns. Makes one loose his trust in another..

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Rayospeed

Rayospeed

Hey thanks for writing in and I still keep my fingers crossed that i get my bike back..I really have not had the time till now due to a full time corporate job to really get doen to doing much on my own on the bike and most weekends go towards keeping the better half and kids happy..know what I mean?..:-) I would someday like to do a short technical course as an apprentice..am looking out for something like that so I never have to depend on a mechanic again! Do let me know what plans yo have for your RX? I hadnt mentioned but I have also purchased knuckle guards/front mudguard and a hard carry case with a brake light from Singpore I got them for 3k/1.5k and 3k respectively..just want to get rid of them now..

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Rayospeed

Rayospeed

Hi Aryan, Thank you for approving my thread. I am sure there must be many bikers facing similar issues..

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Rayospeed

aargee

Errr....aaah...I hate to hear when people say they don't have time; which according to me is they prioritize something more than anything; basically means, lost interest & do not feel the importance of doing it & for other few - laziness. Do not get offended, its just my idealogy in life.

Trust me - This will never happen. I was in the same mood of yours for over 2 years until I finally realized this will never happen unless I get my hands dirty. One day I finally took the plunge, started dirtying my hands & couldn't put back things in place, took to mech, saw how he fitted, had the same removed next weekend & voila!!! I was successful. I do all the general servicing by myself now.

Trust me, last night, I wanted to replace the reed valves, ignition coil, flasher, RR unit, exhaust pipe, exhaust assy & air filter box. But eventually landed up in breaking one reed valve nut & unable to put back the carbs in place. The motorcycle is now stranded!!! But I'm confident of putting it back in shape & I worked from 7:30 PM to 10:30 PM for this!!! So you see, if you need something, you got to lose something too. I still spend time with my Son, Daughter & Wife when I keep working on this simultaneously.

Check this out - http://www.xbhp.com/talkies/thumpers-two-stroke-exotics/11324-rx-rebuild-using-3-yamaha-variants-4.html when you've time. Those are my rantings on my rebuild.

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Patience pays...The Vulture's virtue is patience and the bird always get it's food - Wise man saying

This is not a bakery. I don't sugar coat anything. If you ask for my opinion...then that's what you'll get. Don't be mad when it's not what you want to hear

shrinathrao

hey rayo,

you should have posted this query in the xbhp pune thread long back as many of them are there who still use the RX series and there are really good mechanics in the city, may be they dont have that big names as your mechanic has but they do a fairly decent job,

On the contrary if you can make a trip to kolhapur then its the best option as thats the hub where bullets and yamaha rx100, 135 are very well maintained and lots of mechanical work and modifications is done, many of my friends do major overhauling jobs of suzuki shogun. shaolin, bullets, yamaha rx series in kolhapur.

If you want only for porting you can talk to sherry baba in camp.

If you want to increase bore and chamber contact some one who has a machine for creating bores and chamber.

Dude you have spent a huge amount of money behind the bike better take the bike out from the chap as i think he is just minting money from you.

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If you don't ride in the rain, you don't ride. ~Author Unknown

Don't argue with an 18-wheeler. ~Author Unknown

Gray-haired riders don't get that way from pure luck.

You don’t stop riding because you’re getting old, but you get old when you stop riding.

trace7

Hey Rayo, for now just get your bike away from such mechanics and go to a normal garage where you can get your bike running so you can enjoy your beloved bike. You can fine tune your bike once you find someone more trustworthy than the present guy...