I'm not trying to get in the middle of this,But I hear more good than bad about Ken. Toy Junkies and The former X-Factor Racing have all sent me to Ken's for work.They both have said he is the best in AZ.If your competitors are willing to give you props....That has to say something.

 

racereadyraptor,
Where do you ride? I live in Gilbert also.

 

I used to go to Sycamore until I was flying down the wash one night and took out my axle,rotor,skidplate,hub,sprocket,and chain all on one rock! That place is cursed! I like to go to mile marker 201 at the end of the 60.(Right across from the Jack in the Box at Gold Canyon)Where do you go?[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-cool.gif[/img]

 

Used to go to sycamore and 201 but haven't been riding much. Just bought a house and the wife is knocked up so I need to find a riding partner to go out with. I don't like riding by myself incase I crash or something. I want to try the place just north of the track on Power Rd.

 

Well then, I figure I might as well post what I wrote in my pm.


-First my bike did take a little longer then promised, HOWEVER if that means getting it done right then so be it, I didn't mind at all.

-Second I noticed when i changed from a stock head pipe to an aftermarket head pipe that my exhaust gaskets were crushed and sticking out into the head ( just a little)

-Third I noticed that they had forgotten to tighten the upper motor mount.

-Fourth when I took off my carb and intake I noticed that the intake was ported to close to the gasket wall, therefor when they tightened down the intake the rubber gasket punched thru the side of the intake wall. There was some of the aluminum sticking out about to break off, luckily it didn't.

-Fifth when I origanally called Kenz to get a quote to port the head, install larger valves, install cams, and install a piston I was told about $500.00 ( I supplied all of the parts) I called a couple days after my bike was there to get a status and was told that he needed additional parts. I asked how much and he said that he didn't know. Then a couple days later I called again and he said there was going to be additional work involved, again I asked how much and he said he couldn't tell me at the moment. The next day he called me back and told me about $780.00. That was fine. Well when I got there to pick up my bike my total bill came out to $970.00 At no time did Ken ever call me to make sure that this was ok, it was quite a shock to me and my wife to say the least.

The money thing bothers me, if someone calls up and asks for a quote I think the final bills needs to resemble that quote, if it's going to be more then the customer should be called to be made aware of the situation before the work is done. I was dissapointed because I called several other shops to get quotes and they all came in around $500-$700, then I get hit with the higher bill. If $970 is what it cost to get the work done then so be it I just felt that I should have been informed before hand. And don't get me wrong, other shops might have done the same thing.


Now that that's over let me get to my bike and AZSand's bike.

-AZSands bike also had crushed exhaust gasketts and a crappy slipon when it left Kenz shop, it was not as fast as it should have been for sure. And I believe that Ken told him that he should put a full pipe and a different carb on to get the best results. AZ brought the bike back and had a new exhaust put on and the bike picked up quite a bit, (see dyno sheet above) He has since put a different carb\carbs on and now his bike is very very fast.

- When my bike left his shop Ken did not have a chance to tune it on the dyno (my fault). I thought that my bike ran very well. At the time I picked it up Ken told me the same thing about the slip on and carb. I have since put on dual carbs and an aftermarket head pipe and now my bike is a screamer. After the carb and head pipe change (as Ken suggested) I have picked up about 5-8 bikes. As far as the internal motor work I am very happy so far, my bike was built how I wanted it to be and it performs.

Last trip out I was hanging with this drag banshee up test hill on Sat night at Gordon's Well. These three guys came over to me with flash lights staring, asking questions, shining there lights in awe. They said that they have never seen a 4 stroke hang with a drag banshee like that and wanted to know what the heck I had done to my bike and what it was..


I think that the major work that was done to my bike was second to none, the little stuff was overlooked a little.

 

I would never own a shop. You can't possibly be perfect 100% of the time. And if it is not 100% perfect....you are 100% guaranteed to get hammered on by a pissed customer. I would lose it and probably get killed by one of you guys. lol.

With my clients.... I promis less and deliver more [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not bashing. I love the way my bike runs, Ken did and awesome job. Like I stated above just little things.

 

Hey KMDuner,
That is me in the orange shirt on the 'hill 1' picture in your photo gallery getting the holeshot!!!!! KingRaptor will like this one because I was using Geckos!!!!! Don't say anything yet because I'm sure you passed me in the next 10-20 yards and then proceeded to kick my a$$ the rest of the way up the hill.

ba01raptoraz

 

It's a little faster now[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

We maybe heading out to the 339th on Sunday for some drags if you want to join.

 

It doesn't matter if your bike is faster now, I can't tell the difference between losing by 10-15 lengths or 15-20. Just kidding, I would like to see your bike run!

I would love to go out to the sand drags sometime. What time do you guys normally get there? The only problem I have is that I play in a b-ball league on Sundays at 1,2,3 or 4 pm depending on the schedule.