Tried To Support Local Dealers and I Got Zilch...

Good on you for trying but..........

You might as well have been looking for a rear shock for a 79 Bultaco. None of the shops carry numbers anymore because everyone uses Decal Works or someone similar. You could probably find them at the track though if there's a vendor there.

18" rears are almost special order items now unless you happen to find a shop that deals lots with enduro/harescramble riders. You did pick probably the most common 18" rear though.

Don't feel bad about spending the money online.

At some point, people stopped supporting their local livery and cobbler, also. Stuff changes, and it's your loss if you don't adapt and start going with what works for you, just as it's proprietors loss if they bank on selling aftermarket retail in a store.

For some reason here the dealers always have a 6 and a damn 9 and they have millions of them. I wonder if thats all they order

It's funny you should mention supporting your local dealer. I got a price quote from Midwest Action Cycle for a bunch of OEM RMZ 250 parts...totalled $138, faxed it to my dealer, and they got within $3 of it. So I ordered the parts from my dealer, and after tax paid the same amount as I would have from Midwest after shipping.

If you are going to order it why not order from your local dealer? Unless you are a far drive from them they can usually get stuff in 1 to 2 days.

Http://www.stormlakehonda.com

Jeff posts here on the "drive" and will take care of you. Great prices to go along with great service.

[quote="evsracer912":r5i08bs1]If you are going to order it why not order from your local dealer? Unless you are a far drive from them they can usually get stuff in 1 to 2 days.[/quote:r5i08bs1]
Cause my local dealer is a fucking rip off. Screw Atlantic Cycle and the retards that work there. I'd rather talk to a 3 y/o about parts and service than the idiots there. That and orders only go in once a week and it takes a min. of 7 days to get shit from them.

yeah, local multi-line dealer here has almost nothing in stock for OEM parts, helmets you can buy off the net for half price, small selection of dirt tires way overpriced etc.

If you order OEM parts it takes 5-7 days. I can place an order after a beer or 7 at midnight on the net and have it in 2-3 days max and at better prices. The local shop doesn't work on bikes older than 10 years....even if it is a freaking Honda Rebel that hasn't changed since the 1980's....

True story, I called this dealer to get a head gasket for a 1982 CR250..now, I am a realist on 26 year old bike part finding..the kid that answers the phone probably wasn't even born then. Anyway, after I tell him what I need...he hems and haws, then says "No dude, don't have it in stock for old stuff....can't help ya"...I say "Well, can you order it?"...He says nothing and ..CLICK...the phone hangs up.

Well, I get on bikebandit and it is in my hands 3 days later....for $21 bucks shipped. f' em

One of the last good "mom and pop" Yamaha dealers just closed here in Tucson. Sold out to some big fuckin' "Powersports" dealership. Sucks....only one small dealer here left and they are Honda. We still have a couple good local parts/used bike dealers left at least.

that'll teach you to do that again mark...lol

[quote="jww347":2w6g92fr]One of the last good "mom and pop" Yamaha dealers just closed here in Tucson. Sold out to some big fuckin' "Powersports" dealership. Sucks....only one small dealer here left and they are Honda. We still have a couple good local parts/used bike dealers left at least.[/quote:2w6g92fr]

Big fish eat the little fish and keep getting bigger. Unfortunately, that's the nature of the game. Of course you're going to get a better deal from a big retailer with lots of fast moving inventory. Through economies of scale and volume discounts they will get you a better deal than a local shop. Luckily for me, I buy my stuff from a local dealer who knows me and who I've taken the time to get to know on a personal level, as well as doing occasional favors for, and he gives me dealer cost pricing (you scratch my back i'll scratch yours kind of thing). They take really good care of me and the rest of there customers. I also have a personal friend (old guy who's been around mx forever) who owns a true "mom and pop shop" and barely gets by month to month. For him I try to make random purchases on small items as often as I can because the old fart is just a nice guy and has a lot of great stories about racing back in the 70s and 80s.

