Post by Joe King on Sept 19, 2013 19:37:40 GMT
Having just bought my first bike since I gave up and resigned myself to four wheels 20 years ago, I've been busy kitting myself out. Leathers, body armour, waterproofs, helmet, gloves, boots, back box, backpack, alarm / padlock - all bought online! I know that there are people reading this that'll be thinking either "Brave!" or "Idiot!", especially when it comes to purchasing helmets by mail. Here are the things I've bought,where I got them and how I rated their service:
Richa Rift leather jacket, matching pants, Richa Nomad Boots, Richa Magma gloves, from Topgearsuperstore.com
Managed to get everything in the right size (although the boots were my second choice) first time. And I'm a funny shape! Fast dispatch, good comms and their clearance section has some great deals. Saved over £160 on the whole lot.
Roof Boxer v8 Helmet, from Gorgeous Bikes.
Gorgeous was established as the retail arm of the now defunct 'Fast Bikes' magazine. When I ordered the helmet, they contacted me within 24 hours to tell me that they didn't have my preferred lid in stock and offered me the choice of waiting for it, or upgrading to another similar helmet (£59 more expensive) at no extra cost! You can guess the rest! Yes, I measured and re-measured my head and read the sizing guide for the specific helmet that I was buying, and it fits perfectly. Dispatched quickly, well packaged, with a road legal tinted daytime visor and a silver track visor. I went back to them for a clear visor for night-times and they knocked a fiver off, even though I didn't buy it at the same time as the helmet. Canny guys (for southerners!
)
Richa Typhoon rain overall, from 'motor-direct' via eBay
Sizing advice spot on (if you're an XL like me, get an XL, it's designed to fit over a set of XL leathers). I ordered a fluoro yellow and black set and they sent all-black, so I contacted them and they gave me a partial refund, so that I could buy a separate hi viz!
Generic body armour, mbsltd-uk, via eBay
Unbranded body armour, flexible back protection, over shoulder, front and back panels with shoulder, elbow and forearm protectors, all built around a lightweight zip-up sleeved jacket. Took a wile to arrive, had to chase it up on the phone. Good price and the item will offer protection in the summer when it's a bit warm for leathers, or I wanna pose in just my oversize ice-hockey top with this beneath! It seems solid enough and cost under £40.
32 litre luggage box for Lexmoto Ranger, from llexeter-ltd, via eBay
Llexeter are the sole importer of Lexmoto and Pulse machines, in fact, they own the brands. The box is billed as being for my bike but, in reality, it's a generic box with a Lex-Tec sticker on it. It was easy enough to fit, has a quick but secure release system which leaves a tidy underplate when removed. Easy enough to fit. Good item, good people to deal with.
Oxford Boss Alarm / Disclock, from monkeyplastics, via eBay
Good item but took a while to arrive. Lock is way too thick for my front disk (my bad!) but fits nicely through the spokes of the wheel and makes for a good visual deterrent. No vendors stamp on the warranty didn't help but the lock cost me £40 - it usually retails at nearly double that (yes, it was brand new.) And it's Thatcham approved so, hopefully it'll bring next years premiums down!
As should...
Datatag motorcycle security kit from Datatag, via Amazon
Cost £69.99 instead of the RRP of £89.99, bought in conjunction with a free trial of Amazon Prime, so no delivery added. All the usual bits n bobs from Hi Viz stickers to datadots, etching kit, transponders, etc. Fast dispatch and an exemplary transaction.
And finally, the only really bad purchasing experience I had.
Oxford 40th Anniversary backpack, from 'twowheeljunkie', via eBay.
Bought and paid for on 5/9. No sign of it by 16/9, so opened an eBay 'case' asking for a refund if the item hadn't been sent already, and also called the company, who trade as TTC commerce, from Cambridgeshire. Told on the phone that it had been sent on 10/9 and to wait a few days. Sure enough, it arrived on 18/9, by 24 hour Royal Mail delivery, with an invoice dated 16/9!!! Cutting a long story short, they blatantly lied to me on the phone! When I checked out their feedback, there's a fair few negative responses, my own included. My advice - avoid them like the plague, as I should have done!
