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/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl General Category >> Rubber Side Down! >> Savage Savage /cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?num=1195143431 Message started by mpescatori on 11/15/07 at 08:17:11 |
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Title: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 11/15/07 at 08:17:11 Two days ago my wife and I drove the 160 miles from Rome to Naples to pick up my ... slightly reworked ;) Savage. New reground cam, new camchain, Verslagen's cam chain tensioner, new carb (Mikuni BST40) restored by Lancer, new air filter, and Sportster muffler... ...in a word, 8) I went for a test ride... I felt like Yosemite Sam, all I could say was Whoah, horsie, whoah !!! Man, is she a FAST bike, now ! She just BEGS to have more gas !!! ;D ...but, by the end of the first mile, the tacho had gone dead ... ::) :P :-[ ... ...not nice... Filled up, but the petc0ck will only work in PRIME... I returned from the test ride: ..."the new carb does not have a vacuum pickup for the petc0ck" >:( I asked for the papers... ...what? No DOT Test ? >:( And why is the tacho dead ? >:( >:( And why ... snap! ... is the clutch cable broken ? >:( >:( >:( In a nutshell, I left the bike with them, angry as H#LL, extremely irritated that I had wasted one day off from my job only to return empty handed, AND spent 350 miles' worth of fuel and turnpike money for nothing !!! BUT Hoping that next week the weather will improve (I don't like riding semislicks in the rain/dark) I'll keep you posted ! |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by T-Mack1 on 11/15/07 at 08:41:44 Maurizio, How does that Carly Siomon song go, "Anticipation, anticipation Is making me late Is keeping me waiting....." see: http://www.lyricsfreak.com/c/carly+simon/anticipation_20027226.html You have had a small taste of the Savage. A touch of power......now you will be counting the days until you can truly have it to play with. sognare........... TMack |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by PerrydaSavage on 11/15/07 at 10:23:09 Sorry to hear about your aggrivation mpescatori ... but take heart amici, you will Ride your uncorked Beast soon ... and the wait will be like waiting for Christmas! Ciao! ;D |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by LANCER on 11/15/07 at 13:01:42 Beware the SAVAGE BEAST ! |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by LANCER on 11/15/07 at 16:12:43 Quote:
I am so sorry of the wasted time and money and especially the aggravation since it was not truly ready for you to ride home. The shop should have done the test ride [color=-blue]BEFORE [/color]you arrived to pick it up. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by drharveys on 11/15/07 at 18:56:28 Yes, it's a pain getting your bike back and running well. But when you do, just hop a boat http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e204/drharveys/Bike%20Sushi/Sardegna.jpg that can carry your bike http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e204/drharveys/Bike%20Sushi/Bikesint.jpg to Sardinia http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e204/drharveys/Bike%20Sushi/RockSign.jpg Where you can ride great roads to world class scenic spots http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e204/drharveys/Bike%20Sushi/Castelsa.jpg Prehistoric sites http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e204/drharveys/Bike%20Sushi/AvaNura.jpg and picturesque rest stops http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e204/drharveys/Bike%20Sushi/AvaNaps.jpg Yeah, I'm jealous! I wanna go back! I wanna eat my way across Sardinia! |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by LANCER on 11/15/07 at 20:26:32 I see you have a woman there with you ... ;) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by Violent_Rage on 11/16/07 at 00:26:59 ugly experience indeed! but... You have many good reasons to hope in better days! ;D |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 11/19/07 at 01:38:31 4 8 1 good reasons... |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by Violent_Rage on 11/20/07 at 08:54:12 LOL without cents? ;D |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by skatnbnc on 11/20/07 at 11:17:07 LANCER wrote:
