Experienced mechanic wanted for bike evaluation and testing

[vjanda]

Hi all,
I have recently relocated abroad and am in the in the process of starting a business of exporting second hand bikes from the UK.

I'm looking for a good experienced mechanic who would be willing to inspect bikes in the Greater London area on a regular basis for me.

I need someone reliable, with lots of experience and a mechanical background. The person should be able to test and evaluate bikes quickly and spot any mechanical issues as well as evaluate the realistic value, and negotiate with the seller on my behalf.

Could be a nice side earner for the right person...

Looking for a long term work relationship with a serious mechanic, no diy amateurs please.

If you think you're the person for the part drop me a few lines about yourself on : vjanda@yahoo.com

Thanks in advance

[prawny1]

And all i need is your name, address, and national insurance number as well as your bank account details for making a one off payment of $1000 us to cover administration charges and a photocopy of your driving licence or internatinal passport.

(Read in a nigerian accent)

LONG LIVE LAGOS
____________________
hellkat wrote:

Some people are only alive cos its against the law to kill them.

[Vincent]

We don't want our bikes leaving the country thanks - that'd mean less choice and higher prices for us
____________________
Space Is Deep

[vjanda]

[prawny1]

[vjanda]

I'm only looking to get a couple of bikes a months.
Seems no one out there wants easy money to take em for a spin and briefly check em out mechanically.
Never mind...

[G]

My spam/scam sense is not tingly.

That email address checks out for other uses over the years.

Decent standard of written English and a 'business plan' which we know is already working to make money for many people

I'd be tempted to give him a shout if I wasn't 200 miles away from the location he was looking for help in.

[vjanda]

Cheers G
BTW I'd be paying for every bike checked out regardless of whether I end up buying it or not.
Was thinking 50 quid per survey, think that's fair?
Payment however you choose, I have a verified paypal account.
If you have the same it's the safest way to go.
Hell I'd even make it out as a gift so the swines at pp don't take their cut.
I also hold an account on fleabay.co.uk for over 10 years with a purple fucking star n'all. If that twinkling beauty don't convince ya nothing will. In fact I was going to target bikes on ebay auctions to start with. Figured best bargains are to be found there.
If anyone risks then it's me because any Muppet could take me up on my offer and clear off with my dosh.
That's why I asked for a resume by email, yet to receive any.
Can chat via skype too if you want to treat your ears to my "Nigerian" accent

[prawny1]

listen you are obviously just phishing for personal info no-one is gona fall for it, most likely to try and hack paypal or run an overpayment scam or worse just outright identity theft so people be warned.

the next likely scam is the unautherised paypal transaction scam where you get the funds they clear so you sent the item out (in this case buy then send to the exporter) then within 90 days the buyer runs an unautherised transaction claim with his credit card company and the money gets pulled straight back out of your account and they have a free bike.

you can try getting your money back of paypal but anything outside of an ebay transaction and they will just laugh at you.

recieving fund from paypal is just as risky as accepting a cheque of a stranger for goods, their is a huge 90 day window for potential fraud with paypal, you may not know youve been had in the net for months.

worse of these scams in the uk right now is people getting your address having you out on a fony job interview or errand then just robbing your house.
____________________
hellkat wrote:

Some people are only alive cos its against the law to kill them.

[Lord Percy]

Where are the bikes gonna be exported to?

What's your ebay user name?

What do you sell in such numbers to have gotten that big purple star? It's for selling lots of stuff and getting good feedback, innit?

Do you really not personally know a single person, or a friend of a friend, who could help you out on this? Regardless of whether it's a professional bike mechanic or an amateur, it's not like they're gonna be able to give it a royally sealed stamp of approval anyway.

[nowhere.elysium]

OP - I'm in need of a subsidiary earner at he moment, and am based in East London. Give me some details that don't sound quite so speculative, and I may be up for this.
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'10 SV650SF, '83 GS650GT (it lives!), Questionable DIY dash project, 3D Printer project, Lasercutter project

[prawny1]

If the bloke is legit (very unlikely) either he will be in the county himself or he would have a buyer/exporter in the u.k. that could arrange all this and do these deals in cash, it's the only way to ensure no fraud but you still don't want to go aloe incase they just rob the cash back once you return with said bike after buying it.


In either case making a deal with local mot shop would be far better and cheaper, that way if the mot guy says the bike is good/roadworthy op buys it and it has a fresh mot,

if he recommends you don't buy it then at very least the seller is happy because he has gotten a free mot/ advice on what his bike need The mot shop gets paid either way so they are happy too.
____________________
hellkat wrote:

Some people are only alive cos its against the law to kill them.

[G]

[P.addy]

[vjanda]

How could I use a local MOT center if I'm going to be checking out bikes all over the Greater London area?
I think most of the bikes will be ebay auctions and it's unlikely the seller will want to ride to my mot center.
That's why I wanted someone to take the bikes for a spin and check out the general state.
I know sod all about mechanics but I guess that quite a lot ca be ascertained by a test ride.
Btw I only buy on ebay, hence my 515 stars.
eBay user name catherinewills1961 Drop me a line
The bikes I buy will be sold in eastern europe namely Croatia Serbia and Slovenia.
I'm amazed that some folks out there still think it's a scam.
I no longer live in London but have family and friends there so cash payment is an option too if you're in the sw19 area (southfields/wimbledon).
Ohh no, not the old cash in hand nigerian scam again lol.

[prawny1]

[Dave-the-rave]

Greater London isn't the cheapest area of the country to buy bikes.
Just saying.

[vjanda]

Put yourself in my shoes. In that scenario the seller would take the bike to the nearest local garage that he/she most probably knows well.
Even if they didn't that leaves room for the seller to slip a tenner to a mechanic who'd report back the bike A ok to me.
I'm much rather have one reliable experienced person do the test ride and price negotiating on my behalf.
The more I think of it the more doubts I have I'll find that sort of person. I'm thinking a good mechanic just won't bother as his time is worth much more.
I'd also consider someone with a passion for bikes and diy mechanical knowledge so long as it was someone with many years on the road.

[G]

If I was selling a bike and someone said "can you take the bike to be checked over at this location", I'd probably respond with "sure, just tell which evening you'd like it and paypal me the money for my time first". Some people might be happy to go to an MOT station when they're open for their already MOT'd bike to be looked over, but a lot wouldn't.

I would agree that London is a bad place to buy (though a lot of bikes in a small area). Also that ebay is often a bit questionable for bargains - there are some to be had, but there's also a lot of people expecting to get a lot of money for minimal effort.

[prawny1]

[G]

So you're now going to expect the seller to ride their bike a decent distance to this MOT place, as presumably most won't be that local?

[vjanda]

OK, can anyone recommend a good mechanic in a service center in central London? I may take that route

How much do you think a thorough bike check will set me back?

Cheers,
Abalumbe (Zaire)

[Lord Percy]

500+ ebay ratings... 7 of which were as a seller... 5 years ago.

I'm just gonna put it out there that there's no profit in buying bikes in an expensive place like the UK, then paying for their export all the way to the other side of Europe, to presumably be sold in countries where stuff is cheaper anyway. Seems like the money flow is continuously downwards...

How you gonna make the money?

I mean seriously. Exporting second hand vehicles from an expensive country, paying for their freight (bulk/individual?) to then sell them in cheaper countries?

Am I missing something? Is the British Pound now on par with Pakistan Rupees or something? Forgive me because I'm really not au fait with much to do with business or entrepreneurship, but the idea doesn't seem to compute at all.

[Kradmelder]

[G]