Belt change costs.......

Good morning all , I think I had better start saving for the belt change on Martha . Now be gentle with me but how much or rather how hard should I be saving. Do i have to stop buying my flaggins and ciggies to fund the operation? Or is the belts something I can tackle myself (fairly basic bike knowledge but have haynes and would be alright at engineering stuff) and still allow my love and need of flaggins and ciggies. also have been told the belts need to be changed every 2 years regardless of mileage done.

It all depends on your experience and confidence in taking on the task at hand. Changing the belts is about lining up all the timing marks, on all the sprockets, loosen off the belt adjusters, out with the old in with the new making sure the timing marks are still in exactly the same spot. Re-adjust the belt adjuster and turn the engine over by hand a few times check the marks again and put the covers back on.

I know this sound easy and I have not been very technical in explaining every detail but this is the basic steps. If this sounds too hard then I would advise letting someone else with more experience carry out the works.
Hope this helps a little, in terms of cost, I would only be guessing so I am sure someone else will estimate it for you.

I would recommend you get someone who knows what they are doing to check the tension on the belts. If you get this wrong, it could be a disaster (think new top end if belt skips because it's too loose, or bearing wear if too tight).

[Stafford]

M600 belts are about £35 for a pair for goodness sake and takes about an hour to do.
So even at a dealer it shouldn't cost the earth.

Ok I just had my belts done a couple months ago.
Belts cost £42 for the pair and about an hours labour TOPS your looking at £55 and thats tops for labour charge plus Vat ..If you save £150 thats should cover you. I think ave per hour now is £45.

But always keep a little bit extra about incase anything else comes to light as it always seems to!

I think its the main services that cost some.. on a M600 I am not sure how much but get where your coming from.
But nowhere as near as the more complex and juicy S4's and stuff.
Lovely bikes but way out of my league being a peasant ..

Good job carbies are my thing really!

My jap bikes are £110 for a service for a Ducati is a bit more !!! Even on a little M600 and I have that joy next year... Also I am on a tight budget after a wage cut so understand there's skint and there's skint I know .

Another person who names their bike ...

The last thing to go if ever things went badly wrong would be Hector..

Thanx all for the responses. well in fairness i think i'll be putting herself in to get the belts done , i kind of had an impression that the cost would be like changing the timing belt on my car (ffs that was scary) but a couple of hundred euro would be grand. Martha is grateful so now she can be booked in!

[Stafford]

Originally Posted by He11cat

Belts cost £42 for the pair

You were overcharged HC

[Nickj]

The bearings, the stack of two on the adjuster and the bid ducati specific one, need to be checked at the same time. They do last well so should be OK

That was cost from garage
£42 on my invoice sorry was just reading off there.

He did look at the £20 odd pounds on my last invoice and say they have gone up since last time..
From a chap widely used on here.. I went by recommendation and do trust the chap.

A few penny's doesn't bother me.. unlike the itl cost you quote.. I promise no more... then double and take a extra stab in the dark random price oh and added girlie tax I had on a bike from a garage I used in Ipswich once.. have a blazing row and had to get a broken bike home.. lol.

I may be 5ft nothing but if the hands go on the hips I mean business....

[gary tompkins]

Originally Posted by Stafford

You were overcharged HC

No Hellcat was charged at dealer rates - there's usually some mark up on spare parts

Easiest way to reduce prices is to source the parts yourself (mail order), and then find a reputable independant service agent to do work, rather than a franchised dealer. I must have saved around £1K in service costs by going this route, and doing some DIY servicing in the last 4-5 years.

Best bet is to buy the belts (mine cost me about £25 a pair) and get someone to show you how it's done, it will save you ££££££'s in the long run i can do mine in about 1 1/2 hours for both bikes. and yes they do need to be changed every 2 years or 12,000 mls which ever is first ( or sooner if the bike has been laid up and not run for a while as the belts 'set' in one position and can snap when you try to start it up.

[Stafford]

Originally Posted by gary tompkins

No Hellcat was charged at dealer rates - there's usually some mark up on spare parts

Er GT, I bought them from a dealer, Riders for £35.
What HC possibly paid is the little mark up that some might put on to cover their time and effort to get the parts in.

Is ok.. didn't break the bank

I couldn't be trusted sadly with a hoover belt ..let alone a Ducati pair of belts.
I am just not a spanner or a spark.. if someone stands with me and shows me I will have a go at anything I am quite keen in that respect as long as they don't start crying screaming and throwing wrenches at me when I get it wrong..
I just lack confidence in my ability these days.
Used to be tinkering with my CB125 back in the day with my then partner in grime.. and a smoke and a cup of tea any grief would come good...

Maybe it was the menthol fags that helped me?? ....don't smoke nowdays...

[gary tompkins]

Originally Posted by Stafford

Er GT, I bought them from a dealer, Riders for £35.
What HC possibly paid is the little mark up that some might put on to cover their time and effort to get the parts in.

Your original comment was

Originally Posted by Stafford

You were overcharged HC

Hence my own 'No' in response

The truth is that she was simply charged more than you were for a set of belts. Even your own £35 set of belts from Riders may include some mark-up, because it's unlikly they sold them to you at cost price. In fact my own mail ordered belts & spares would have a mark-up too, just not as much as many dealers would apply at point of sale.

Got some belts for the 900 today, 35 quid from Motorapido inc. VAT. Seems very reasonable. I think that if someone is servicing your bike, hence earning up to £40/hour in some cases, the least they can do is charge you the parts at cost.