[quote="4mxonly":2pphymdr][quote="jww347":2pphymdr]One of the last good "mom and pop" Yamaha dealers just closed here in Tucson. Sold out to some big fuckin' "Powersports" dealership. Sucks....only one small dealer here left and they are Honda. We still have a couple good local parts/used bike dealers left at least.[/quote:2pphymdr]

Big fish eat the little fish and keep getting bigger. Unfortunately, that's the nature of the game. Of course you're going to get a better deal from a big retailer with lots of fast moving inventory. Through economies of scale and volume discounts they will get you a better deal than a local shop. Luckily for me, I buy my stuff from a local dealer who knows me and who I've taken the time to get to know on a personal level, as well as doing occasional favors for, and he gives me dealer cost pricing (you scratch my back i'll scratch yours kind of thing). They take really good care of me and the rest of there customers. I also have a personal friend (old guy who's been around mx forever) who owns a true "mom and pop shop" and barely gets by month to month. For him I try to make random purchases on small items as often as I can because the old fart is just a nice guy and has a lot of great stories about racing back in the 70s and 80s.[/quote:2pphymdr]

My local dealer that I referred to in my post above takes care of me pretty well with discounts and so on. But then, I buy a lot of parts from them...either for my bike or for someone else's that I'm wrenching on. For the record it's Ray Gollan's Honda/Suzuki of Warren (Warren, Ohio), and Gollan's Honda of Youngstown. This year they're offering a 10% discount if you're an AMA or CRA member, and if you buy a bike from them it's 20% till the end of the year. (this is at the warren location, and the discount only applies to people who race MX, Harescrambles, or GNCC). The number for the Warren location is easy to find, and if you give them a call, ask for Ben or Tom at the parts counter, and tell them Leon sent you.

I try as well to give some business to a few local dealers around my neck of the woods, but over all they just can't compete with the net! Just orderd 160 dollars worth from MotoSports.com on Sunday night and it was at the door when I got home from work today! They sale oem as well for KTM , Honda ,Zook, and Kawi. Never had one problem with these guys and I've order truck loads from them.

[quote="jww347":2u5a6ghe]One of the last good "mom and pop" Yamaha dealers just closed here in Tucson. Sold out to some big fuckin' "Powersports" dealership. Sucks....only one small dealer here left and they are Honda. We still have a couple good local parts/used bike dealers left at least.[/quote:2u5a6ghe]

Eastside got swallowed up? Let me guess, Ride Now got them too " title="Sad"> And that last Honda shop over there is Musselmans, which I'm told has changed management to the old owners son and it isn't the same anymore.

We've still got a few good dealerships here in New Mexico, and in El Paso as well. My local shop is Deming Cycle, a small Honda/Yamaha dealer who's owner passed away a few weeks after prerunning Baja last year. His wife is now running it, hope she can keep it going.

The only thing i order from my dealer is mostly OEM parts. Accessories or other aftermarket goodies i tend to use places like BTO sports and the like.

[quote="jww347":6szhiy1l]One of the last good "mom and pop" Yamaha dealers just closed here in Tucson. Sold out to some big fuckin' "Powersports" dealership. Sucks....only one small dealer here left and they are Honda. We still have a couple good local parts/used bike dealers left at least.[/quote:6szhiy1l]

Broke my heart when Jack sold Eastside Yamaha, I guess it was time for him.
Off to the computer for parts now, the big Powersports dealer blows

It's really bad when it's bad. The local Honda/Suzuki/Kawi dealer is pretty bad. Inventory control means nothing in stock, and they seem to have everything marked up off of MSRP. I heard one of the guys tell a customer on the floor that they never put helmets on sale, at the exact same time I knew they had a bunch discounted on EBay.

The local KTM dealer is about as old school a bike shop as I have found in awhile. No discounts, but I have never gone there to get something without them having it. It's really great to have someone actually stock parts. Tire selection is about the only thing limited.

What a contrast.

[quote="neverwas":1fjg8sz0]

Broke my heart when Jack sold Eastside Yamaha, I guess it was time for him.
Off to the computer for parts now, the big Powersports dealer blows[/quote:1fjg8sz0]


A guy I know that has been going into Eastside for a looooooong time said Jack told them it would take a truckload of money for him to sell.....I hope the Ridenow a-holes showed up with a big truck.

My local dealer is great. They know about customerservice and treat you well, Champion Motorcycles in Newport Beach. They get me anything pronto can't say enough about them. They have been established quite awhile so that helps in this economy. The guy at Mission Motorsports must be dying with his overhead. Huge nice building with every major brand, KTM also. I have to say when I go in there they treat me well also. Here in the OC we have some ok places.

