the DR650 thread

[Porky]

Originally Posted by Mobiker

When I owned Harleys parts were always very reasonaby priced compared to Japenese bike parts.

+Harley dealers have lots and lots of parts in stock.

Had to order a clutch cable from the local dealer for my DR. In his words, "we don't normally stock any cables".

[procycle]

Originally Posted by Porky

+Harley dealers have lots and lots of parts in stock.

Had to order a clutch cable from the local dealer for my DR. In his words, "we don't normally stock any cables".

If the Japanese used the same parts since 1938 like Harley does then of course it would be easy to keep them in stock.

This is not an exaggeration. I just looked up (at random) the oil pump for a 2012 Sportster. one item is a fitting - part number 63533-41A. That '-41A' at the end of the number means it was first used in 1941. Same part still being used in current production bikes 70 years later. That kind of part longevity makes it easy to keep parts in stock and keep part prices low. It also means you give up a lot of improvement and innovation.

Japanese brand motorcycle dealer parts departments have an nearly impossible task. We want them to always have the parts we need on hand but the economics of the business don't allow that. When I started in the motorcycle parts business back in the early 80s our rule of thumb to justify keeping an item in stock was it has to make at least 4 turns per year. That means if you only sold 2 or 3 VF750S Saber speedometer cables per year stocking them would be a money loosing decision. In these modern days of shrinking margins the things you keep on hand better move faster than that if you want to stay in business.

A current mid sized dealer might sell a million dollars in parts per year. That sales volume might justify around $200,000 of inventory. A good parts manager has to spend that money wisely. There are probably well over a thousand Suzuki cable part numbers. Will the DR650 clutch cable make the cut? Doubtful, especially when the dealer can have a factory cable delivered in a few days or an aftermarket equivalent in a day or two.

When I went to work for a Honda dealer in 1982 Honda had 52 motorcycle & ATV models for sale that year alone. Of course they offer new models or changes to old models every year. The more we get of new models and improvements to old models the more more new part numbers are generated and the more difficult it becomes for the dealer to have any meaningful stock of replacement parts.

We can complain all we want about dealers not having parts in stock but that is not going to change any time soon. What has changed and is continuing to improve is the time it takes to get those parts from the parts warehouse to the buyer.

[TRAVELGUY]

+1

Originally Posted by Adv Grifter

Very accurate comments!
On long adventure-travel rides (especially out of USA) big Horse power means nothing ... and is useless. The above points listed are what counts on a loaded up bike 4000 miles from home.

[thetable]

Originally Posted by Mobiker

When I owned Harleys parts were always very reasonaby priced compared to Japenese bike parts.

I had similar experiences with Buell. Hated having to weave my way through the weekend pirates and having to wait for the guy in front of me trying to figure out which chrome polish was the best, but the parts prices were reasonable. I'm starting to think that the Japanese brands sell many of the bikes as loss leaders just to make money on parts afterwards.

[neo1piv014]

Speaking of ordering parts, has anyone here ever done business with RegulatorRectifier.com? All the forum posts I've read said that they were the place to go for things like, say, a pulser coil. I placed an order with them and Procycle on the same day last week on Friday or Saturday. I get order confirmation emails from both almost immediately. Come Monday morning, I have a "your product has shipped" notice from Procycle. As of yesterday, the Procycle order has arrived and I still haven't heard anything back from the regulatorrectifier.com folks. I'm normally not too fussy about ordering parts, but I do hate seeing my bike up on stands in the garage instead of out riding. So has anyone else had any experience with them in the past?

[maynard911]

Originally Posted by neo1piv014

Did you forget to put air in the 705's or something? The 606 was the noisy enough to drown out headphones at freeway speeds. The 705 at the same speed barely makes enough noise to be heard at all.

Sent from my LG-P999 using Tapatalk 2

My experience also.

[thetable]

Originally Posted by procycle

This is not an exaggeration. I just looked up (at random) the oil pump for a 2012 Sportster. one item is a fitting - part number 63533-41A. That '-41A' at the end of the number means it was first used in 1941. Same part still being used in current production bikes 70 years later. That kind of part longevity makes it easy to keep parts in stock and keep part prices low. It also means you give up a lot of improvement and innovation.

