A front-wheel rocker, or how to keep customers.

After I had sold my beloved “Battleship”, a K1200RS in the winter, it was just too heavy for me, not only when maneuvering, no, even when driving, and I actually (after almost 40 years) thought about giving up driving a motorcycle completely a Kawasaki Z1000 from 2008 found a new, contemplative home in my garage.
The parts actually come without center stand, which saves weight, but moves such things as oil level control for a one-man operation in the field of upscale mechanics ballet.

Repair stands were available, the attempt to steer the machine alone with half docked stand in the vertical and then on the stand, would experts also refer in the area of “tilty”.

So the idea matured, to buy a front wheel rocker, in order to park the bike there safely and then fix the front and rear to the repair stands.

Thought, done. As already mentioned in another post, I hoped to be able to shoot a bargain at the fair, but that failed. Not that I was not ready to shoot, the credit card was in full swing all the time, no, aiming all the time over “Kimme” (the rear of my nose) and “Korn” (the properly held credit card) the target did not show up anywhere.

It soon became clear to me that in order to really get hold of such a rocker, I had to venture the “normal” way into one of the numerous agencies of the motorcycle accessories industry, where there was certainly such a part on “sale”.

So right after the fair to Polo, as this company camps first on the way to downtown Essen. And anyone who has ever traveled from the north on the B224 to Essen, will understand that you do not unnecessarily extend this endeavor, as well as a visit to the dentist.

And in fact, I found it there too. The part was of course “on sale” and with just under 50 € quite affordable.
So, aim with the credit card, pull then trigger on the terminal and 3,2,1, mine. Or for language geniuses, 6,5,4, me. (German Ebay phrases, sorry)
I asked the willing, because presumably sales paid seller, whether, contrary to the customer’s opinion, the part is also to use, if you do not bolt it to the ground. And he affirmed that, willingly, because … .. s.a.

On sunday then the first test. Rocker assembled without instructions, set up and ……. doesn´t work.
The otherwise very well-dimensioned steel tube, at the end provided with funny hard plastic caps, refused to build on the concrete floor of my garage so much friction that it would have been possible to drive the machine in the rocker.

So, in itself and as it came out of the packaging actually not to use without attachment to the ground.

Now I got the idea today to put the part on a rubber mat. One of those mats, which are sold in relevant hardware stores as “noise cancelling” mats for washing machines and are priced at just under 11 €, although they are probably sinfully expensive, because they cost in the production probably only 1.50 €, but ok, if it helps.

Well, what can I say. Mat laid out, rocker on mat, Motorbike pushed in and pushed out again, fits.
I was so happy that I repeated the whole process about 10 times until the neighbors stopped me.

Conclusion: Firstly, one should listen to the customer’s opinions, because after all, they do not change anything, whether positive or negative.
Negative opinions are always provided on the websites of the relevant suspects with the note “You are welcome to exchange the article”.
Yes, please, in what exchange? In another part, which also does not work without the help of not supplied add-ons?
On the other hand, how do I have to imagine the QA department of the companies?
As a pimple-faced quality bachelors who tries to push a bike about 20 times into the rocker (on concrete, not on carpet!), shuns it about 100m across the hall (without success) to then, completely exhausted, writes “fits almost” in the test report ?

Dear friends of the accessories industry, this rather shuns customers, even if one belongs to the top dogs of the industry.
Please put your stuff through some real tests before you “drop” it in tons on the clientele.
In this case, it would help to add a few strips of rubber to the cardbox, which can be glued to the steel tubes. Costs for you (wholesale) probably not even 0.05 €, but makes your customers much happier.

But, who am i talking to …….