OMG.....and you call yourself a great mechanic?

[Buck]

So, the other day i got a new tire, and took it to a local mechanic that is part of my riding group, hes a great guy, but...i told him im flushing the brake fluid and changing the brake pads on the bike this weekend, and he offered to do it for me since he was going to be under there anyways, it would be a quick fix. Thinking at first he was meaning doing it for free, i said sure.

well, i pick up the bike on friday, tire is on and looks great, brake pads on the rear are on, and he hands me the bill. $15 to switch out the rear brake pads....that pissed me off. it was maybe a $5 job, its easy to do. but then....here come the fun.

Friday night around midnight or so, im riding down to my grandparents to crash for the night, and i start hearing some metal clinking and the likes in the rear, my first thought was the plate for the caliper, and after flushing the brakes, i find something missing, so i go back to the place i heard the noise happen and this is what i find (see picture below)

the bolt goes in nicely and there would be no way for it to loosen up that quickly. so now i get to wait until tomorrow to find out if he will replace the plate for free. because even though the bolt is fine....that plate is beyond repair.


i named this post what i did because if you are such a great mechanic...how can you forget to do one last look to make sure that everything is screwed down properly?

 

[Ansimp]

:swoon: :doh:

 

[Steve83]

D'oh! That sucks - but hey, we're all human.

 

[sledge]

if you really want something done right , and you feel like its done Your way..... there is only One Way..... do it yourself. :builder: I really don't trust anybody else working on my stuff. :head bang:

 

[slabghost]

Never called myself a "great mechanic" but I do fix a wide variety of stuff. And yes I do screw some stuff up occasionally.

 

[joedrum]

yes ...I can always find the idiot mechanic ...in my mirror oh2: that didn't work I broke the mirror ....see what I mean dang idiot :mrgreen:

 

[OldWrench]

I guess I see this a little differently. Not sure what the labor rate is in your area for a professional mechanic, but our shop is $100.00 an hour with a thirty minute minimum. So normally one gets what they pay for. If one of my guys left bolts lose on any part of a brake system he would be looking for his next job. Yes we would fix whatever was damaged for free, no question about it. What it seems like you got was a pretty careless mechanic. Yes we are all human and we all make mistakes but there are some things your can't afford to make major mistakes on and brakes are one of them.

 

[dan filipi]

I agree with Oldwrench.

Mistakes happen but there should always be accountability for the mistake.
He should as a man offer aplology and free repair and consider himself lucky that's all that happened.

Hopefully this "mechanic" friend of yours has learned a lesson to be more careful when a life is at stake.

 

[Buck]

Well, when he finally opened up shop today, i road the bike over to him, showed him the bent POS bracket that fell off, and he put one on. now, its on there, but i think im done with him for a long time. He seems to be less carefull when he works on a harley then anything else. you take a jap bike to him and he changes his whole attitude.

but the bike is now ready for my trip. going to take a 900 mile round trip up to washington to visit some old friends/family for a day or two, will be a great ride and with everything appearing to be in working order, as soon as i have the money ill be heading out.

 

[mwbill37841]

be fore you go rideing to far i would check over everything agian just to be safe...

 

[dan filipi]

mwbill37841 » Mon Jun 24, 2013 12:45 pm[/url]":h9gxkpi6]be fore you go rideing to far i would check over everything agian just to be safe...

Agreed.
Check everything is tight, working proper and there's no leaking brake fluid.

 

[Ansimp]

+1 :yes:

 

[Steve83]

+1 and have a great ride!

 

[OldWrench]

+1 enjoy your ride.

 

[joedrum]

cool

 

[Omega Man]

Glad it's all sorted out, check all that work he did and have a great ride bro, you deserve it!

~O~

 

[David Mantle]

Been working on my own bikes since age 14 and I ain`t dead yet so must be doing something right. Mind you I do not work on bikes belonging to others , just to be on the safe side. :fiddle:
Better to be safe than be sued. :rtfm:

 

[AlaskaWing]

900 miles is almost 1000! Why not do it in 24 hours, take the scenic route, save your receipts, and get an Iron Butt license Plate frame?

I am going to have to replace my brake pads some time too. I wish I could find someone to do it for $15.

 

[David Mantle]

Pay for my flight and I would do it for free LOL

 

[AlaskaWing]

That might push me a bit over budget!