Australian Motorcycle Components - top service

I decided on Friday afternoon that I would bite the bullet and buy a speedo healer and ordered one online from AMC. I was over the error in the bikes speedo, even after only riding it 700km. I figured I might receive it in time to fit it this coming weekend. Imagine my surprise when I today recieved the item, less that a full working day after ordering it, even delivered out to my work at Moranbah (middle of nowhere Qld). I rode the bike out today, so will fit it up one night this week, ready for the ride home on Friday. Looking forward to not having to mentally calculate actual speed.

This level of service will have me looking at their site more often. Well done.

I set mine at -4.5% which still leaves about 2 - 2.5 % error. I feel more comfortable with a little bit of error.

I can count

(Bandit)

110 in 100 zone = safe

120 in 110 = am I feeling lucky?

70 in a 60 = done for but 65 is ok

140+ in 110 = walking

(FZ1 is much more accurate)



I used to want a gear indicator but even that seems redundant now. Plus the odo isnt stuffed up.

+1 for service. Brilliant arnt they.

Ewok1958 wrote:I set mine at -4.5% which still leaves about 2 - 2.5 % error. I feel more comfortable with a little bit of error.

Fitted the unit last night, the longest part was zip tying the cables to make it look tidy. Set mine at -5.5 as a starting point and based on my GPS am getting an overread of just under 2%. This allows a little safety margin. I will double check it with a second GPS.

i had the same result with my healer..next day..i didn`t expect that,can`t fault them there

Having bought a Sergeant Seat for my DR 650 a few years ago, and knowing they are a great product, I wanted something similar for my Bandit.

I ordered a Sargent seat for my 2012 Bandit 1250S from AMC on 3 December 2012. Its now 12 January 2013 and if I hadn't rang them 3 times Id have no idea where the order is at EVEN THOUGH THEY TOOK HALF THE MONEY AS A DEPOSIT. They told me 3 -4 weeks and when i queried them in December they said early January 2013 latest. I rang them 2 days ago and they said 14 days from the states plus 3 - 4 days from them in Queensland. They even had the hide to blame Sergeant because they "shut down over Christmas you know".

That's at least 2 months to get a seat here. From an order placed on a web site which seems to suggest that they have them in stock.

Australia is the only country in the world Sergeant wont ship to direct because they have some deal with these people at AMC who have no idea what they are doing.

I wil NEVER do business with them again, I do not care if they are supposedly the only distributor in AUS. I am next writing to Sargent directly to tell them how pathetic AMC's service is. Im going to go with these solo dudes in the States direct. $100 cheaper and its here within 10 days. Wow.

Australian motorcycle distributors wonder why people go O/S. Look no further than this example.

At the same time I ordered my seat I placed an order for a new screen from Dale Walker at Holeshot. It was here in 6 days (not 6 business days, 6 DAYS). From the United States. Prompt, professional, helpful.

If I was this bad at my job I would've been sacked years ago.

ChrisMac

ChrisMac's seat was invoiced on 23/1, the day it arrived in our warehouse from the US, with senior staff working through lunch to get the shipment out. Shipment of 26 seats, 21 for customers, arrived in 10.20 am, every sold seat was packed and out the door by 3pm, that's in addition to our normal daily shipments. Not bad performance from a bunch of people who deserve to be sacked, if I say so myself. If Christian has not received his yet, the tracking number is 84Y0003317010224. (Registered Post)

That's going to be somewhat less than 2 months, but we won't split hairs. I might point out, we shipped 1 other Bandit seat that had been on order for 2 weeks.

Much as Chris might like to blame us, we already had 2 of that seat on order from the factory for stock at the time he ordered, so no delay anywhere in the process on our part. We were expecting them prior to Christmas.

It is physically impossible for us to force product out of a factory, if the product has not been made. As far as information, we can provide, we can only relay information on estimated shipments as we get them from the factory.

Also, much as he might not like it, factories (and also us) did close for the Christmas holidays. We were closed until the 7th, though I was back in the office on the 4th chasing factories, and sorting computer problems.

We pushed the factory for a shipment to us week 2 of December, as allowing for air freight consolidation, Customs and delivery to us, that was the last date a shipment could leave and have it arrive before we closed for the break. We don't allow shipments to arrive in the country when closed, as last year, we had $5000 of product sitting on our loading dock for a week, despite having told the freight company and the factory our closing dates.When the shipment was not completed in time to leave by the cut-off, we instructed the factory to hold and ship 7 Jan. In the event, due to their work load and freight consol, they did not ship on the 7th as requested, finally collected by the freight company on 17 Jan.

