Fed up with B.D. and S&S

[armad]

I can see why you would be upset. 35g is a lot of money for a bike. There are others on here who have problems. Having to replace ehc, transmissions, clutches, heads, and rocker boxes probably is just not normal for most bikes. I have an 08 and have had good luck so far. I don't ride it a lot (7000mi in about 3 years), I have a couple other bikes. If I was only to have one bike it wouldn't be a Big Dog. The only thing I have had to replace is the voltage regulator, but the gas tank needs repainting because of gas leaking, it shakes and vibrates and has some other minor issues. I like the bike for what it is, custom. I do my own maintenance, unless it would be something serious. I love the power, it has a feel all its own. I hope you can get the problems resolved, or else you may just have to bail and buy something else. I have a 99 Roadstar and a 2006 Warrior, haven't had one single problem that was a serious issue. Between these 2 bikes I have approx. 40k mi. good luck with the dog.

 

[prodiver]

Yes that was my post in April 2010.. That was the first time the motor went. I do wrench on my bikes and I have had a service manual since I bought the damn thing. I have a 72 Shovelhead that I built when I was working for H.D. that took first place in the Oakland Roadster Show in 1986. I b built it from the ground up and I still ride it. I also have an 05 Road King and a Dodge Viper that I race. All of them combined have never given me as much problems as this Dam Big Dog. The motor originally had TP Rocker Boxes and I thought it might be the reason for the valve breaking. Everything was replaced with S&S. It has been serviced by the dealer and never been red lined or done a burn out. I use Royal Purple motor oil that has been changed religiously every 2 thousand miles. The only mods that have been done to it an oil cooler that I put on shortly after I bought the bike, a Wimer air cleaner and Vance & Hines 2 into 2 exhaust.. I bought the bike when I retired because we were going to do some traveling and I wanted something that was a little more reliable and a bit more comfortable then my shovelhead that I didn't have to wrench on. 25 years ago I put a 96in. kit from S&S in my shovel. The motor is in a rigid frame and has well over 100 thousand miles on it and the only thing I have done is adjust the lifters, 1 valve job and change the oil every 2K mi. and tighten loose nuts and bolts. The Road King I converted to a trike that my wife rides. I have been riding a wrenching on motor cycles and cars for more then 50 years and never had problems with reliability that I have had with this bike. There is just no god damn reason that I should have to tear this motor down with only 6k miles on it.

 

[Nukeranger]

Well,

After reading your history on this bike, I would have to agree that you ended up with a bad Dog. But, not all Big Dogs are bad and neither are S&S motors! I feel bad about your experience and wish you luck in the future.

Huw


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[Little-Boo]

Yes that was my post in April 2010.. That was the first time the motor went. I do wrench on my bikes and I have had a service manual since I bought the damn thing. I have a 72 Shovelhead that I built when I was working for H.D. that took first place in the Oakland Roadster Show in 1986. I b built it from the ground up and I still ride it. I also have an 05 Road King and a Dodge Viper that I race. All of them combined have never given me as much problems as this Dam Big Dog. The motor originally had TP Rocker Boxes and I thought it might be the reason for the valve breaking. Everything was replaced with S&S. It has been serviced by the dealer and never been red lined or done a burn out. I use Royal Purple motor oil that has been changed religiously every 2 thousand miles. The only mods that have been done to it an oil cooler that I put on shortly after I bought the bike, a Wimer air cleaner and Vance & Hines 2 into 2 exhaust.. I bought the bike when I retired because we were going to do some traveling and I wanted something that was a little more reliable and a bit more comfortable then my shovelhead that I didn't have to wrench on. 25 years ago I put a 96in. kit from S&S in my shovel. The motor is in a rigid frame and has well over 100 thousand miles on it and the only thing I have done is adjust the lifters, 1 valve job and change the oil every 2K mi. and tighten loose nuts and bolts. The Road King I converted to a trike that my wife rides. I have been riding a wrenching on motor cycles and cars for more then 50 years and never had problems with reliability that I have had with this bike. There is just no god damn reason that I should have to tear this motor down with only 6k miles on it.