Not only that - she is wearing LEATHER PANTS! You go drharveys! 8) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 12/03/07 at 06:06:14 Well, I got her home, at last ... :) Last Saturday was the first day with decent weather, and according to all the internet weather sites I know the only day of decent weather for much more yet. So it was go or no go. It was GO ! So I go-ed... er, went ;) Wifey and I drove the 250 Km from Rome to Naples, beautiful day, 1 December, perky winter day, you could see birdies flying and tiny clouds up high in the sky and polar bears sunbathing and... was that an omen for a cold day? Well, we got to Naples by noon (shop open on Saturday until 1 pm) so I happily collected my bike, checked and double checked that all the wrongs had been righted, and that none of the rights had been lefted (you know, like when you go to have one thing fixed and when you pick up the bike another's broke in the meantime? >:() all seemed OK, so I gunned her up and drove off towards the Navy Support Area (only KFC for the next 1000 miles !!!) ...but once I got there, with the bike running sweet as a cherry, I noticed the head was leaking nice yellowish oily stuff... oil ? It was too late to return to the shop, what's worse it was my second time all the way to Naples and I really really did NOT want to leave her down there again, so I swiped the oil away with a greasy rag (you'd never expect the nice, clean rag to stay clean after wiping the engine, would you?) and off we went to feed on deep fried avians 8) 3:30 pm, time to head home, it'll be a long ride and the sun sets waaay too soon in the winter ... so off I went, wifey staying "just a little bit longer" ... 4pm, check through the highway toll booth, fill up to the brim, and away I go. I steady on some 4500 rpm by the tach, some 110 Km/h (70mph), comfy, wind pushes back but I can handle it, but the traffic is going faster, well, not so fast, actually not very fast at all, hey, I'm overtaking a few, but the headwind is murder... HEY !!! I thought I had settled on 4500 rpm, I was doing 5500 !!! that's close to 130Km/h, almost 80mph !!! :o Slow down kid !!! So I slow down and settle back to 4500 rpm, engine baritones like Pavarotti bellowing out his best mouthwash ;D and the bike is really sweet, goes like a million bucks 8) By 4:45 I reach the summit of a (small) mountain pass, it's only 600 meters above sea level, like 1800ft+, but the sun is setting and it's really damp and clammy and the cold is slowly making its way into my gloves... knees... and those two other verry precious things which are +/- the same altitude as my knees but would like to be kept warmer... at around 5pm I reach a service station, pull over, and I'm surprised I only have one hand left... my cold clammy left hand struggling to release the throttle twist grip from steely claws that simply will NOT release ! Hey, I need something hot here (coffee, I mean... what were you guys thinking ;)) I eventually decide against having anything to drink, cold as it is I'll certainly process the excess liquids waaay before the sugar does any good... so I fill up again, 4 litres for the last 75 Km, that's 18.75 Km/litre (mpg???) not bad if I say so myself , and I'm off ! Chuggachuggachug... ??? the petc0ck! Twist it back to PRIME (there's no vacuum pipe on the new carb, remember? :() and I'm off again. It's pitch black, penguins hitchhiking but none of them have a helmet so I'm not picking anyone up... Maybe I'm having visions... ::) Maybe it IS a mite too cold... Maybe, if I could feel any of my two fingers of the right claw... Maybe, if only my knees would stop flapping incessantly... Maybe, if only I can make it to the top of the next hill... and another one... maybe, the next one... ROMA 1 Km :o 8) :D I made it ! I actually made it !!! ... I eventually merged into Saturday night metropolitan traffic, which in Rome isn't any different from L.A. ... And then took the exit where a large neon was flashing HOME, THIS WAY (no it wasn't, but I had my autopilot on by then ;)) until a matt black, debadged bobber growled its way into the condo park, scaring all the cats away and setting off a few car alarms ;D I slowly eased myself off the bike, pried my now deep-frozen fingers off the 'bars, and slowly paced my way home... I must have used up a week's worth of hot water under that shower, and I was still feeling cold... ... PS Wifey was having such a good time that she got home a full hour behind me... Bike's now soundly sleeping in the garage, and I'm waiting for the weather to improve... 8) No more polar rides for me this year !!! 8) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by thumperclone on 12/03/07 at 06:59:41 75 km/4L = 44.105 mpg |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by LANCER on 12/03/07 at 14:59:35 Wow, congrat's on getting your machine home in fine fashion. I have had several notable rides during the FREEZE SEASON and totally understand the extended shower in an effort to restore the body's core temperature. It is great to hear that it is running so well, that 4500-5500 rpm range is the sweetest spot for the cam so it is no surprise that it crept up on you like that. Just wait till you get a chance to open the throttle up. ;D |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by thumperclone on 12/03/07 at 16:00:33 LANCER wrote:
