Ractech and a rotting stench

[quickbuck]

why do you think pak n save 5 kms away is always full, but the local 4 square isn't.

Ummmm, they are both owned by the same company......
You will save the $2.00 it cost you in fuel in the first 3 items you buy from Pak'n'Save.... Not to mention there is much more variety there...

Yes, it makes more economic sense to go to Pak'n'save.... BUT If you want quality and your Groceries packed, you go to New World... Oh, and the quality is a little better, AND They are usually full too! (Again, same company).

[CRF119]

The other problem we have as a bisness is importers tax, that should be scrapped if the goverment wants to encourge spending in new zealand not off shore.

[trustme]

But it's the distributor who needs to make the first move, otherwise it's a catch 22, chicken or the egg stuff.
I know the size of NZ will never make things cheaper than the States, but If the distributor took a risk & bought a few more of a product in in order to lower the price a bit for consumers, then maybe people will start buying here first, but they need to make the first move.
For technical and/or mechanical stuff I can see where the expertise of the local supplier might be needed, but prices for the majority of other accessories (seats, fairings, racks, bars, chrome bits etc etc) all stuff that the average Joe Bloggs can fit themselves without any technical knowledge whatsoever needs to shift down to encourage the local buyers.
I've recently spent around NZ$700 on bits & pieces out of the States & that includes shipping, exchange rate and GST. That same lot would have cost me a around $1200 locally. If the prices were only a few dollars more here I would have bought here, no question. but as it stands, there's no comparison.
Do the distributors even know how much cheaper ex-overseas is, or do they work on the theory that only 50% of people order overseas, so they still make enough money of the person paying top dollar?
IMO you're better off selling 100 items at $100 each than only 50 items at $200 each.

IT'S REALLY SIMPLE MATE

Product has a value to the importer of $70 & he puts on a margin of $30 so cost to you is $100
If the importer reduces his margin by 50% so retail price is $70 + $15 = $85 , he has to sell twice as many of the product just to stand still
Is that a realistic expectation in the NZ motorcycling market where the pencil dicks want every thing at 1/2 price
It is a recipe for going broke IMHO.

[Headbanger]

IT'S REALLY SIMPLE MATE

Product has a value to the importer of $70 & he puts on a margin of $30 so cost to you is $100
If the importer reduces his margin by 50% so retail price is $70 + $15 = $85 , he has to sell twice as many of the product just to stand still
Is that a realistic expectation in the NZ motorcycling market where the pencil dicks want every thing at 1/2 price
It is a recipe for going broke IMHO.

heh, You missed every point made and explored in the entire thread.

[Robert Taylor]

Well this tread has turned into another shitfest. My take is, If I had the $$$ I would happily pay the extra to gain the services of CKT. Sad fact is I cannot afford this option at this time.I am not willing to try and get a deal out Of Robert that would be more costly (to him)than not not getting my business at all.Therefore I am looking at interwebby options for hopefully a resonable product but without the local backup.I know its a risk but I just cant spend what I dont have.A business like CKT would seem to be a real asset to the motorcyle community and should be supported whenever possible.

FORK SPRINGS...........................

I have identified the fork spring series required and I have these in an Ohlins series and I can sell you these inclusive of spacer tube ( and instructions plus telephone support ) at an attractive price. Part of the reason for that is you have been a very decent human being, theres a message in that remark which I make no apology for.

50% or so of the problem is spring rate and 50% of the remaining problem is poor hydraulic control that can be fixed by installing genuine RACE TECH Emulators. When changing springs only a certain rate is required, when combining with emulators it is arguable that you can run a slightly softer spring rate as there is now control over the ''rate of change of position'' So, if later on you decide you have the budget for emulators we will exchange the springs for a slightly softer rate.