Shit if you have been wrenching for more than 50 years, you better sell that dog. By the time you get it running right your going to be too old to ride the dam thing, Just a brain fart. Good Luck

Carlos

 

[DRBarnhart]

Yes that was my post in April 2010.. That was the first time the motor went. [words, words, words] There is just no god damn reason that I should have to tear this motor down with only 6k miles on it.

While I can appreciate the effort you've put in to make the Big Dog reliable there's just no way any machine is worth this much irritation and frustration! :down: If it were me I'd have cut my losses and dumped it a long time ago... or worked on it myself since you seem to have a considerably better track record than BDM and/or S&S!!! :2thumbs:
Good Luck

Dennis

 

[Nukeranger]

How can you have been wrenching for more than 50 years and not get a Dog to run?

 

[Whistler]

Now you know why Big Dog is out of business. It takes a lot of hard work, testing, etc. to make a durable and reliable product. Sad to say my 2008 EFI K9 stays close to home as "it's not reliable"!!!!!

 

[Tim]

Bdm is out of business because of a shitty economy and people not getting loans. Their bikes may have their faults but I don't believe that was their down fall.

Sent from my AT100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[GDOG_PITBULL]

Shit ...after that much ass play, jail time should be no problem
G

 

[MIAMIVICE]

Nobody here doesnt want to hear the truth....I think there should be a forum just for BD Gripes....Maybe if it would have started back then, retro-kits would have been developed quickly, Warranties would have been honored, and BD probably would have stayed in business cause they listen to the customer....Hell, they didnt even want to join the forum....News Flash..Once you change the bike and improve it, it's no longer a "Big Dog"....

 

[Tim]

Nobody here doesnt want to hear the truth....I think there should be a forum just for BD Gripes....Maybe if it would have started back then, retro-kits would have been developed quickly, Warranties would have been honored, and BD probably would have stayed in business cause they listen to the customer....Hell, they didnt even want to join the forum....News Flash..Once you change the bike and improve it, it's no longer a "Big Dog"....

So, when I put a Corsa exhaust on my Vette, it was no long a Chevrolet? Damn, I didn't know that's how it works.

And please clarify your statement "nobody here doesnt want to hear the truth". Two things pop into my mind when I read your posts, the first I won't mention and the second is you have combined two separate thoughts into one sentence.

 

[pauldeepsea]

I can't say that I haven't had my share of problems with the bike, hell most of them were self inflicted not knowing what the hell I was doing and messing shit up. But I have learned so much from doing work on the bike myself. With the help from some of the members on this site who know their shit. They have gotten me out of some real binds. I am now in the process of a complete rebuild I wont speak too soon as I am still putting it all back together. I am already considering buying a second big dog after an upcoming deployment..

 

[KnotSo]

Nobody here doesnt want to hear the truth....I think there should be a forum just for BD Gripes....Maybe if it would have started back then, retro-kits would have been developed quickly, Warranties would have been honored, and BD probably would have stayed in business cause they listen to the customer....Hell, they didnt even want to join the forum....News Flash..Once you change the bike and improve it, it's no longer a "Big Dog"....

Nobody here doesnt want to hear the truth

Double negative? haha

You are wrong, we love positive gripes, not the type where a Shop, a Business, a Manufacturer, or a person is slammed due to a personal gripe. What we do ask however is that if someone is having an issue then lay out all the facts (not attack opinions) such as what happened, what are the symptoms, what you or a shop did, what diagnostics were performed and those results, anything else that was looked into and what did not work, and where the issue currently is. These are positive gripes and will produce positive results from the forum.

No one wants to hear the negative stuff and most do not respond in a positive manner to negative attitudes. Personally, I am too old for that shit, nor am I the least impressed by those who post that way. Normally I skip right past these, but in this case you are posting so much misinformation that it needed addressed.

