If you thought you were getting ripped off by Mikes Before???

650Skull

Cockytoo
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Steel Fuel Tank Photo
Steel Fuel Tank - 3.9US gallon (15 litre) " Standard" type
Includes chrome gas cap. Tank is painted Black with Gold stripes
(No Yamaha Name) and is patterned after the original 1977D model.
Does not include petcocks.
Fits: Any 1974-84 XS/TX650.
Part #64-7700
Save 55% $263.00 $119.00 USD Ea

55% reduction. These guys are rip offs and liers.
10% price rise from $239 so new price is $263 - $86 (petcocks) = $187. Selling for $119 around a 35% saving but if you factor in the $24 from the original 10% rise it is an overall saving of less than 23% not the 55% claimed. If you factor in the 10% added to the petcocks and take that off as well the 23% get smaller again

Looks like you guys north of the border have the best deal these days. And the funny thing is it is in Lolondale hands

Steel Fuel Tank - 3.9US gallon (15 litre) " Standard" type
Includes New Manual type #20-0019 Petcocks (Two) and chrome gas cap.
Tank is painted Black with Gold stripes (No Yamaha Name) and is patterned
after the original 1977D model. Fits: Any 1974-84 XS/TX650.
Part #64-7700
$234.22 CAD Ea
 
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You're saying $119.00 USD is too much for this tank? BTW, it was $149 a couple of days ago.
 
yea it was $149 but then it had petcocks included and now they remove the petcocks, ($86), and lower the price from $149 to $119.

$119 + 2 petcocks $86 = $205
 
hell i'm tempted to buy one of them tanks - not a bad deal if you already have the petcocks... which i do

the sale price on the commando mufflers on the other hand is just the price they used to be before the company changed hands.
 
What about the oil filter/cooler kit that uses the Honda filter? Used to be like $50 now it's over $100.... Glad I waited to buy it. Didn't realize some chumps were buying it out.
 
That sucks, buy from some one else and post the deals you find that are better. Or if you have an issue with a company why not call them up or shoot them and email. Consumers dont know what goes on behind the scenes with vendors. If they are paying more for a product than before or the product changes why would they make less money? You ALWAYS pass it on to the customer thats business.
 
That sucks, buy from some one else and post the deals you find that are better. Or if you have an issue with a company why not call them up or shoot them and email. Consumers dont know what goes on behind the scenes with vendors. If they are paying more for a product than before or the product changes why would they make less money? You ALWAYS pass it on to the customer thats business.

I understand that the price of many things has gone up recently, but I find it hard to believe that the price of these machined parts went up over 100% within the past 6 months. Give me a break. It is kind of hard to shop around when the part is made for a small target audience and only available at a few vendors. Mikes saw an opportunity to make a quick buck and took it.
 
Also note that I put off ordering the less than $50 kit because I wanted to wait until I got the bike running before I ordered it. Now I will just go with 650 Central's external oil filter kit.
 
It still seems like a deal to me if you need a tank. If you don't need one, don't buy it.
 
What rubbed me the wrong way was their immediate 10% price increase. They stated on the home page when they took over that they were "experienced businessmen". Seems like the almighty dollar and making money was what they were talking about. No mention of if they ride 650s or even ride at all. They could be 3 shoe store owners for all I know, lol.

I know prices go up over time, that's just normal. But an immediate price increase? For stuff already in stock and payed for? New shipments and new parts, yes, that I can understand.

I was soured on MikesXS before the take-over anyway. He knew he was selling and just didn't give a shit anymore about the customers. If I'm going to have to spend more, I'd rather give it to someplace else like 650Central. Granted, they do sell some of the same stuff but they also have higher quality brand name parts available.
 
I don't doubt they are experienced businessmen, that is why they bought Mikes in the first place. They knew it was a nice little honeypot and they only see the XS market getting better. So buy it up, increase the prices, and profit. I originally liked Mikes because they were less than 2 hours away and always came through for me. But I know for sure I will be getting my stuff from 650 Central from now on.
 
Ahh Economics 101: Prices were bound to go up with high demand and limited (controlled) supply. With prices increasing, and people willing to pay higher prices, there will be more incentive for competition (if someone else has enough money and the contacts in china and japan to make it happen..) which would then balance things out and maybe bring prices down again. One thing Mike had going for him is that with low prices there was no incentive for anyone to try to break into that market. Obviously the low prices were good for us too. If the prices get high enough, I can see someone else trying to seriously compete with him. If no one does, then more profits for mike and the new owners. If the market will support higher prices and that leads to more profit because sales stay strong, then they have no reason to keep prices low other than as a charity to us. Most businesses for profit don't intentionally leave money on the table.

I know there are tons of other factors that go into it, and I may have it all wrong, but I don't blame them for raising prices, it's just business. I'm sure if they find out that the price increase hurts sales enough to cause lower profits, then the prices will come back down again. Remember the goal is maximum profit for the short and long run. Sometimes that means high prices and lower volume and sometimes low prices and higher volume. Maybe the new owners are just testing the waters to see what the market will support.
 
Well said Travis. I am going to support another vendor on principle, I am sure my little bit of business won't make a difference, but it makes me feel better. My father orders all my parts for me, and I would need $50 in parts and he would order the dumbest stuff just to get $150 and get free shipping. This happened a few times, he drove me mad doing it.
 
It's typical to immediately increase prices, and also to have a round or two of layoffs, when a business changes hands. I don't like paying it, but when I saw it I was encouraged really. It caused me to think they'd be able to straighten out the order mess in short order, and they did. If the trend continues they'll start offering some interesting new products and we'll see an overall increase in quality. Maybe they'll even get some decent SS brake lines and sell them at the current price.
 
Deal or no deal, that wasn't my issue, it is they claim a 55% price reduction and that is simply not true and they are treating any prospective buyer as a sucker. That is not the way to do bussines
 
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