Poor Bugger! soon to be a lot poorer?

[chaterlea25]

Hi All,
There's a Facebook poster, https://www.facebook.com/goldstarrepairs
who has been given the task of sorting out a plunger A10 that the unfortunate owner has just bought privately,
What appeared to be a presentable bike is absolutely F**ked mechanically !!
I would be recruiting some "burly" friends to pay the seller a visit

John

[Rex]

On the bright side the paint chrome and wheels all "look" to be good, and that's where a lot of money goes in a full resto.

[Beeza]

Goldstar repairs is a very expensive operator, ask me. I would never recommend him for various reasons, not just my own experience with him.
Good luck to the plunger owner, I would take it out of there ASAP.
Thomas.
I can’t see his posts because he blocked me, petty bloke.

[trevinoz]

I have had two tanks repaired suitable for chroming then painted and lined by goldstar repairs.. Beautiful work and a credit to him as the tanks were in a bad way. I have had other work done to the same high standard.
If you think that he is expensive just compare him to your local car dealer.

[chaterlea25]

Are goldstarrepairs and goldstar restorations the same person?

John

[trevinoz]

Yes John. My mistake.
Have a look through his site at some of the tanks which were virtually beyond repair but repaired.

[chaterlea25]

Hi Trevor,
Thanks for the fast reply. I will have a further look at his stuff.

It probably goes like this, " Good , Fast cheap" You can only have 2 of 3 

When I took/got early retirement at the end of 2009 , I got set up as a sole trader and took on classic MC restoration/ repair work and a few odd machining jobs, all part time to fit in with life in general.
I could name the few times I actually got a half decent payday on one hand. I did the work because I wanted to and keep my brain sharp,  plus trying to get some younger fellas into old bikes. Some health issues meant I had to pack it all in for paying jobs,

John

[BagONails]

I did the work because I wanted to and keep my brain sharp,  plus trying to get some younger fellas into old bikes. Some health issues meant I had to pack it all in for paying jobs,

John

Sorry to hear of your health problems John but you have certainly encouraged this youn(ger)ish fella to have a go and I and a lot of others are very appreciative of your good advice on here. I thought I'd bought a load of trouble but its been nothing compared to that crock on Facebook. Jeepers, that's gonna be the sludge trap from hell that is!

It must have been getting soooo hot to get that black in the bottom end, amazing its still hanging together...just...

[trevinoz]

Hi John,
I retired in 2012 and took on more armature rewinds which in turn resulted in magneto repairs with a friend winding the armatures, then regulators started to come in as well as Altette horns and other types. Then there are field coils and 12V conversions.
It has kept me busy and slightly insane but the hands and brain are still mostly functioning.
Some of the repairs come to what I think is a pretty high cost but the hourly rate at the end is far less than the minimum wage.
I would be prosecuted if I paid an employee what I make.

[Rex]

Some wise old sage once uttered that if you turned your hobby into a money-paying job you'd never work a day in your life.
What a loada shite.
Nothing would kill my passion for motorbikes more quickly than long hours at ,low pay, irregular cash flow, dealing with ignorant recalcitrant customers, etc etc.
Being a wage-slave ain't all bad..

[trevinoz]

I had 50 years working and for most of it I was a wage slave except for a few years self employed as an electrical contractor. I was making a very good living until the recession of the early 80s when most of my customers either shut shop or cut back on their spending.
I went train driving until I retired.

[groily]

Some wise old sage once uttered that if you turned your hobby into a money-paying job you'd never work a day in your life.
What a loada shite.
Nothing would kill my passion for motorbikes more quickly than long hours at ,low pay, irregular cash flow, dealing with ignorant recalcitrant customers, etc etc.
Being a wage-slave ain't all bad..

There's a lot of truth in what you say Rex.
Even if a person prefers to spend all available time in the Shed as many of us do, it's not a hobby when you make it a 'job'. However enjoyable it may be, there is going to be stress.
Glad to have done it for a bit, glad to help folk still on things I can help on, as mates who'll sling me a bottle of vino or do something for me that I can't do myself, but very happy to have time to play with my own stuff.

Hat off to all those whose patience is inexhaustible in the face of customers of varying knowledge levels, varying depth of pockets, and varying expectations that go from 'yesterday' to 'whenever'. It takes a certain degree of phlegm to cope sometimes!

[CheeserBeezer]

I'm very happy running Priory Magnetos. I limit the amount of work I take on, I decide who I work for, and when people interview me over the phone, like they know better than me, I have a useful phrase...."I'm sorry sir, I don't think I can meet your expectations"..... To be fair, the vast majority of customers are very understanding and a pleasure to do business with. Whilst I love spending time with the family, I also feel as though my life needs to have some purpose and the Priory Magnetos business ticks that box.

[BagONails]

There's a guy on YouTube, most of us probably already follow, Paul Henshaw (Performance Classics). I'm always amazed at the volume of work he gets through whilst also producing a considerable amount of footage, admittedly not always the highest quality production but as he says himself he's a bike mechanic first and foremost not a videographer!.. He even has time for rides out with his mates!

Now there's a guy who ostensibly has turned a hobby into his main job and business.  He seems to thrive on it but I agree for most of us best avoided to be sure. Worth a look too if you've missed him.

[Rex]

He's clever bloke, and I should imagine his F-B popularity brings in a good sum every month before he has to earn his pay on old bikes.