If we ordered seats one at a time, we could get them sometimes quicker, however as a distributor we have to order in bulk, a combination of stock and customer orders, placed weekly. Our average Sargent shipment varies from $6000 to $10,000 at retail of seats every 3 weeks. We currently have a further 3 Bandit seats on order for stock, one order for 2 placed 7/12, and another placed 10/1. Out of the latest shipment mentioned above there are 5 seats left for stock of various models, joining the 12 we already have. Order placed today for a Z1000 seat and rear cover left less than 2 hours after being placed.

Yes, we make it clear, we do take a deposit on seats.

He didn't mention he was a club member with his order, or his seat would have been $40 cheaper than he paid.

Also, if he had mentioned he was a club member, we could possibly have taken up one of the limited single shipment slots we have per month for him, provided he was going to be at home to sign for it over the Christmas break. Under this new system we have arranged, we ship to our Chester US office, then direct to the customer, with full Australian warranty. We only get to do that for 4-5 seats a month and reserve them for very urgent items, and club members as it does cost us more in freight.

I understand his frustration at not getting his seat more quickly, however other than some of our communication, which is still being worked on, AMC had seats on order for stock, and shipped immediately on arrival. I cannot find fault in our ordering and shipping process.

One final point, if for ANY reason whatsoever, ChrisMac is not happy with his seat, he has 30 days to return it for refund. No other distributor or dealer worldwide offers that guarantee.

amcmo wrote:ChrisMac's seat was invoiced on 23/1, the day it arrived in our warehouse from the US, with senior staff working through lunch to get the shipment out. Shipment of 26 seats, 21 for customers, arrived in 10.20 am, every sold seat was packed and out the door by 3pm, that's in addition to our normal daily shipments. Not bad performance from a bunch of people who deserve to be sacked, if I say so myself. If Christian has not received his yet, the tracking number is 84Y0003317010224. (Registered Post)

That's going to be somewhat less than 2 months, but we won't split hairs. I might point out, we shipped 1 other Bandit seat that had been on order for 2 weeks.

Much as Chris might like to blame us, we already had 2 of that seat on order from the factory for stock at the time he ordered, so no delay anywhere in the process on our part. We were expecting them prior to Christmas.

It is physically impossible for us to force product out of a factory, if the product has not been made. As far as information, we can provide, we can only relay information on estimated shipments as we get them from the factory.

Also, much as he might not like it, factories (and also us) did close for the Christmas holidays. We were closed until the 7th, though I was back in the office on the 4th chasing factories, and sorting computer problems.

We pushed the factory for a shipment to us week 2 of December, as allowing for air freight consolidation, Customs and delivery to us, that was the last date a shipment could leave and have it arrive before we closed for the break. We don't allow shipments to arrive in the country when closed, as last year, we had $5000 of product sitting on our loading dock for a week, despite having told the freight company and the factory our closing dates.When the shipment was not completed in time to leave by the cut-off, we instructed the factory to hold and ship 7 Jan. In the event, due to their work load and freight consol, they did not ship on the 7th as requested, finally collected by the freight company on 17 Jan.

If we ordered seats one at a time, we could get them sometimes quicker, however as a distributor we have to order in bulk, a combination of stock and customer orders, placed weekly. Our average Sargent shipment varies from $6000 to $10,000 at retail of seats every 3 weeks. We currently have a further 3 Bandit seats on order for stock, one order for 2 placed 7/12, and another placed 10/1. Out of the latest shipment mentioned above there are 5 seats left for stock of various models, joining the 12 we already have. Order placed today for a Z1000 seat and rear cover left less than 2 hours after being placed.

Yes, we make it clear, we do take a deposit on seats.

He didn't mention he was a club member with his order, or his seat would have been $40 cheaper than he paid.

Also, if he had mentioned he was a club member, we could possibly have taken up one of the limited single shipment slots we have per month for him, provided he was going to be at home to sign for it over the Christmas break. Under this new system we have arranged, we ship to our Chester US office, then direct to the customer, with full Australian warranty. We only get to do that for 4-5 seats a month and reserve them for very urgent items, and club members as it does cost us more in freight.

