| Author | Message | ||
     Petereid |
Buell, the motorcycle company has nothing to do with it They did build it. Even if they are just a division of HD. It says Buell right on the aircover. I have MR. Buell's snazzy signature right on mine with the 25 year logo. If my name were on it I would be involved in ensuring happy customers. But what the heck do I know about business....I'm 44 and have been semi-retired for almost 10 years. I'm not trying to tick you off or anything Court. I have been reading your posts since I first came on and you have a lot of valuable information and that's why I emailed you regarding this. | ||
| Petereid |
No promises. . . but I'm gonna try I appreciate your help Court. BTW my dealer this morning re-emailed the pics of the water in the bags and hasn't heard anything back yet. He hopes to follow up with me later today Pete | ||
| Wbrisett |
I'll take the opposite stance on this... In many ways this really isn't so much a Buell issue as it is a Hepco & Becker issue. Granted Buell is putting their name on them, but they didn't build them, they only OEM'd the product. However, that said, Buell should be able to pressure H&B to look into this issue and find out why many of us seem to have bags that end up with water in them. However, in many respects short of beating up on H&B, I'm not sure what Buell can do. Wayne | ||
| Court |
>>>>I'm not trying to tick you off or anything Court. I am nearly impossible to tick off so don't worry. Like you I moved to NYC in 1998 with the intent of retiring. It was but the confluence of my power plant and power line experience and a need that possessed these kooks to suck me back in . . . I love it and will be doing this for years to come . . . but I don't depend on it. The entire Buell thing I do because I enjoy it. I spend thousands of bucks a year to help Buell Customers and love my unique situation that allows me to pretty much call it like I see it. I've threatened to stop many times, had HD try to stop me many times and I just keep getting deeper in . . . I love it! Trust me, I generally have the folks at HD (who are super to work with and have been terribly accommodating about some of my more than innovative solutions) and Buell Customers equally ticked. My comments weren't in reference to a hypothetical Buell business model; they were simply stating a fact that Buell MOTORCYCLE Company sells everything out the door to Buell DISTRIBUTION Company that handles all other elements of the commercial relationship. Right or wrong, that's the way it is. Some folks at Buell get involved but, and I'm not real keen on this, don't have the "skin in the game" they should. When I am resolving issues I am forced to deal with reality, not the way I wish things were. Now . . let me get about seeing what can be done. | ||
| Dentguy |
I've been able to get them to reopen a couple closed cases, have special parts overnighted from Austria and replace 2 bikes. I'm a construction worker who could care less but I've helped hundreds, perhaps thousands, of Buell owners over the years I think the key word is "I've". Court, No doubt you've done and do a lot to help many people with Buells. I think that's great as I'm sure many others do also. It just seems like it takes YOU to get a lot of this done. Why can't some of this get done with the customer and Buell if customer service is so good? Why when something good gets done is it because of Buells great customer service, but when it doesn't it's because of Harley Davidson as you posted above? Not trying to pick, just trying to understand. | ||
| Dentguy |
Looks like you answered some of that while I was typing (I'm slow). | ||
| Nutsosane |
Ya know, several years ago I had a problem with a Buell product. So I went through the proper channels and kept my typing fingers away from public forums and wouldn't ya know... I found a welcomed resolution. Now, I know your bags have been tied up for some time, but that may very well be down to the dealer not following the proper channels. I honestly believe if you would have privately contacted Court in the beginning, this might very well be long since resolved. Maybe, it shouldn't have to be done but, think how fortunate YOU are that it CAN be done.  NUTS | ||
| Dentguy |
I honestly believe if you would have privately contacted Court in the beginning, this might very well be long since resolved. That's exactly my point. No offense to Court, but why should he have to contact Court privately for this to be long since resolved? Shouldn't he just be able to get it resolved? | ||
| Court |
>>>>Why can't some of this get done with the customer and Buell if customer service is so good? Actually I am really proud of the group that is in there now and they are doing a great job. I'm hearing many more stories of wonderful customer service encounters and I can say that some of the lingering attitudes of the HD employee to Buell are are largely a thing of the past. These folks, and I think most understand that, have some serious constraints to work within. I long for the days when all I had to do was walk to the warehouse, pick up a part and ship it to someone. That was not, and we knew it then, the way to do it . . . it was a stop-gap measure but we did do some fairly incredible things. I'm not thrilled about being in the middle of some of these and in some cases, for some reason there were 3 last month, folks actually try to get me in the middle of an already nasty case. I've been able to get the Customer Service staff to take a 2nd look at some things but I never tell them they are wrong. They are good folks doing their best to do the best job they can.