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by vtail on 12/03/07 at 16:27:34 thumperclone wrote:
Slow Down ;D |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by gary_ona_savage on 12/03/07 at 17:27:16 thumperclone wrote:
chain conversion |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by thumperclone on 12/03/07 at 18:19:17 gary_ona_savage wrote:
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by Savage_Rob on 12/04/07 at 06:06:33 vtail wrote:
That one is definitely true under the right circumstances. My Savage really likes to run at 75 on the freeway but her mileage isn't a good as it could be when she does (42-45 MPG). If I reign her in a bit to 65, there's a noticeable improvement (about 52-53 MPG) and it gets better if I take it to 55-60 (55-56 MPG). Below that it varies quite a bit, but that's mostly due to a lot of stop 'n go sort of conditions in the off-freeway portions of my regular daily drive routes. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by LANCER on 12/04/07 at 06:40:12 My Savage had a reverse spring action on the throttle ... every time it was started and put in gear, the throttle just automatically goes toward full throttle. I had to make a concerted effort to keep the throttle under control and the speed down near the legal limit. Fortunately I have a strong right arm/hand or else I could have had a real problem. ;D |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by SteveRocket on 12/04/07 at 08:22:18 I get about 40mpg at the moment. I ride quite hard between 65mph and 85mph on the freeway Steve |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by Polar_Pilot on 12/04/07 at 18:50:59 A buddy of mine riding a 2002 Savage was on tour in the Rockies with me - we had a long leg to go - and I was alarmed at the distance we had to go to the next gas station. We had to ride 170 kms which at normal highway speeds stretches the range beyond what the bike can do. We were not in a rush and there is good scenery through that area so I slowed us down alway the way to 75 kmph - or about 45 mph. We rolled through the distance and he filled up - astonishing me by taking only 7 liters - that little sucker had pulled an astonishing 90 miles per gallon. So want to boost that mileage - turn the wick - way way down and you will be impressed |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 12/05/07 at 02:54:13 OK, here's the figures... in the 1st leg of the trip, she returned 18,5 Km/l @ 5000rpm; in the 2dn leg of the trip, she returned 21,5 Km/l @ 4500rpm, so I'm quite happy. She rides well frmo 3000 up, although I do admit she changes character once she's up to 4500... she turns from a well mannered lil'old one into a wild big single, and DEMANDS to be ridder harder, HARDER, HARDER ... ...which reminds me of a certain Green Door from some 25 years back ;D ... On the other hand, she's difficult to start (manual choke) and difficult to keep going at all until she's warmed up a little, there's a veritable gap up from idle until 2500 rpm. BUT THERE'S MORE... She leaks oil like a 1960's Norton, this morning I commuted to work and got my trousers peppered with tiny black dots - not to mention my right boot !!! :o >:( >:( >:( Is it possible that, once installed the new camshaft and refitted the head (they claimed it was a "head-off" job) they didn't tighten the head bolts up enough? I actually have a thin film of oil running the full length of the cooing fins where the head mates to the cylinder ... ... and there's a tiny pool of oil in the morning (one spoonful?) I suspect I may have to go down on all fours and inspect that oil window soon... :P (but why couldn't Suzy engineers fit an oil pressure light? |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by Savage_Rob on 12/05/07 at 06:08:45 mpescatori wrote:
Ahh yes. http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/d/de/180px-Behindgreendoor.jpg |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by verslagen1 on 12/05/07 at 08:22:36 mpescatori wrote:
I had the same problem, thought it was a bad valve cover seal and replaced it to no avail. And I was loosing oil about 1/2 a qt. every week. Then I retightened all the bolts on top and the problem went away. And I know I torqued them the 1st time. And I found one stripped out. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by vtail on 12/05/07 at 08:26:12 mpescatori wrote:
