First bike MOT

[aljo87]

Hi everyone, long time lurker first poster!

So I am just back from the garage where my CBF 125 had her first MOT under my ownership... Before going in this morning, she had a clean bill of health but it has now been advised that the steering bearing is stiff on full lock. Fair enough. I asked the chap how much it would cost to repair this and he quoted me £250, "Quite a big job" he said, then 5 minutes later he said that the problem might go away on its own??

I am confused on how a potential £250 'big job' can fix itself?

This was the first time that I have taken a bike for an MOT so I don't know if he was chancing his luck?

Cheers
Alan

[Rogerborg]

[aljo87]

It certainly doesn't feel like there is anything wrong with the steering, no different to the CBF that I recently done my CBT on, but I didn't want to contradict him in front of customers.

So £250 to repair it if it is then? Or will the problem go away on its own? Thats what confused me

Cheers

[ART-ADS]

[aljo87]

id ask him very specifically what they'd do to fix the issue then do it yourself. yes that'll piss people off but I fuckin hate most garages they take the piss in repairs[/quote]

Probably slap some grease on it at a couple of hundred quid. Funny thing is, the bike came with no advisories and has sat in a garage for 6 months and only done 55 miles since the last MOT. Hmmmm Last time I'll be visiting them

[A100man]

Sorry it's not clear, but did it pass? If so forget about it unless some symptoms start to make you nervous.

If it failed then you need to buy some spanners - the parts will be cheap.
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Now: A100, GT250A, XJ598, FZ750

Then: Fizz, RS200, KL250, XJ550, Laverda Alpina, XJ600, FZS600

[Rogerborg]

[tom_e]

£250 sounds steep but saying that you've got to take the whole front off the bike to replace the head bearings or he just couldn't be arsed so quoted high so you'd go elsewhere.

[arry]

[tom_e]

[kgm]

I'd never pay that for head bearings. it can be a pain but it's not that hard a job and the paers are cheap. Stick it on the centre stand yourself, raise the front wheel (get someone to hold the back down) and move the bars side to side.

If it feels notchy or stiff change the bearings. If there's play back and forth in thesteering head when grabbing the forks and giving them a wiggle check tightness of bearings, possibly replace.

If a bit tght on full lock it might be caused by cables or wiring causing friction.

If smooth movement and no play, no issue.

Simples.

[arry]

[Islander]

Was it a fail or an advisory?

[Teflon-Mike]

The query is suffering from a lot of repetition distortion; but untangling it as best I can;

You bought bike 6 months ago with valid MOT, showing no advisaries.. and laid it up, cos you couldn't ride it for whatever reason.

You put the same bike, 55miles and 6-month later, in for MOT, this week, and:-

It passed? It failed, the Steering bearings were an advisory? I cant tell, so tell us more and be more explicit.

IF the head-race bearings be dead: See How2: Fit Head-Race Bearings - Photo-How-To

Little bikes do duffer lack of routine maintenance by former owners; and headrace bearings are one of the things oft neglected, as out-of-sight-out-of-mind.

And...if the bike has been layed up, its possible that moisture in the races could have rusted and pitted them, so it could be notchy...and this may explain your assumed discrepancy between old valid MOT, 6 months and 55miles before most recent... ie what was was, needn't be now; so dont presume on it.

Not moved, left in storage, condensation collects on the ball-bearings, pools in the tracks beneath them, rusts the bearing race, makes steering 'notchy', which grease alone probably wont fix... (and CBF's reputation for early-life rust would tend to make this something to be even more wary of).... and even if stripping and cleaning and regreasing could fix it.. see link above; most of the work is in stripping down the steering to get at the bearings; bearings themselves.

Better, 'taper-roller' type bearings are only around £30-£50, loose balls types even less; and a paid mechanic would probably not bother with old bearings, as trying to salvage potentially rusty part worn steering bearings would probably add as much or more in priced time to the job than it saved in parts; a half decent mechanic, having to strip the headstock bare to do the job, would just wack in brand new bearings and be done.

Again, see link; gives you an idea of how large a job it is; I suggest a 1st time DIYer aught with a LITTLE common cocum, and a couple of more specialist tools, like a big socket for top-yoke nut, and a decent C-Spanner, be able to do it in about a day, easily.

A more practiced mechanic aught to be able to do the whole lot, start to finish, in two-or three hours. So, £30 per hour? Plus £50 worth of bearings, plus a little leeway for more awkward mechanics, £250 seems a bit of an optimistic estimate; even at £60 per-hour main-stealer prices, it shouldn't really come in SO high, and you'd expect a main stealer to have had more practice, have all specilist tools, and the factory manuals on hand.

This begs connundrum;

Most main-dealer mechanics, DONT tend to make up or exaggerate faults to get business, especially on littler bikes; it's not thier business, they get paid a wage for being there, whether there's any bikes to be fixed or not.

