Stoopit Cycle Shops

I was saving this for its own post. A lot of people don't know the history of my bringing the Passport back to life. It started last summer, when my dad took it to a local shop to clean it up and get it running. It took them three months. They found mice, messed around with the carb a little (including breaking the float)...and then hooked it up to a 12-volt battery (it's a 6-volt bike) and fried just about everything in it. I then fetched it and brought it closer to home to a supposedly reputable establishment here in the cities.

I'm not sure which shop hooked the gas tank up backwards, running the Main line into the Reserve input on the fuel valve. That takes real talent - as an "O" and and "R" look about as much alike as Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum! *argh*

It took "shop #2" two months and half the bikes value in labor costs to get it running again. Which, I didn't complain about at first. It ran, after all - at least for awhile...and it's an old bike, so it was going to take some work. However, they replaced my ignition and kept my key - which also was used for the helmet lock and fork lock. Now I have to go back again so they can sort through their 25 keys until they find mine. Lame. They were also supposed to fix all the wiring damage from the mice and clean out the rust from the gas tank, which either didn't happen or they just overlooked a LOT of it. Also, a rubber gasket for the carb was broke by the shop and they fixed it with some silicone sealant. Sorry, but if I'm paying you $70/hour in labor you'd better be using original parts and fixing what you break for free!

My rant is done now. If I end up taking the bike to a shop again, it'll go somewhere else. I only took it in because I didn't want to spend the time on it. I really enjoyed getting my hands dirty this weekend and had a great time - even though I'm really sore today from contorting myself for six hours. ;)