Good wrecker's around Welly?

[jazbug5]

Errr (still blushing.. it's been a long day, I'm not myself you know, faculties a little impaired, I usually have a mind like finely honed steel trap, shuffle shuffle).
Anyone know how I can edit the title of this thread so I can end the shame..?

[rodgerd]

PS: There's no apostrophe in wreckers, the way you've used it in your headline. Apostrophes have absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with plurals -- they are only used to denote possession or contraction!!

Whew. That feels better...

Except when they do.

(But not in this case).

[kerryg]

I'm stunned by the fact that at more than twice my age, you retain so much ability to care. Perhaps it's the lack of toddlers and consequent surfeit of extroverted energy.

Ah but you see it does not diminish with age. On the contrary, it grows. Go have afternoon tea with your aged aunt and you will hear (lots) about her bunions or what she had for lunch yesterday (possibly even about gerunds and misrelated participles too if she is a certain member of KB) and nothing about matters of importance. In the elderly and understimulated issues of real significance are substituted by the minutiae of their lives. The focus narrows along with the arteries.....so it is with Hitcher.......

[jrandom]

Ah but you see it does not diminish with age. On the contrary, it grows.

I am reminded of the maxim that complete enlightenment must always be present somewhere between the ages of 3 and 17. At 3, we have all the questions; at 17, all the answers.

Go have afternoon tea with your aged aunt

Difficult; my only aunt lives in Munich and is about ten years younger than Hitcher.

[kerryg]

I


Difficult; my only aunt lives in Munich and is about ten years younger than Hitcher.

Aahhh pedantry truly lives......

[jrandom]

Aahhh pedantry truly lives......

Not to say that 'ten years younger than Hitcher' doesn't still qualify as decrepit, of course.

[jazbug5]

That's it, guys;

keep posting in this thread so that everyone can witness my shame.
Diabolical.

[Deano]

That would be Mr Surly from "pails and pieces" then?

Understandable considering his location.....

[MikeL]

The focus narrows along with the arteries.....

It's not inevitable.

Or its not inevitable.

Take your pick. The apostrophe, however sentimentally attached we are to it, serves no practical purpose other than to differentiate the over-educated from the great unwashed, and is therefore irredeemably tainted with political incorrectness. Which is a good enough reason to keep using it.

And I'm now a bit confused about the original post. Has it been edited? Was it "wrecker's" or "wreckers'"? Both are possible.

And if you do find a wreckers or wrecker's or wreckers', you can tell if it's a good one by asking the following question:
"Where can I get a bar end weight for a 1989 Honda CB-1?" The volume of the ensuing laughter is a good indication of the quality of service you will encounter. Several seconds' stunned silence or a sharp intake of breath are not necessarily indicative of an unhelpful attitude. It just means that you will eventually be told to f*ck off with courtesy, empathy and a cheerful smile.

[F5 Dave]

I remember reading an article in an old dirtbike magazine (Rick Seiman aka Dr Knowitall or some such). He described the sort of customers who come in with a bunch of parts wrapped in an oily rag but have little clue as to what their bike actually is.

I would hate to work in a spares dept. I’m pretty sure 2 months of this would cause me to 'go postal' & cull any customer arriving without a part number & half of those that did because they rang up to ‘check a price’.

Wreckers get this & half the clowns will make them crawl around a bunch of greasy bits to find a sidecover for an ‘85 gsx they have no intension of buying when they find out it's worth more than $20.

In the past I have been one of these customers, but have bought enough that makes it worthwhile. The problem is when the vast majority of the calls from private customers don’t result in a sale I can imagine you tend to get a bit toey spending too much time on the phone.

Is this good customer service? Well probably not, but not everyone is as even tempered as I’d like to think I am, (but aren’t).

I certainly wouldn’t want to try to scratch a living doing the job, but I guess the only thing I can suggest is to try to promote the impression that you are serious, time is money & while I get paid for every minute I’m at work, when you own your own business that is not the case.