Odd, when I look up that part number, I get "Product ID: 63533-41A, FITTING, STRAIGHT" from one site, and from another "FITTING, STRAIGHT, W/SEALANT (63533-41A)", with a price between $3.99 and 3.75. I'm pretty sure that isn't an oil pump. I'm no fan of HD and their business practices, but it seems pushing it with the misinformation.

[maynard911]

Originally Posted by thetable

Odd, when I look up that part number, I get "Product ID: 63533-41A, FITTING, STRAIGHT" from one site, and from another "FITTING, STRAIGHT, W/SEALANT (63533-41A)", with a price between $3.99 and 3.75. I'm pretty sure that isn't an oil pump. I'm no fan of HD and their business practices, but it seems pushing it with the misinformation.

Read Procycle's comment more carefully, especially the part that says " I just looked up (at random) the oil pump for a 2012 Sportster. one item is a fitting - part number 63533-41A".

[thetable]

Originally Posted by maynard911

Read Procycle's comment more carefully, especially the part that says " I just looked up (at random) the oil pump for a 2012 Sportster. one item is a fitting - part number 63533-41A".

I still see the statement as misleading. Imagine if Suzuki were to put the year on their parts, well other than making crossrefferencing much easier, we'd be able to see that Suzuki has been using the same banjo bolt in the brakes since before time started. Seriously, it's a straight fitting, and it has been updated at least once since Harley went to the current part numbering system (the A at the end.)

I do appreciate all the work that Procycle has done for DR parts, but of all the reasons to bad mouth HD, that's reaching.

[Rob.G]

I have to agree... the 705's for me are damn near silent. When I ran 606's on my DR650, their whine was audible over the wind noise (with earplugs in).

I run Kenda Trackmaster II's on my KLX250S, and they while pretty good too on the road, but I'm not sure they're as loud as the 606's.

Rob

[Richguzzi]

Originally Posted by thetable

I do appreciate all the work that Procycle has done for DR parts, but of all the reasons to bad mouth HD, that's reaching.

I personally did not see where anyone was bad mouthing HD. Even for making the same part since 1941 is that really a bad thing?

[Albie]

Originally Posted by thetable

I do appreciate all the work that Procycle has done for DR parts, but of all the reasons to bad mouth HD, that's reaching.

I'd hardly call what Procycle said as bad mouthing.

[Rob.G]

While I'm no fan of Harleys (more due to their excessive Bling factor and the fact that many of their proponents are in it more for the image than for the ride), I can appreciate the "old" parts that never change. The Japanese tend to reinvent everything every 4-6 years just for the sake of reinventing it. I say, if it ain't broke, don't reinvent it. But then you can't really laud Harley for this to keep costs low because their bikes are massively overpriced (IMO).

Crap I don't remember where I was going with this. Oh well. Love that DR650! :)

Rob

[Tech23]

Originally Posted by thetable

I still see the statement as misleading. Imagine if Suzuki were to put the year on their parts, well other than making crossrefferencing much easier, we'd be able to see that Suzuki has been using the same banjo bolt in the brakes since before time started. Seriously, it's a straight fitting, and it has been updated at least once since Harley went to the current part numbering system (the A at the end.)

I do appreciate all the work that Procycle has done for DR parts, but of all the reasons to bad mouth HD, that's reaching.

Really it's a damn fitting, how long did the Military use the Willy's. Theres something to be said for parts interchangeability...hey wait a minute, when was the last time time frickin DR got an update? I think they went from a junky under the perch clutch switch to a plunger style a few years back...oooh.....ahhhhh, lets not forget the BNG they get every other year or so. I could be wrong about this too but it might be possible that HD sells a few more bikes than Suzuki sells DR's.

Straight Male Gas/Oil Fitting, Chrome OEM 63533-41A SKU 40-0566

I'm not sure any improvement is even necessary here. I'd be willing to listen to suggestions though. Been the same for 70 years... go figure.


You can cross reference Suzuki parts quite easily if you are creative in your online searches.

Tech23

[sandwash]

Well............that the hey,parts are parts,just be lucky that you can get them in a some what timely manner.Sheeesh