Probably cause there is not much to presurize. Everthing runs on Ball/Roller/needle bearings except the cam :) Also maybe it's the "plug" that's leaking. ;) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 12/06/07 at 05:05:59 verslagen1 wrote:
Hey, Verslagen, you been ridin my bike ? ? ? 8) Exactly what the mechanic said when I called him and complained... ...so why didn't he fix it? (proper, I mean ?) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 12/06/07 at 05:07:16 vtail wrote:
...er, what plug ? She's leaking oil from the top of the cylinder head... |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by LANCER on 12/06/07 at 05:23:22 I kept having trouble with the right-rear head/cyl bolt ... threads stripped a bit and it would not hold enough to keep from leaking a little oil. When I did finally take everything apart this year I drilled it out and installed new threads. So hopefully I will not have any more trouble. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by vtail on 12/06/07 at 09:49:50 mpescatori wrote:
Threre's a plug horrizontally in the head above the right front cylinder head nut (visible from the ouside) and another rubber plug (vertically) between the headcover and head on the right side where the cam is at. Also if they didn't use any or enough sealer between the headcover and head, that could cause a leak. Also some of the bolts that tighten the headcover need to have rubber washer to keep them from leaking :) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 12/10/07 at 06:08:43 :o Oooohhh... now I understand ... Well, too late to complain with those guys, they claimed "if it was OK to ride her all the way to Rome, it was OK" and wouldn't budge. So I'll have to take her to a local mechanic, Ducati possibly... ;D |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by verslagen1 on 12/10/07 at 08:26:34 A leak is a leak and if they failed to properly install the plug they should fix it. And as it requires removing the head cover to get at it... quite costly to have another mechanic fix it. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by LANCER on 12/11/07 at 07:39:23 mpescatori wrote:
Man, that is a real pain that the dealership is so far from where you live. This would be easier to try to resolve if they were in your town, but ........ When a shop does work for you that involves going into the engine, then you should certainly expect that they will put it back together correctly. In your case, it was the ride back home that revealed there was a leakage problem. Just because it did not show up withing 5 minutes does not relieve the shop of its responsibilities. I could understand their argument of not wanting to cover it if you rode the bike for a couple of months and several thousand miles before telling them that it was leaking, but this was the initial ride from the shop to your home. Do you have any legal recourse that you can use to "encourage" them to fix their mistake. Did you speak to the OWNER of the business and not just a worker/manager ? If not, then call the owner directly and explain your dissatisfaction with the service work you received and the bad attitude of the people you talked with. I have on a couple of occasions, where I had no actual legal power to force the issue, promised to take out an ad in the largest area newspaper telling everyone how terrible the customer service was at this particular business. That usually gets their attention. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 12/12/07 at 05:54:32 Thanks to you both, the problem is : 1) those guys live too far away to really care about me; 2) their shop is "Big Twin", they do Harleys; they accepted to do my "big single" only because it looked like a HD enough to accept working on one - also because a 650cc single has a bigger piston than a 1200cc HD, so they got a good excuse... 3) they host their own HD Bikers Club - and you should see some of their creations... www.bigtwin.it unfortunately the site's always down for some oddball reason :P To defend my case, I could say that it was dark and I never even noticed she was leaking until I got home and looked at her the following morning, but who wants to ride another 250Km on a tollway just to argue? I could write to a motorcycling magazine, but might be facing legal action for "shaming their name" (whatever the legal term is) Hey, they have ... a lot of ... happy Harley riders to back them up, and my bike turns 20 next spring! So, all in all, I will write to a magazine or two, but will have a Ducati specialist just the same - they have the skill and the expertise (expensive expertise) they tune racing bikes for the track, they will know how to fix her proper :-* After