I understand his frustration at not getting his seat more quickly, however other than some of our communication, which is still being worked on, AMC had seats on order for stock, and shipped immediately on arrival. I cannot find fault in our ordering and shipping process.

One final point, if for ANY reason whatsoever, ChrisMac is not happy with his seat, he has 30 days to return it for refund. No other distributor or dealer worldwide offers that guarantee.

cant fault your reply. You win some you lose some unfortunately. people that arent in a industry that is relying on lots of different companies to operate dont understand things happen that are way out of your hands

As a consumer, and in the world of the Internet, I am expecting faster and faster service. I guess I don't have much of an idea of what a business has to go through, but when I can buy a rear hugger (for my now sold Ducati) and have it delivered to Darwin from Seattle in 4 business days - then I have some pretty high expectations for service! And a MRA Screen from Twisted Throttle and have it delivered in 8 days......

I guess I am saying that I wouldn't be happy to wait for 2 months just for a product I would expect to be held on a shelf. I guess I do have a tiny knowledge of business and know that it costs $$ to hold stock on a shelf (that someone may - or may not buy), so to be competitive you need to keep expenses down.

Frustrates the hell out of me that I can buy things from overseas and have them here quicker than if I was to try to buy in Australia. I know this kinda kills off local business, but that seems to be the price for convenience.

Cheers
Steve

Per my reply, we try to keep popular seats in stock, and why this is a seat we try to keep in stock, why we already had 2 on order, and why we currently have 3 on order, also why we try to keep 1-2 DR650, 1-2 GS800, 1-2 STrip 675, 1 R1200GS, 3 Z/Ninja 1000, 2 1198, 2 S1000RR, amongst others. It's a substantial $$ investment in stock.

The biggest problem for any company holding (especially, expensive) stock is that demand is not flat. We had the 2 1250 seats on order and based on the previous 3 months sales, they should have been in stock before our next customer order.

ChrisMac - do you have an address for a supplier from the states for a seat?

I am a consumer in an open market and I WILL NOT deal with any trader that is slow, expensive and incompetent when I can just as easily deal with someone else on the internet.

Rolls,

We have 3 on order for stock, due in just over 2 weeks - the fastest the factory can get them here. Nothing to do with a (local) supplier being slow or incompetent. The first 2 were ordered on the factory 10/12. We bring everything by air, unlike some major distributors who ship by sea to save cost (and make more profit)

As for expensive, every time a prospective customer has questioned the local price, we have been able to show our prices are on par with the US when correct allowance is made for freight. And we have to give 10% of our price to the government, meaning before tax, we are cheaper than overseas (ie, our margins a lower than overseas suppliers). Talk of $100 cheaper has NEVER stood up to rational evaluation.

And 2 final points.

1. We are the only distributor worldwide that offers a 30 day return for any reason guarantee. Happens very rarely, however sometimes the worlds best seat just doesn't suit an individual.

2. If your direct import seat is faulty, wrong one sent (happens) or is damaged in transit (happens reasonably often as discounters often use the minimum packaging possible), it costs you almost $200 (Aus Post is a rip-off) to send it back to the US for warranty (if you can get a response to your complaint). We get 3-4 a year at least approach us for help on direct import product, which we have to politely decline.

rolls wrote:ChrisMac - do you have an address for a supplier from the states for a seat?

I am a consumer in an open market and I WILL NOT deal with any trader that is slow, expensive and incompetent when I can just as easily deal with someone else on the internet.

To be fair to Rob at AMC, I can see his point with supply that is beyond his control, but in such instances it might be prudent to provide this info to a customer up front. In my own AMC purchase experience (a ZG screen) I had been told one thing by one of Robs staff, but the reality was another. This is all highlighted in loooong posts elsewhere on this forum, and Rob to his credit fully explained the situation and compensated the delay with a reduction on the price. All kudos there.

Unfortunately, at the time, the delay was such, that it meant I ended up modifying my own MRA Vario to suit my impending touring needs which surprisingly...turned out to be perfect (fully adjustable on the go and the mod is covered in other posts somewhere) , so the ZG still sits unopened in its packaging.

I've no doubt that aust suppliers with stock can do well with delivery times, but there is an obvious challenge where a local supplier is the ONLY aust outlet for an o/s product.

During my ZG dilemma I did contact (who i assumed was) the US factory / supplier along with other USA distributors to see if I could purchase direct to speed things up (i had a trip coming up soon and I was bloody cranky and frustrated at the delays) and they didn't respond other than to say, i had to use my local agent. Appeared that the factory gave AMC a call or forwarded on my email though cos Rob seemed quite aware i had been trying other source options.