Hahahaha . . . you know what? .. you're right! When things go great I tend to give Buell the credit and when they don't I blame the system! I'm glad you pointed that out and I'll try to do better. There are, however, a handful of folks at Buell (yep, THE Buell Motorcycle Company_ who know the ropes at HD and have been exceedingly helpful. I am proud that Buell, on their worst day, pretty much runs circles around any other motorcycle customer service outfit. There is room for improvement and a cultural mindset that I think will enable it. Hell, I may apply for the job! | ||
| Ratbuell |
Just to toss in my .02 (it's worth what you pay for it, lol) - don't forget there's another layer to this particular case. Buell has to contact Hepco-Becker, I'm sure, every time a situation like this comes up. *Buell* could be getting stonewalled. I base all that on nothing, by the way. It's just a guess. In my mind, a logical one...but still a guess. Buell doesn't make saddlebags; they buy 'em. That makes them the customer, and I'm sure they have to go through many of the same steps you, the consumer, are going through right now. Toss in a potential language barrier...I know, far from helpful, but at least for me, perspective always helps soothe my nerves. At least for a little bit. | ||
| Court |
>>>*Buell* could be getting stonewalled. Negative >>>Toss in a potential language barrier.. Not a problem. Working on it . . . | ||
| Ratbuell |
Outstanding  I'll go back to being quiet now...lol | ||
| Dentguy |
Court, Thank you for responding. I appreciate it. | ||
| Prowler |
Peter, another option you've got (which may not be the best one for you) is to sell the 2 leaking Journey side cases along with the top case on E-Bay or this site (noting that they are not 100% water proof, many won't care) and then replace them with the Outdoorsman cases. I did kinda the same thing when I got rid of my Journey side cases and replaced them with Pelican 1500 cases (top and sides for $88 each, using Buell's H-B mounts for $250...total cost about $500). Pretty much an even exchange for some high quality absolutely watertight cases that you can drive a truck over. Obviously, the Outdoorsman cases would be a little more money, but you'd still end up in a good place (for 'bout the same cost as the exchange you wanted to do with Buell.......) | ||
| Darthane |
...well, if they ever update them officially, sign me up. Otherwise I'll just lay a garbage bag in the bag and pack IT on any major trips. I've tested mine a few times and they leak pretty much across the spectrum (high pressure, low pressure, direct spray, etc). | ||
| Court |
Okay Peter . . . . I think we have you all fixed up. I'm e-mailing you the information you need. Court CASE CLOSED - my work here is done. (Message edited by court on March 02, 2009) | ||
| Nutsosane |
I would just like to thank Buell for all they do. Assembly, shipping, parts, Customer Service, R&D, One and all. NUTS | ||
| Petereid |
Thanks Court! Hopefully everything will be cleared up shortly. I feel a little more confident this will be resolved. Pete | ||
| Court |
>>>>Hopefully everything will be cleared up shortly. I can assure you that it will. It's the way Buell does business. | ||
| Petereid |
Just an update......... I still have leaking bags......but I'm told a resolution is in sight. I have pretty good eyes and I see something coming. It's either a resolution or a big honking HD truck full of red tape  | ||
| Froggy |
Its a roll of red duck tape to seal up the bag | ||
| Court |
I'm betting on the "resolution" after the meeting today. | ||
| Petereid |
Its a roll of red duck tape to seal up the bag Please don't even joke about that!!!! You know how some engineers are. They'll slap a label on it that calls it "high velocity water exclusion sealant tape(red)". Then marketing will slap the HD logo on it and it will retail at your local dealer for $99.99. | ||
| Adamd |
I always always always carry 2 water proof bags in my cases. Never know when a wreck or a seal can let go. | ||
| Ratbuell |
Isn't it "DUCT" tape? I never could get those damn birds to sit still long enough to wrap 'em up.... | ||
| Froggy |
I thought it was Duct too, but then I read a article online proving its duck. | ||
| Petereid |
Looks like I may have some dry bags next week. Assuming the new seals they put into another set of bags works. Here's hoping | ||
| Court |
>>>Assuming the new seals they put into another set of bags works. They will. I'll be getting the report by 0930 tomorrow. | ||
| Darthane |
-=crosses fingers=- Hopefully anything they come up with will be a service item, or at least available for purchase at a reasonable price. I'd greatly prefer not to assume my bags will leak on a trip. >.< | ||
| Babired |
Hey guys Buell contacted me and left a Voice mail about my side bags. I'll be calling them back today. K |