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The bottom line is it has to be a dealer where the people there race, or have kids who race. One problem is there is no profit margin in dirt bikes. Also in general, motocross racers don't make the best customers, compared to some dude walking off the street ready to pay retail for a Gold Wing and $1000s in accessories. MX racers tend to all want "sponsorship," discounts etc. according to the dealers I talk to. A lot of them say that dealing with racers is more trouble than it's worth unfortunately. That may sound offensive to some, but it's just the truth. And I've seen it in action myself.
One thing I am trying to do is improve this failing relationship between racers and dealers. I try and tell dealers that racers will spend tons of moola on parts and accessories if they feel the shop supports moto. The racers that buy bikes every year tend to want sponsorship too.
One dealer recently railed on mx'ers to me for a few minutes. Said he's sick of young mx riders coming in on busy Saturday mornings and demanding parts and cutting in line and wanting everything for free. Something to think about...

[quote="Moto East Mag":ghewmfdn]The bottom line is it has to be a dealer where the people there race, or have kids who race. One problem is there is no profit margin in dirt bikes. Also in general, motocross racers don't make the best customers, compared to some dude walking off the street ready to pay retail for a Gold Wing and $1000s in accessories. MX racers tend to all want "sponsorship," discounts etc. according to the dealers I talk to. A lot of them say that dealing with racers is more trouble than it's worth unfortunately. That may sound offensive to some, but it's just the truth. And I've seen it in action myself.
One thing I am trying to do is improve this failing relationship between racers and dealers. I try and tell dealers that racers will spend tons of moola on parts and accessories if they feel the shop supports moto. The racers that buy bikes every year tend to want sponsorship too.
One dealer recently railed on mx'ers to me for a few minutes. Said he's sick of young mx riders coming in on busy Saturday mornings and demanding parts and cutting in line and wanting everything for free. Something to think about...[/quote:ghewmfdn]

Best post yet.

I have a side business to my day job.
That means I know the cruelty of busness but am yet still an idiot.
I'm not brilliant but even I can see that you can't stock every size of every flavor of Fox gear in your store.
On top of that, people want to shop FOX & Thor.
How come you don't have both!?!?!

Tires in stock?
C'mon man. Everyone has their wishes.
How about stocking local faves and screw you if you want something different?

Dealers suck at times and sometimes you get some twit behind the counter who you can't agree with about parts but all in all, for all of their faults, and they have many, I like and do business with my local dealers.

My local Honda dealer is a complete Gold Wing & Stihl Chain Saw showcase.
He still gets me what I need if I ask.

The one thing that gets to me is when you live close to one of those internet based mega places and it costs less to buy it online and have it shipped, than it is to pick up. When I questioned this practice of pricing, indicating my loyalty of more than 25+ years, it still wouldn't be considered and was attributable to overhead costs. I don't think they operate as separate entities either.

Freehold Honda is the only place I go. Luckily I have our very own Lukaitis9 to deal with. They have most everything, or can get everything very quickly for a great price. I recomend them even if you do mail order, Lukaitis9 will ship it to you very quickly for a great price. Lukaitis9 and Freehold Honda been taking care of me for years now.

Funny, I recently walked into the same dealership that AHRMA361 mentioned above. Keep in mind this is a HUGE place, carries all 5 brands and has been a Honda dealer for as far back as I can remember (early 80's). TONS of dirt bike and mx bikes on the floor from all brands.

Anyway, I needed a bottle of Honda suspension fluid. NOPE. The ONLY suspension fluid they had was Bel-ray 10wt fork oil. WTF good is that to a modern mx'er???? Even worse, I asked if they just happened to be out of other stuff and they told me they don't carry anything else.

Also, there are 2 very popular motocross tracks within 10 miles of this huge shop and they are located on a main route to get to the tracks. The place could be a motocross mecca but they just don't care about it.

I learned the hard way about dealers when I bought my first CR125 in 1986. The next day I fouled a plug riding it around my yard and went back to the dealer and they didn't have a plug in stock for the bike I had just bought, and there was another identical CR125 on the floor. So I had to order the damn plug. I knew then what to expect...they didn't stock a single part for the bike I believe.
I find that rural dealers, especially in WV, are more dirt bike friendly. Martinsburg Motorsports in WV, Jarman's in Charlottesville and Valley Kaw/Suz in Harrisonburg Va. are good examples. Inner city dealers don't give a crap about dirt bikes, at least around here.