Then they dont often like little bikes, which tend to sell for less, new, in the show-room, and they can get a lot more 'argy-bargy' from owners who resent the hourly rate, some-how believing that because thier 125cc only costs 1/4 what a 1000cc bike does, that the mechanic should only charge them 1/4 his normal hourly rate to fix anything on it... chuck in a few bits of DIY lore, suggesting that a mate down the road can fix anything in half an hour with a hack-and-wrecker drill, halfords socket set and a chewing-gum wrapper.... its easy to understand why they might, offer "How-MUCH!" effoff quotes to make some-one take a littler bike elsewhere to fix, rather than give them the grief....

The independent? At the very other end of the spectrum, is likely the 'mate' down the road who proffesses to be able to fix anything, in half an hour, with a halfords socket set and a chewing gum wrapper...who's rented a unit off the council... and discovered that he cant fix anything in 1/2 hour with a chewing gum wrapper... but dont tell the owner till after having a look, then hits them with an almost 'effoff' quote in the hope they'll decide that a bargain compared to main-stealer's effoff quote, and leave it to be bodged, and pay the units rent bill for the month!

In between, are now far less conscientious mechanics that offer a fair job for a fair price, as H&S regs and cost of specialist equipment has started to bite, leaving far more fly-by nights at the lower end of the market, often now working not from industrial estate units, but out of lock-ups at residential houses...of which some, are probably better and more reasonable mechanics... but if they are, they usually have enough work to keep them busy, and dont need to make-believe work, or offer fairy-tale quotes to earn thier crust... they will normally have more work than they can handle beating path to thier door.... especially around march, when first sun breaks winter bleak, and folk have ideas of getting the bike out again, then through the summer 'season' when most riders are wracking up miles on them, begging the maintenance work, and more in late summer, as any that have delayed work needed until absolutely needed, decide to get it done so they can get some more miles in before the weather turns.

SO! hinges significantly on whether it was an actual MOT fail, or an advisory, an 'effoff' quote so you dont come back, or a money-spinner to pay the rent this month.

If the work is in question, PERSONALLY I would waggle steering and try and see for myself if there was any slop or notchiness, rocking bike with and without the brakes on; and then lifting the front end so steering hanging free and waggle for free play and notchiness, and decide for myself, IF the bearings needed attention.

If there was any slop between going forwards and backwards or side to side, it MAY just be a case that the bearings need greasing and the pre-load tightening up a bit; notchiness would imply that the races are pitted and need replacing; given the overall work, IF there was any doubt, I would PROBABLY swap'em'out... DIYed, even having to buy a big socket and a C-Spanner, hammer and drift to do the job, on top of brand new, probably better Taper-Roller bearings.. its probably still only a £100 job, any one with a little common could do in a week-end... I'd know job was done, done pukka, and have the big socket and C-Spanner to adjust 100 miles on, and check there-after.

Trying to save pennies? Be tempting to strip what was there.. try and catch ALL the original bearings in a jam jar and chase the escapees with an old speaker magnet.. clean up the old races with wet and dry and diesel, rattle clean the bearings in the jam-jar with some more deseasil, and re-assemble with new grease, and then tension up... but would still beg the big socket and C-Spanner... it would only save the price of the bearings..

B-U-T from LONG hard experience of chasing that ONE effing ball that manages to escape round the patio, under the wheelie bin, under the sectional wall slab of the garage, etc etc etc... and THEN having the niggle of finding new loose balls, to replace the one lost, and any that I manage to save, that turn out on inspection to be rusty or flatted or ovaled, on a Sunday morning, usually, when shops is shut, and halfords or local motor-factors only have odd-packs, and cant find the right size... knowing that I have all the work to do regardless... and that's a BIG risk and chunk of hassle for the relative small saving... I'd be inclined to buy a set of taper-rollers before I started, and save the hassles!

DIY its still a reletively cheap job... IF it has to be done... and that's the pertinant question...

MOT's only worth anything the day its done... its not a garantee that the bike will be road-worthy even an hour later, let alone a year later, that is still YOUR responsibility, according to the Road-Traffic act, and if you have comon cocum, your own sense of self preservation, when it comes to things like tyres, steering, brakes and suspension! Which come before even whether the engine works!!

Headrace bearings ARE something to keep an eye on and check periodically, same as tyres, brakes suspension and engine oil... NOT to be left until MOT man moans...

But we dont know really whether he was moaning or why, or if the bearings really need attension. And neither do you...
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My Webby'Tef's-tQ, loads of stuff about my bikes, my Land-Rovers, and the stuff I do with them!
Current Bikes:'Honda VF1000F' ;'CB750F2N' ;'CB125TD ( 6 3 of em!)'; 'Montesa Cota 248'. Learner FAQ's:= 'U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?'

[Riejufixing]

[MCN]

Fucking hell Tef.
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[fatjames]