I do prefer to support local suppliers where possible (and i think we all should where price competitive) but in the past due to huge price differences (cheap) I've purchased Ohlins suspension for my BMW GS from the USA, (10 days to my door), a madstad screen from the USA for my GS (9 days), Radiator thermo fan from the UK (14 days). More recently, HID spots for my ute (8 days), dual reverse camera setup for ute (10 days). A colleague at work is building a very sweet street rod and sourcing many components from the US with unbelievable delivery times as low as 4 days (to Darwin). When I've tracked my own overseas purchases, I've noticed they usually make Australia within 2 days of order. The rest of the time is consumed by our own relatively slow postal aussie system, with delays often not helped by our lovely customs people.....(necessary non the less)

Living in Darwin since 1974, (and there's one or two others on this forum from here who might agree) I'm used to hearing the words "sorry zero local stock" (due to cost) and having to await an order, but it does frustrate, and no real surprises that businesses running it close to the bone -and who have very little value adding capacity- and who wait big order numbers before placing orders appear to be fairly temporary up here.

I'm happy to give AMC the benefit of the doubt (no doubt Rob's trying his best under the circumstances) and there seem to be many happy forum people who have purchased there.

I'm not really in that camp with my own experience...although the delay did end up forcing a better solution for me, and ill keep the unopened ZG screen in case I have a little drop and need a quick replacement.

Having said all this; based on others experiences....if they (AMC) stock a product (and confirm have stock), they'd get my business. If I was told after placing order "sorry now need to order", I'd be inclined to cancel. ( my choice)

Have to remember that these guys also have to deal with walk in buyers as well, so something sitting on the shelf before lunch might not be there after. Shit happens. We move on.
Bill.

NTBill,

Thanks for an open and honest post.

If you no longer need the screen and want to post it back, I'd be happy to refund the purchase price.

I know it means you take a hit on the freight there and back, however the offer's there.

The more I buy on eBay the more I am convinced that a lot of Australian merchants are not doing it correctly.



Last year I purchased a genuine Fluke clamp meter. They sell for $520-$550 through electrical wholesalers. I paid $229 including postage.
I purchased from an eBay shop in Brisbane and 6 days later it arrived directly from Hong Kong. I guess the Brisbane business is nothing bigger than a desk with a laptop but the merchant has a very efficient means of sourcing the products and having them shipped direct to the customer.



My wife wears hearing aids and goes through around 60 batteries in 16 months.
Replacement batteries (box of 60) in Mackay around $65 (this includes coal tax of course)
The same batteries from Brisbane cost $40 plus $10 postage
I purchased from eBay merchant in UK - $25 including postage and 6 days delivery

With my excellent results to date I am wondering whether I can do my grocery shopping on eBay

A good number of supposedly Australian eBay shops are in fact in Hong Kong, no connection with Australia.

Can't deny the price and service is good when things go well, though what happens when something doesn't go right. Enough examples of them suddenly not knowing English if you look through eBay.

Of course it's easy to have cheap pricing up there, and easy to have quick despatch, when you're paying staff a couple of bowls of rice a day.

We even see it with our US office. We can legally pay $8 per hour, and fire at will, even without reason. If we could say our staff could expect tips from customers, we could pay $2 per hour - yes, in the USA. We actually pay more than twice the legal minimum to our most junior, and have half the town on our list for any future jobs. Some of the other businesses in town are not happy with our "excessive" pay.

Here in Aus, along with everyone in business, we have to pay approaching $30 per hour minimum, Super, etc etc, and consumers still expect our prices to be the same as the USA or Hong Kong. We compete with the US on most items, however it means lower margins, I works 60 plus hours a week at a lower hourly rate than my junior. Sometimes wonder (Not really) if I should fire the Aussie staff, just keep the web sites and VOIP phones with an Aussie number that rings in the US office, have everything shipped to our US office and become a 'virtual' distributor. More staff to handle the follow up at less cost, and more pay for me!!!

End result of course, more unemployed Australians, and higher taxes to pay for them.

While I cannot fault people for wanting cheapest prices and off the shelf from a larger market that supports larger stocking, there is a cost.

Just my soapbox session. I choose to live and run a business in Australia rather than there, for so many reasons. Happy Australia Day!