Some people are moody. It doesn’t mean they are like that all the time, but that’s life. I turned up to get a WOF from another bike shop I go to to get warrants (it’s handy out of town & a one man band so I prefer to give him my money).
I was trying my luck to get it done on the spot. He got really flustered, “I don’t like stopping jobs in the middle” etc. I knew I was pushing my luck but I wanted to get the newly going YZF legal for the weekend.

He did it anyway & did cheer up, but I realised what it would be like if someone pushed their way into my office when I’m up to my eyeballs & asked me to drop everything to do something for them. I didn’t know he was that busy so his anger was a bit misdirected, but people aren’t perfect. I’m certainly not. In the end he cheered up (liked the bike, gave it a WOF) & repeatedly refused extra money I offered for being a PITA. I’ll make sure I buy some more stuff from there.

[White trash]

I remember reading an article in an old dirtbike magazine (Rick Seiman aka Dr Knowitall or some such). He described the sort of customers who come in with a bunch of parts wrapped in an oily rag but have little clue as to what their bike actually is.

I would hate to work in a spares dept. I’m pretty sure 2 months of this would cause me to 'go postal' & cull any customer arriving without a part number & half of those that did because they rang up to ‘check a price’.

Wreckers get this & half the clowns will make them crawl around a bunch of greasy bits to find a sidecover for an ‘85 gsx they have no intension of buying when they find out it's worth more than $20.

In the past I have been one of these customers, but have bought enough that makes it worthwhile. The problem is when the vast majority of the calls from private customers don’t result in a sale I can imagine you tend to get a bit toey spending too much time on the phone.

Is this good customer service? Well probably not, but not everyone is as even tempered as I’d like to think I am, (but aren’t).

I certainly wouldn’t want to try to scratch a living doing the job, but I guess the only thing I can suggest is to try to promote the impression that you are serious, time is money & while I get paid for every minute I’m at work, when you own your own business that is not the case.

Some people are moody. It doesn’t mean they are like that all the time, but that’s life. I turned up to get a WOF from another bike shop I go to to get warrants (it’s handy out of town & a one man band so I prefer to give him my money).
I was trying my luck to get it done on the spot. He got really flustered, “I don’t like stopping jobs in the middle” etc. I knew I was pushing my luck but I wanted to get the newly going YZF legal for the weekend.

He did it anyway & did cheer up, but I realised what it would be like if someone pushed their way into my office when I’m up to my eyeballs & asked me to drop everything to do something for them. I didn’t know he was that busy so his anger was a bit misdirected, but people aren’t perfect. I’m certainly not. In the end he cheered up (liked the bike, gave it a WOF) & repeatedly refused extra money I offered for being a PITA. I’ll make sure I buy some more stuff from there.

Good rant, Dave.

But I actually enjoy working in a busy spares dept. The stress makes the Steinlager taste all the better.

In fact, I think I'll have one in about ten minutes.

[F5 Dave]

Good rant, Dave.

But I actually enjoy working in a busy spares dept. The stress makes the Steinlager taste all the better.

In fact, I think I'll have one in about ten minutes.

Well something better work, I’ve never found anything to make the stuff taste any better.

[James Deuce]

Good points Dave, but consider this.

Investigating the as yet "unnamed" one's web site for parts, I happened upon a donor bike that matched my requirements. I got my manual, got the part numbers and descriptions, and placed my call. I was told, "I can't be bothered dealing with you".

So I said, "Oh, sorry, are you a bit busy at the moment"?

He said, "Why won't you people f__king leave me alone and stop wasting my time".

A quick phone call to Malcolm Kirby at Econohonda netted me the disk carriers, OEM disks, and front axle I was after. They were all new and it cost me $512. Now Malcolm has the right attitude in my book, and he will also tell you if he can't help, but without the operative phrase, "F__k off n00b, I pwn Joo."

[White trash]

Well something better work, I’ve never found anything to make the stuff taste any better.

Best Lager in the world, mate. Saw it on "Queer eye for the straight guy" the other night.

[White trash]

He said, "Why won't you people f__king leave me alone and stop wasting my time".

WTF? You must be joking! He didn't say that, you're talking plop!
How could anyone in the customer service industry say that. Unless it's a fence for dealing drugs.