BDM was well known for their world class customer service, warranties were honored above and beyond what other companies were providing and BDM stayed in business far longer than most of their competition. The economy took BDM down as it did hundreds of thousands of other well known companies.

Oh, and you are wrong about BDM not wanting to join this forum, they were here then, and they are here now. They read all our issues and they quietly made adjustments to their lineup and the issues. To some this was obvious, to others, well not so much.

My Big dog has been improved, in your opinion what is it and if it is not a Big Dog why would anyone expect BDM to honor a warranty? I can assure you that if you buy a new pickup truck, lift it, modify the power and so on, the warranty has most likely just been voided, and for sure the extended warranty is toast, so I am sure you know where we are going with this thought...

Now, for those that cannot put up their bike issues in a positive manner or feel they need to post negative gripes, feel the need to slam a person or business or go off on a tyrant bitch session, there is a private forum in my PM box just for those ppl. Feel free to PM me with that stuff

MIAMIVICE Like a worn out record
http://www.bigdogbiker.com/forums/general/27073-dealers-forced-bdm-under.html

Prodiver, still no Intro that shows Respect to any forum and at this time I would like to make you a very low offer on your

expensive pile of shit

big dog...

 

[Peckerwood]

I'm not sure, but I think you all might want to cut Prodiver a little slack. I think many of us have a "love/hate" relationship with our dogs. Just got mine back from a solid month in the shop for re-wiring, new handlebar switches, etc. It was down a month last summer for ignition issues and peeling tank liner, too. There are times I get sick of this shit and would sell the bike for a song. But when it's running good, I'm lovin' it and you couldn't pry it out of my hands. When it's down, I find it a little difficult to keep my perspective (it's a CUSTOM, not a harley, and requires a bit more attention, effort, and patience). I think maybe prodiver was ridin' thru one of these lows when he posted. Let the man vent. He'll be smilin' when it's up and running.

 

[BillV64117]

I'll swap a 1991 Fxr for your BigDog just to make you happy.

 

[scubaman15]

Solid reliability

I'm not posting much lately or visiting the site much anymore ..but my first thought is its just a lemon ,just like some Fords and Chevy's can be ? Some of us myself included and I suspect many of us were blessed with a good one , I run the piss out of mine and have from day one ... Still running the org EHC hell the battery is org on tender "five years old" ..its been run in the rain many many times ,behaved like a teenager with it "many many times" triple dig speeds too many times "stupid" but fun ! Yep lucky I guess but it has never seen a "Stealer" my hands only wrench on it! Thinking of selling it now have had my fun "my Harley friends can't keep up" and I'm getting older...one thing is for sure who ever gets this bike will be getting a "good one" and I'm thinking there is many many like mine running around !

 

[K9Anniv]

....I have been unable to get any help from SOS or Big Dog and I don't want to dump any more money into this expensive pile of shit. I like the looks and the ride of this bike but I am really fed up with the lack of reliability and support from Big Dog and S&S.

Sorry you're having problems, but you're in the minority here - most of us have had excellent experience with Big Dog and S&S.:2thumbs:

Surprised S&S isn't stepping up - first I've ever heard of them not going to bat for their products! :loony:

 

[BBChopper]

So, when I put a Corsa exhaust on my Vette, it was no long a Chevrolet? Damn, I didn't know that's how it works.

Yugo Sport?:roll:

 

[stryfox]

Are you sure your kids are not joy rideing it when you are not around.
We did that to my moms Mazda when we were young.
We jumped curbs and othe dumb things. The mechanics thought she was crazy.
She would say" it just started makeing noise and pulls right, I didn't hit anything."

Just a possibility.

 

[Chippy Chad]

My harleys had just as many little problems as my dog. While waiting for my starter to come in last week I borrowed my bro's stock twin cam 88 with efi fat boy to take my wife for a ride. I have to say I was bored to death, that motor is a slug.