Occasionally I give in and try some of cheap Chinese crap...inevitably I regret it every time. I have a set of levers right now that came from Hong Kong that I'm trying to return because they don't fit the bike they claim to be for. They were responsive at first but have now gone silent.
I have, intermittently been pleasantly surprised. The crew I worked with on replacement radiators for my 92 YZ250 were pretty far off on their initial offering but after a couple iterations they had a good match.
I’m a victim of a 250r with a 350 big bore kit violently trying to drive me 6’ in the ground while I was still alive...barely.
If you bought through Aliexpress, their claims process is very effective. Each time I got sent crap that didn't work, I got a full refund and didn't need to return the stuff.
Yeah it’s better in the long run to buy quality stuff. You’re far better off buying used high quality gear than new low quality stuff. Some guys are buying knockoff Chinese carbon bicycle frames and bars online. You’ve got to be insane to do that with something safety critical. The way eBay enables knockoffs and IP theft is disgusting. It’s sad that this is the best strategy their management has. Nowadays if I can’t afford the high quality new or used stuff I just wait. You’ll end up replacing the junk anyway and spend more money.
My number one rule with ebay is whatever I'm buying must ship from within the United States. I have to be able to fool myself that I can drive to the shipper and resolve any issues in person.
I needed a new pair of ice skates last summer...no one in north america had a pair in my size, and the only ebay stores that had them were in the czech republic...I decided to wait until someone in north america got them back in stock. No way I was spending that much coin on an item from a european country.
problem is sometimes the shipping location says cali but u know thats bogus when the shipping estimation is 3-4 weeks... still waiting on that brake line lol... fucker. shipping label created in NJ... what happened to cali? lol
I bought ZXR 400 parts, can't get them at the local dealer, including a motor and a few sets of leathers from the UK on ebay.
Pretty much the only stuff I'll take a chance on are things I can't find a quality equivalent for and I go in knowing I might be throwing my money away. Kind of like going to Harbor Freight. I couldn't find these levers anywhere else in anodized colors. Of course, I guess I still haven't found them since they don't fit. They did get back to me and have proposed sending me another pair that might fit. I'm leaning towards telling them to just refund me at this point.
I kind of miss the ole days when everything was an actual auction and you were buying stuff from some other real person. I stocked up on an industrial warehouse shelf of spare parts for various dream projects... (that I still haven't used). Now everything is Buy It Now and they don't usually post where it is located.
I have found that vertain items are on ebay as well as the retailer's website. For example, I found dirt tires that were a very reasonable price, as sold by Chaparral Motorsports. I wandered over to their website and found the same tires for the same price. Therefore, I was able to buy from their website and save them the fees, plus I shopped around their website for a couple of other things that I might want. I see that as win-win.
Buying on Ebay isnt too bad, they always side with the buyer if there is a dispute. Selling stuff on Ebay sux because people can be real shitty, and they want free shit.
Folks who lived next door to me years ago didn't have any reservations about letting their son ride a three-wheeler. They even let him ride it while they towed it on a trailer.
got the brake line installed yesterday... sv rear master cylinder was full of sludge yuk!!!! bike had been in Hawaii for a bit lol ...rubbers fucking up like a torn condom