A word about these Ohlins springs, arguably they are the very best springs available ( yes better again than Race Tech ) as the length tolerancing and rate tolerancing are very very precise. The polish process is much better and that allied with ends that are square means there is less sidethrust and friction rubbing against the internal fork tube walls
These particular ones have their rates indelibly laser etched on their ends which makes it quick and a no brainer to identify their rate. Ink as used by other manufacturers rubs off in short order.

Ohlins also do a number of fork spring kits for popular road bikes ( and dirt bikes ) that are a preset length and can be combined with the standard spacer tubes etc, so there is no laborious working out of preload, cutting of preload spacers and recutting, all the work is done. Unfortunately they dont do them for every make and model as it would be commercial suicide. But it sure makes life easy for everyone where they do have a listing for you. Other spring manufacturers such as Race Tech, Eibach etc generally only do them in generic lengths which dont match oem

A word about Race Tech Emulators. Race Tech make the only emulator that works properly and is long term reliable and has proper backup in this country. We always change the poppett springs according to the application and damping feel required, in special circumstances such as Pro Twin racing we adjust the bleed hole size, very easy when you have a workable and easy material, brass.

Libel laws preclude me naming but theres some cheap and cheerful mainland Asian emulators on the market. We surreptitiously purchased and tested a set some months back;

Dissapointment number 1, the bleed hole sizing was too large giving sloppy damping. As the material is aluminium alloy you simply cannot solder it up, youd have to drill and tap to accept interchangeable jets. So not so user friendly

Dissapointment number 2, the base material is alloy with a thin anodised coating which over not too much time will wear through to the soft underbelly. Emulators sit inside the top well of the damper rod and in more than 50% of cases it doesnt sit square to the inner wall of the fork tube. The emultor is locked in place by the preload of the fork spring sitting right on top of it and many cheaper fork springs are not square and can also be a little sharp on their edges. That means the anodising can wear through in short order and once soft alloy is exposed chards of alloy find their way into the fork oil and very often end up deposited in the teflon outer coating of fork bushings. Not good

Dissapointment number 3, The poppet springs sack out and there is then no damping. f you remove a poppet spring and compress it as fully as you can with your fingers it doesnt return to its original length! We know because we tried and the length returned to was only 2/3rds of original.

If you pay cheap theres usually some insidious reason such as really bad quality and material choices.

[Headbanger]

Just off the cuff, Being a fat bastard at 130KG and asuming that bikes in general especially rinky dinky little bikes like the speed triple aren't designed for this amount of weight, would I expect worse suspension performance from my bike then a person of average weight, and is there any thing I should do with the stock set up to compensate for my big fat arse?

[Robert Taylor]

Just off the cuff, Being a fat bastard at 130KG and asuming that bikes in general especially rinky dinky little bikes like the speed triple aren't designed for this amount of weight, would I expect worse suspension performance from my bike then a person of average weight, and is there any thing I should do with the stock set up to compensate for my big fat arse?

The ride will likely feel harsh to you because the spring rate is way too soft at both ends, but most noticable in the rear. If you do nothing else change the springs and combine that with a fork oil viscosity change in the front to a thicker viscosity. This to give it more high speed rebound damping to allow some re-extension control as the firmer springs will otherwise make it rebound too fast, destabilising the bike. In the rear its a little bit counterintuitive, sometimes you can respring without having to recalibrate the high speed rebound stack. Firmer springs require less preload and there is still your body mass sitting right on top of the rear shock. In a puddle jumper ( mx bikes and hats worn back to front etc ) its a little different as they are always standing up on the things.
We have lots of good used Ohlins springs in stock at VERY GOOD prices that often fit shocks like these. It is unfortunately a little misleading to do a spring search with Race Tech etc to get the spring dimensions. This because the part numbers they state are often generic sizes that dont match the oem springs and often also require sizing adaptors. So its a little bit of a pain, if you dont mind going through the process of removing the original and informing what its free length and id are at each end we can then see what options we have that are close and will fit without too much drama. We also know approximately what the stock rate is.
Very often if we are unsure of whether rate option A or option B will be best for your personal preference ( and it does come down to that ) we will send a couple of spring options with a paper trail and then reconcile and square everything up when you are satisfied.

