Kettering Classics

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Andy51
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Re: Kettering Classics

Post by Andy51 »

This thread seems to have got broader as it gets longer. The advantage of Kettering selling bikes is that viewers can go to a known location at known hours and see (reasonably) known machines. We can never offer any form of guarantee on a 60 year old machine with possibly dozens of previous owners, nor can we provide any reassurance as to its reliability/service history, etc - only on its outline appearance. Nor would anyone expect this - when buying a machine of this age, it's very definitely caveat emptor, and any purchaser must realise he either rebuilds the machine himself or takes his chances. The only exception is buying a friend's machine that you have known (the machine and the friend) for some time - even then, age or metal fatigue on the bike could cause catastrophic failure at any time - and if you dabble in half century old bikes, you would expect nothing else. Kettering bike sales saves buyers chasing all over the country, and saves sellers hours of wasted time waiting for 'no shows' and time wasters. £500 seems a reasonable price to pay for this, and selling to/buying from a dealer would cost a lot more. Supplies of bikes for sale inevitably rise and fall, we apparently have few now but at times we have had plenty in the past. Kettering Classic provides a useful service and we should run with it a bit longer.
Moving on to spares, the point made about 'originality' is well made, who knows what bits were changed or substituted on a bike, especially in the 60s and 70s when parts supplies dried up and our classics were just cheap old bangers and cannibalisation was the normal source of supply by people who didn't care, just wanted to keep it going at lowest cost! Now we are trying to restore something to a previous glory it may never have had, assuming that 'original' means just that when most machines are 'bitzas' to a greater or lesser extent. Reliable patterns for manufacture are hard to come by, so honest mistakes will be made by Spares - we should support them and help by providing constructive criticism and known origin parts as patterns for future manufacture, not carping and complaints. Cheers, Andy
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GOLDSTAR
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Re: Kettering Classics

Post by GOLDSTAR »

I agree Andy, I didn't think my post was 'carping' more charitable and constructive and of use to the club, I would have thought, but he ho!. :headbang: kind regards
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bigwol
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Re: Kettering Classics

Post by bigwol »

Rob Harknett wrote:Hi Dave. Kettering should be advised of any part faulty, did not fit etc. But there is no one there voluntary or employed to actually give advice about bikes. Which can be very time consuming. I think twice now about calling back, in particular to a mobile. Single calls at £2+ push up my phone bill a lot. I am sure they must get a lot of problems due to parts not fitting. I guess in most cases, the person not knowing what parts their bike consists of. Non original, perhaps even altered from original. They just supply what's ordered. One may also order a part believed to be correct, as the number is stated in the parts list for their bike. But they may not have any errata's, mid year updates, etc. which may have corrected a parts list. Quite often a part from the club was made by the same supplier that supplies other companies. Perhaps we are the guinea pigs that have to prove them.
Hi Rob.
The incorrect part was a clutch cable i'd bought as a spare a few years back and recently went to fit so returning it was not an option. The part number was correct as are the bikes bars, levers and gearbox. The inner was way too short and the cable unusable, I (quite reasonably I think) just wanted some reassurance that I would not be sent another incorrect one. If the sales person had suggested I call back the next day when he'd had a chance to check the inner cable length I would have happily done that but was just asked "well do you want it or not?" so went to Steve at AMC Spares and got the correct usable cable the following day. I appreciate sometime parts sent out can be incorrect for a variety of reasons, it is more the attitude of "take it or leave it" I had an issue with.
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Rob Harknett
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Re: Kettering Classics

Post by Rob Harknett »

bigwol wrote:
Rob Harknett wrote:Hi Dave. Kettering should be advised of any part faulty, did not fit etc. But there is no one there voluntary or employed to actually give advice about bikes. Which can be very time consuming. I think twice now about calling back, in particular to a mobile. Single calls at £2+ push up my phone bill a lot. I am sure they must get a lot of problems due to parts not fitting. I guess in most cases, the person not knowing what parts their bike consists of. Non original, perhaps even altered from original. They just supply what's ordered. One may also order a part believed to be correct, as the number is stated in the parts list for their bike. But they may not have any errata's, mid year updates, etc. which may have corrected a parts list. Quite often a part from the club was made by the same supplier that supplies other companies. Perhaps we are the guinea pigs that have to prove them.
Hi Rob.
The incorrect part was a clutch cable i'd bought as a spare a few years back and recently went to fit so returning it was not an option. The part number was correct as are the bikes bars, levers and gearbox. The inner was way too short and the cable unusable, I (quite reasonably I think) just wanted some reassurance that I would not be sent another incorrect one. If the sales person had suggested I call back the next day when he'd had a chance to check the inner cable length I would have happily done that but was just asked "well do you want it or not?" so went to Steve at AMC Spares and got the correct usable cable the following day. I appreciate sometime parts sent out can be incorrect for a variety of reasons, it is more the attitude of "take it or leave it" I had an issue with.
Probably was a wrong cable sent in error Dave. Its a shame the choice of words came across as take it or leave. Did you eventually return the cable stating is was wrong. If not, here is the Amal list to enable you to discover/check how the cable differed to what it should have been. Which will confirm you were indeed sent the wrong cable or their stock of cables have been wrongly made. I am sure they would be grateful for your help in pointing this out. Note AMC part numbers are under remarks column commencing with 3 zero's. Should the bike be pre 1952'ish using old part numbers, just delete the 3 zero's then with prefix the remaining 3 digit number with STD to arrive at the old part number.
Cable measurements..jpg
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bigwol
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Re: Kettering Classics

Post by bigwol »

Rob the part numbers for the cables are referenced on the box but the cable manufacturer's number is used as priority. I double checked the number was correct and the spares scheme confirmed it was the correct cable when i rang, and only rang them as I had my doubts as to correctness of the cable and another part otherwise i'd have ordered on line. I did point out that if the number was correct but the cable wrong perhaps the spares scheme needed to investigate but the sales person was clearly not interested just repeating that was the right number and did I want it or not? Now I don't know about you but "do you want it or not?" is pretty clearly "take it or leave it" as far as i'm concerned with a bit of "I can't be bothered to help you out as I have other things to do" thrown in.
I have always supported the spares scheme in the past but if I get the same level of service again will go elsewhere if I have a choice in future. You say people are not employed or paid to advise members but just to do the job they are paid for, well having spent many years in the past in the motor trade and worked for a while in spares I see helping customers out as very much part of the job. Maybe things have changed but if I'd treated paying customers like that I'd have been for the high jump back in my day.
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Rob Harknett
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Re: Kettering Classics

Post by Rob Harknett »

Well Dave, it seems to me the cables are wrong and more will be returned as they will not fit. So something will eventually have to be done. By then we may have nobody to do the job. In particular when it comes to helping with spares, for which the person will need knowledge of our old bikes. These people are all now aged, retired or no longer with us.
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Expat
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Re: Kettering Classics

Post by Expat »

I would just like to thank the AMOC spares people for sending the correct outer gear box cover gaskets foc, after initial confusion by both parties led to me getting the wrong ones.

Shame I have no use for them or any close owners that could use them. :)
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G15 Roy
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Re: Kettering Classics

Post by G15 Roy »

OEW591 wrote:Has the club stopped selling bikes at Kettering? The website doesn't seem to have shown any bikes for sale for a few weeks. If memory serves the last Jampot magazine didn't have an advert either.

Will there be anything to see at the Open Day tomorrow?
Time to have a look and see whats there now. :o
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John Jarrett
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Re: Kettering Classics

Post by John Jarrett »

A nice selection indeed!
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