All in all, I've made some good savings on stuff and avoided most of the usual pitfalls of online shopping. Granted, when it comes to sizing I've been both fastidious and lucky but don't be put off by people telling stories of woe regarding online shopping. Remember to check eBay feedback before hitting the 'Buy' button! (lesson learned the hard way!) If you've got the funds, it's a buyers market right now, so don't be afraid to ask them to do you a deal!
Richa Rift leather jacket, matching pants, Richa Nomad Boots, Richa Magma gloves, from Topgearsuperstore.com
Managed to get everything in the right size (although the boots were my second choice) first time. And I'm a funny shape! Fast dispatch, good comms and their clearance section has some great deals. Saved over £160 on the whole lot.
Roof Boxer v8 Helmet, from Gorgeous Bikes.
Gorgeous was established as the retail arm of the now defunct 'Fast Bikes' magazine. When I ordered the helmet, they contacted me within 24 hours to tell me that they didn't have my preferred lid in stock and offered me the choice of waiting for it, or upgrading to another similar helmet (£59 more expensive) at no extra cost! You can guess the rest! Yes, I measured and re-measured my head and read the sizing guide for the specific helmet that I was buying, and it fits perfectly. Dispatched quickly, well packaged, with a road legal tinted daytime visor and a silver track visor. I went back to them for a clear visor for night-times and they knocked a fiver off, even though I didn't buy it at the same time as the helmet. Canny guys (for southerners!
)Richa Typhoon rain overall, from 'motor-direct' via eBay
Sizing advice spot on (if you're an XL like me, get an XL, it's designed to fit over a set of XL leathers). I ordered a fluoro yellow and black set and they sent all-black, so I contacted them and they gave me a partial refund, so that I could buy a separate hi viz!
Generic body armour, mbsltd-uk, via eBay
Unbranded body armour, flexible back protection, over shoulder, front and back panels with shoulder, elbow and forearm protectors, all built around a lightweight zip-up sleeved jacket. Took a wile to arrive, had to chase it up on the phone. Good price and the item will offer protection in the summer when it's a bit warm for leathers, or I wanna pose in just my oversize ice-hockey top with this beneath! It seems solid enough and cost under £40.
32 litre luggage box for Lexmoto Ranger, from llexeter-ltd, via eBay
Llexeter are the sole importer of Lexmoto and Pulse machines, in fact, they own the brands. The box is billed as being for my bike but, in reality, it's a generic box with a Lex-Tec sticker on it. It was easy enough to fit, has a quick but secure release system which leaves a tidy underplate when removed. Easy enough to fit. Good item, good people to deal with.
Oxford Boss Alarm / Disclock, from monkeyplastics, via eBay
Good item but took a while to arrive. Lock is way too thick for my front disk (my bad!) but fits nicely through the spokes of the wheel and makes for a good visual deterrent. No vendors stamp on the warranty didn't help but the lock cost me £40 - it usually retails at nearly double that (yes, it was brand new.) And it's Thatcham approved so, hopefully it'll bring next years premiums down!
As should...
Datatag motorcycle security kit from Datatag, via Amazon
Cost £69.99 instead of the RRP of £89.99, bought in conjunction with a free trial of Amazon Prime, so no delivery added. All the usual bits n bobs from Hi Viz stickers to datadots, etching kit, transponders, etc. Fast dispatch and an exemplary transaction.
And finally, the only really bad purchasing experience I had.
Oxford 40th Anniversary backpack, from 'twowheeljunkie', via eBay.
Bought and paid for on 5/9. No sign of it by 16/9, so opened an eBay 'case' asking for a refund if the item hadn't been sent already, and also called the company, who trade as TTC commerce, from Cambridgeshire. Told on the phone that it had been sent on 10/9 and to wait a few days. Sure enough, it arrived on 18/9, by 24 hour Royal Mail delivery, with an invoice dated 16/9!!! Cutting a long story short, they blatantly lied to me on the phone! When I checked out their feedback, there's a fair few negative responses, my own included. My advice - avoid them like the plague, as I should have done!
All in all, I've made some good savings on stuff and avoided most of the usual pitfalls of online shopping. Granted, when it comes to sizing I've been both fastidious and lucky but don't be put off by people telling stories of woe regarding online shopping. Remember to check eBay feedback before hitting the 'Buy' button! (lesson learned the hard way!) If you've got the funds, it's a buyers market right now, so don't be afraid to ask them to do you a deal!