I would like to do the work myself but I am not the most mechanically inclined and really have noone that knows anyting about motorcycles to show me how to do it. A friend of mine told me of a shadetree mechanic guy that works on them. One of these small time country folks. He said that all he has ever done though. I feel comfortable enough from what I have heard about him to let him do the work. I guess I will just check in with him to see what he would charge. My friend drives a Harley Ultra Classic and he said that the guy changed his rear tire for about 25-30 $. Thought that was pretty reasonable. I would rather help out the little man any day.

I would rather help out the little man any day.

I agree. And you will probably make a friend in the bargain.

Before retiring from one of the big 3 auto makers last year I did a lot of consulting work on dealership service department operations. Last week I paid a visit to my local Yamaha shop and all I could think was, "Man, do these guys need my help." It's clear that this particularly franchise operator is all sales oriented - a beautiful showroom with tons of accessories for sale. Meanwhile the service department is poorly located with limited access and staffed by a bunch of guys who don't have a clue. There were six customers standing in line at the parts department trying to make purchases but they could not be accommodated because there were only two parts computer stations and both were tied up with guys talking to customers on the phone. The service writer had a whopping three weeks experience and didn't have a clue how to look up the repair history on my bike (I showed him and I'd never even seen the service screens on Yamaha's computer system before). While I was standing in the service waiting area three different techs had to call customers to find out what they wanted done on their bikes because the repair orders were not detailed or accurate. One tech smashed his thumb working on a bike and was bleeding all over the department. He asked the service manager what he needed to do (the correct answer is "let's get you to the doctor and get that looked at then decide from there) and the service manager told him just to "do what you can the rest of the day." Hello. Can you spell workman's compensation suit?

The sad fact is so many of the guys who run the franchise bank shops are essentially gear heads who are trying to run their businesses as a hobby instead of the other way around. Give me a dealership with a strong service department and I can get by on selling a couple of bikes a month. Show me a dealership with a weak service department and I'll show you a dealership that's doomed to fail.

Oh well. Rant over. Someone said:

It pays to shop around and these Owner/mechanics/small shop are, in my opinion, the best..!

I couldn't agree more.

While we are on a dealer rant, i have a good story. A buddy took his wifes vstar in for service a couple weeks ago. He wanted a full service, change all fluids, new plugs, and new tires front and rear. The dealer kept the bike for 2 weeks and then called him and said it was completed and ready to pick up. He went in and paid his $693 bill and went to get the bike and noticed it didn't have new tires on it. He brought this to the attention of the service manager and he said he had to reschedule another appointment to have the tires put on.(they must have overlooked the tires) He took the bike home and noticed the brake fluid was low. He went back to the dealer and asked them to pull one of the plugs while he watched. You guessed it. Old plugs. They charged him almost $700, kept his bike for two weeks, and didn't even touch the thing. What a bargain.

Easyrider003 - I didn't know you shopped at the Houston Yamaha dealerships!

I use my local Honda shop for everything that does Not require a tuning fork symbol stamped on it (OEM stuff). They like me, they like my $$, they are on the ball, and most of them ride. The Yamaha shop in town is very sub-par, so I'll just keep dealing with my guys selling team red....BB

Geez, I was upset cause my local stealership charged me $500 (on a $325 quote) to R&R my exhaust, Barnett Clutch & Spring Ass'y, Eibach 1K spring, cam & ignition covers, brake pads and battery, seasonal service w/LOF, install passenger side grips and swingarm chrome covers, and re-jet the carb. They only supplied the jets and 4qts. of Yamalube 20-50.

Sounds like sky power sports in Lake Well Fla.