[Headbanger]

The ride will likely feel harsh to you because the spring rate is way too soft at both ends, but most noticable in the rear. If you do nothing else change the springs and combine that with a fork oil viscosity change in the front to a thicker viscosity. This to give it more high speed rebound damping to allow some re-extension control.....

Whoa, Cheers for the info, I have made note of it for future reference, I'll have to read it through a couple more times to process it all.

Currently the bike feels fine to me, But its hasn't yet had the newness worn off it yet and all I have to compare it to is a HD with a mushy front end and a bouncy rear end. I assume the ride will get harsher as I rack up a few more miles.

[slowpoke]

Idiot.

Might I suggest you re-take Econ 101? The constraints in the respective markets due to to one product being lawful and one unlawful render your comparison meaningless. Not to mention pointless, and offensive. Mr Headbanger has every right to be rather ticked off at your inference that he is a user of a Class A prohibited substance, you dick.

Good god man, lighten up. Is this a typical response or did someone forget to restock the jellybean jar?

[avgas]

so if your prices are more because you have the knowlede and service, is this then free?

as an inkjet printer without cartridges........

[avgas]

What do you say Robert? will we get full support on product we have bought over the inter-web?

I had this recently, and the answer is very simple.
Yes
But you pay for it. If its a product that is supported here, you will get support for it. But since you neither have the support contract in the local country via the local distributer - you will pay. Its pretty basic stuff really.
Don't want to pay - that is fine, send it back to where you bought it from.
This is the same for EVERY industry. Except the ones that just dont want your business.
Most companies add atleast 4% for product support - to support their local customers. This covers all the free-bies.

[SS90]

So I go looking for a stiffer spring to throw on my rear shock to shorten up the 45mm of rider sag a bit. Racetech US have a good selection of stiffer ratings on their site, US$109 for the spring. That's NZ$154. Shipping was usually around the US$35 mark, so looking at about NZ$185-195 delivered to my doorstep. Shipping being a bit of a rip, but easier than rowing it across the pacific in your own canoe..

I've purchased racetech products from them before, and they were quick and efficient.


etc......

Viscount Montgomery,

I was just wondering, not so much as to identify you, but rather to put some perspective on your position, can you please tell me what industry you are in?

[BIG DOUG]

freight from the usa in steep,like to see you get that spring here for $35.00 us dollars more like $70.00-75.00 so this just bumped the price up on said spring.

[sinfull]

Whoa, Cheers for the info, I have made note of it for future reference, I'll have to read it through a couple more times to process it all.

Currently the bike feels fine to me, But its hasn't yet had the newness worn off it yet and all I have to compare it to is a HD with a mushy front end and a bouncy rear end. I assume the ride will get harsher as I rack up a few more miles.

http://www.gostar-racing.com/club/Ho..._motorbike.pdf

While your in the reading mode HB, go through this PDF and have a play with the set up of the bike (after writing the OEM settings down of course lol AYE Robert) ! I set my 06 speed three up to my wieght and it worked out nice with OEM springs (albeit a little hard but i like that), but i'm 110kg gear on, so you may have to look at spring rates as RT says, as by the time you get a reasonable rider sag at 130kg, it may end up being like riding a hard tail !

[Robert Taylor]

Viscount Montgomery,

I was just wondering, not so much as to identify you, but rather to put some perspective on your position, can you please tell me what industry you are in?

Well I guess good luck for that wish....I am privy to this guys identity. But in spite of his ungentlemanly conduct and inability to accept other viewpoints I am not tempted to publish it for everyone to know. It is his choice to gutlessly hide behind his ''stage name'' while slinging lots of mud and also his own choice to divulge more personal details.
I can only guess that like all of us he is just as implicated in the personal and national hypocirsies that blight our civilizations. We all want our cake and eat it too.
Ill get blighted in some quarters for saying this, but Im only reciting what many will think