Motorcycle Riders: I have a question for you

[z1ggy]

Where do you buy your after market parts? I have a 2001 gsxr600 and just bought a custom undertail. It was totally unique to anything I have ever seen, so I got it ( not the one that is my avatar). I will post pics soon. Well, I got my part off of xdcycles.com. Let me just say, my experience was TERRIBLE. Beyond terrible. The shipping was like snail mail firstly. I know ground is like 7-10 days, but it took over two weeks to get my part. Secondly, there were zero directions of any kind, and the LED lights which were to be the brake lights were faulty. I bought some replacement 1157 LED bulbs and the spot in which they looked to fit, was not a fit at all. I ended up having to duct tape the lights into place. On top of that, the screws that held the glass over the LEDs were absurdly long and the way the LEDs ended up having to be positioned caused me to have to use a saw to cut out part of my plastic holder where you store items and tools. Finally, I wired it all up, electrical taped it all and put the rivets in to hold it into the rear plastics. Are all after market parts this painstakingly difficult to install? I ordered flush mounts off amazon and installed those no problem in an hour.

 

[Greenman]

The few after market parts available for my bike are stupid expensive. Dealer parts are just as bad.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

In general, directions for aftermarket parts is universally poor. Also, anything but engine parts have a large variation in specifications. In other words, having to modify parts is expected. OEM parts are notoriously expensive. I have bought from many 3rd party suppliers over the years and some of the best are Kuryakyn, Corbin and JCWhitney.

 

[soccerballtux]

look for some gixxer forums on the googles. There are usually forums set up for popular makes and models of bikes. sv-rider and sv-portal being good examples for sv650 and sv1000, respectively. There will be guides and stickies there where people have already done the legwork and you read the post and it basically says "go here buy this it's the cheapest install it this way [here are the pics] done". That's how sv-portal is, at least.

 

[jagec]

If you ride a KLR, the answer is "I fish them out of the dumpster behind Goodwill".

 

[andylawcc]

In general, directions for aftermarket parts is universally poor. Also, anything but engine parts have a large variation in specifications. In other words, having to modify parts is expected. OEM parts are notoriously expensive.

Werd, ESPECIALLY for fairing.... expect a lot of drilling to fit and match to your mounting holes.

 

[z1ggy]

look for some gixxer forums on the googles. There are usually forums set up for popular makes and models of bikes. sv-rider and sv-portal being good examples for sv650 and sv1000, respectively. There will be guides and stickies there where people have already done the legwork and you read the post and it basically says "go here buy this it's the cheapest install it this way [here are the pics] done". That's how sv-portal is, at least.

Agreed. I'm a member of gixxer.com, but the advice there isn't always great or plentiful if you don't have something cool to ask/show. I posted a question here the other week, and posted it on gixxer.com and got MUCH better feed back here. I am hesitant about putting any other mods on my bike now just due to the pain in the ass experience I just had installing a simple undertail kit.

Also, sort of off topic... But do you guys know how much power coating costs? My frame, swingarm, etc are all of that silver color, but I think they'd look much better black (as my bike is black and yellow). Install black levers and I think I would have one super unique bike.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Agreed. I'm a member of gixxer.com, but the advice there isn't always great or plentiful if you don't have something cool to ask/show. I posted a question here the other week, and posted it on gixxer.com and got MUCH better feed back here. I am hesitant about putting any other mods on my bike now just due to the pain in the ass experience I just had installing a simple undertail kit.

Also, sort of off topic... But do you guys know how much power coating costs? My frame, swingarm, etc are all of that silver color, but I think they'd look much better black (as my bike is black and yellow). Install black levers and I think I would have one super unique bike.

Powder coating would probably only cost you a couple hundred dollars but you will need to disassemble the entire bike to have this done. Remove all the fairings, remove the wiring, remove the wheels, the forks, the swingarm, then remove the engine and all associated hardware.

Not a small job.

Tail kits like the one you installed vary widely in quality and fit and finish. Before buying I would check reviews from people with the same bike who have installed the kit to see what problems they ran into. You obviously didn't do that though.

 

[z1ggy]

Powder coating would probably only cost you a couple hundred dollars but you will need to disassemble the entire bike to have this done. Remove all the fairings, remove the wiring, remove the wheels, the forks, the swingarm, then remove the engine and all associated hardware.

Not a small job.

Tail kits like the one you installed vary widely in quality and fit and finish. Before buying I would check reviews from people with the same bike who have installed the kit to see what problems they ran into. You obviously didn't do that though.

Yeah their website didn't have any reviews of anykind about that specific undertail. It was my first exp. with undertails, and I have heard sometimes it requires cutting. The website said that this undertail was the #1 best fitment for my make/model/year so I took a gamble I guess. Looking to find a quality manf. so for future bikes I will know I can atleast get good customer service. Seemed like xdcycles was run by some guy in his basement because I got an email response from abc123@gmail.com in regards to my order.

 

[roguerower]

Any aftermarket parts for Triumphs are stupid expensive and can be sourced from less than a handful of places. One of the reasons I haven't done a whole lot to my bike.

 

[pauldun170]

If you ride a KLR, the answer is "I fish them out of the dumpster behind Goodwill".

:thumbsup:

 

[pauldun170]

The awesome part about everyone trying to be unique and slapping AM parts on their bike as soon as they get it off the showroom floor is that my bike is the only unique bike around here. It is the only sportbike around here that I've seen completely stock.

 

[Occ]

You should check out motomummy for aftermarket parts, they sponsor the gixxer forums, among others. They seem pretty responsive to emails and calls regarding their stuff, too.

 

[rumpleforeskin]

Any aftermarket parts for Triumphs are stupid expensive and can be sourced from less than a handful of places. One of the reasons I haven't done a whole lot to my bike.

I've the same problem with my Aprillia Mille. Even if you do find anything at a resonable price it usually from outside the UK so after you add postage and tax its not worth the money.

If I ever need to replace parts due to age or damage my first stop is usually the few aprillia / RSV forums to see who has crashed and recently and breaking their bike for spares.

 

[M0oG0oGaiPan]

Thumbs up for another gsxr rider! Thanks for reminding me I need to rewire my rear turn signals.

 

[z1ggy]

Thumbs up for another gsxr rider! Thanks for reminding me I need to rewire my rear turn signals.

Wiring it was the easy part. Getting my undertail to fit back in wasn't. Mine are now all LED so im hoping they last until I am ready to sell it for an upgrade.