all, I plan to ride and see "The [real] Sword in the Stone" next spring !!! http://www.sangalgano.org/ENG/swordinthestone.htm 8) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 02/19/08 at 04:07:41 Well, after spending the best part of a full hour just to dig up this old thread, here's what I found out: The mechanic used red paste "fix-a-gasket" to seal the right side engine cover (when hereplaced the cam chain) but he left a small opening, and when hot, oil fumes will spew out... which account for dirty boots, trousers and a mucky engine... :P I will see if I can order a proper gasket from the stealership, else, I may need "a little help from my friends" :) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by Violent_Rage on 02/19/08 at 05:35:29 uhm... ...if you're going to buy a gasket i think i will follow you! ;) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 02/20/08 at 00:22:16 Alright, then, I will inquire with the stealership and verify the availability and price for 2 two) seta of engine gastekts: head, right side engine cover and (who knoews what else?) valve (tappets) covers (two each) If anybody on the US side could sheck and see if there is a "complete engine gasket set" , we'd be very grateful (and pay very promptly) ;) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by verslagen1 on 02/20/08 at 07:09:52 Complete sets of gaskets are available, but don't know if they ship international. http://www.bikebandit.com/houseofmotorcycles/suzuki-motorcycle-ls650py-savage-2000/o/m6332 |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by YonuhAdisi on 02/20/08 at 09:19:03 From my local stealership, a complete gasket set for the Savage/S40 runs nearly 90 US dollars. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by Violent_Rage on 02/20/08 at 09:36:19 uhm...how much for head only? |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by verslagen1 on 02/20/08 at 11:19:59 no head, ream jobs only. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 02/21/08 at 07:57:14 Thanks, all, I have checked bikebandit, a complete gasket set is a good $99+s/h I will see if they ship overseas, many non-motor shops do but motorcycle items seem to be next to impossible to ship to Europe... Is there a law or something ? |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by verslagen1 on 02/21/08 at 08:51:01 The fact that they did not order the gaskets ahead of time and resorted to red pastey stuff tells me that they are not very professional. And I understand your need to have the gaskets to do the job right, and if you order a set, you'll have everything you need. But here's a warning, the plug is not included in the set. And unless you're going to tear it down completely, you'll never use all of the gaskets. Instead, I'd order the gaskets you need. and order at least 2 changes of some. some are so usefull elsewhere too, like the little rubber cover washers, used ones are great for keeping hardware on the covers. Clutch cover, altenator cover, that figure 8 o-ring for the head cover, the head plug, sealed washers, oil filter cover, valve inspection cover. These are the ones I'd have on stand by. The O-rings you should be able to get locally and can be made from o-ring stock. But having them does make it easy just to change when neccessary. Good luck my friend. ;D |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by Kropatchek on 02/22/08 at 06:45:39 2E3326302022372C312A430 wrote:
Did you search for a supplier in Germany? There's a list of German suppliers on the German forum http://www.ls650.eu |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by justin_o_guy2 on 02/24/08 at 11:42:05 The local shop I use, not the Suzuki shopl, has a computer operated machine that cuts gaskets. He has a cd with bikes & their gaskets & the thing just cuts the gaskets out. It was cheap enough & no freight. You might call around. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 03/10/08 at 06:02:57 6C7F6869767B7D7F742B1A0 wrote:
Thanks, I checked with Bikebandit, $99 for a complete set of gaskets sounds nice, but $76 shipping... :P I'll check with the local stealerships... |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by verslagen1 on 03/10/08 at 07:18:03 I bet most of that is customs and insurance. Gaskets are thin. Anytime you want some old 'magazines' sent to you, let me know. |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 03/12/08 at 06:01:47 Verslagen, you have mail ;) |
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Title: Re: Savage Savage Post by mpescatori on 03/13/08 at 06:01:31 Two Gentlemen have PMs... wow, thanks for all your support ! :) |
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