Sunday 25 September 2011

Bikes, Bikes, Bikes

Today's weather:  High = 26  Low = 20
Sunny and couldn't be better
 
This is really the best time of year to visit Shanghai and it'll remain so for another few weeks before it starts getting cold.  Already the sweet pleasant osmanthus flowers are beginning to bloom
 
The Yamaha YBR125 bike is nice to have these days again :-)  I was tootling arond on it the last few days and noticing something finicky with both the chain and the clutch.  Especially throttling at low RPMs the chain would slip.  Pretty much the same as what my buyer (the German guy) was.  Not a big problem, but it was feeling a little rough and a quick trip to the shop made the bike feel like running almost new again!
 
Basically they shop relaced the chain entirely as they mentioned it's a good idea after 10,000+ km.   The old chain was not greased properly (my fault for that) and it was too long.  They couldn't pull it back anymore as it was already too loose and the whole thing needed a replacement.   So it was a brand new chain with front and rear sprockets installed. 
 
The clutch was also replaced as the inside rings were worn out pretty ragged.After these repairs, it runs in real smooth shape man!  Holy moly, was testing it out and it felt like brand new again
 
The German buyer is getting a really good deal on this.  He bought it, lent it back to me for National Day, and now he'll have the bike returned in better shape. 
 
Ironically, the shop guy who fixed the bike today wanted to buy it off me for 5500 RMB.  He kept upping the ante after I showed little interest since I alredy sold it to a German guy.  Damn it, well it's too late as I already sold it for 4500 RMB but that was too low an offer in hindsight.  Anyways, I would never do something like sell it again, make more money, screw the German guy and take off, although it's incredibly tempting. 
 
In a society with no morals such as China, a local would jump at a deceitful opportunity such as this and not think twice about it.  But that's precisely why there is no trust in China.  So to counter this fact, I will be the first to act honestly, and maintain the trust.
 
Besides I like this German guy and he deserves to have the Yamaha as I know he's taking good care of it.  The clutch and chain slip-up are my fault actually as I didn't maintain that enough.  Meanwhile, the German guy put some additional work into the bike on his own dime, so I don't want to charge him for the work I did on it  (around 500 RMB or so)
 
Another thing, I ran into another contact for new YBR250 bikes, which I'm almost certain I'll be getting, but am going to wait until after Spring Festival as money is too tight right now and I still need to legalize my Chinese license.
 
This contact says he can get the bikes for around 23,000 RMB plus 8000 RMB for the HU-C suburban plate.  Probably cheaper if buying in bulk.  I'm teaming forces with the German guy and others to see if we can get a better deal.
 
As for the Jialings or the CFMOTO650 I've heard things about them, not necessarily bad, but I'm simply not sold on the idea of buying Chinese bikes.  Would rather pay the extra cash and get a Japanese bike because of the quality assurance, even if it means scaling back a bit on the CCs.  Actually another German guy I was talking to seemed pretty happy about the YBR250 and said it can maintain a nice cruising speed on the highway.  He's even taken it to Huangshan, quite a long trip.

No comments:

Post a Comment