Need a Bay Area pro for my XJ

Hi guys, I've finally got some scratch together, and will get my baby the professional care she deserves, starting with a fork rebuild and a real tune-up. Trouble is I don't know where to take her. Should I just go for the closest Yamaha dealership? I'm afraid that they aren't too experienced with 24 year old motorcycles. Is an independent mechanic a better choice? If someone knows or heard of a good indy mechanic in the Bay Area that would be my first choice. Thanks for any recommendations, and I hope I didn't post in the wrong forum.

 

Personally I would reconsider doing it yourself. The fork rebuild can be done on a weekend. Parts would run about $50. Peter Karup does a carb clinic in the Bay area every year. He is very experienced as are the other guys with him. They will have the colortune and sync tools needed at no charge plus you get expert assistance.

 

You know, I've been trying to get this bike running for a while now, and I just never have any time. It seems like I work 6 day weeks pretty often, and spend much of my free time with my girlfriend whom I don't see enough even though we live together. I never thought this would be me, but here I am in the post-college work-every-minute-of-the-day phase and it sucks. To make matters worse, the bike's in my mom's (somewhat ill-equipped) garage in a different town and working on it is a huge hassle under the best of circumstances. I'm all down to hit a carb clinic - sounds fun frankly, and I'm not afraid of maintenance, but a big messy job is out of the question right now It's just going to stretch into weeks of pain. I just want to go ride.

 

Be ready to spend to get the work done. I would also encourage you to hook up with some of our members in your area (I can think of two right off the bat and I know one of them would just love to learn right along with you). The time spent would be well worth the effort and get you on the road faster than the stealership (you want it when? Oh, parts won't be in untill next week, we don't keep parts for your antique in stock, their special order(insert sound of money being sucked out of pocket by slimy sales twerp who could give a rats tail about your machine) and that will cost you extra).

 

That's why I was wondering if anyone knew a good independent guy. I'd also like to have the bike checked out professionally, so I could have a roadmap of what to fix and in what order. My next apartment is going to come with a garage (San Francisco, yay!), I don't care how much extra I have to pay for it.

 

Nice to have the luxury of a garage, congratulations! Put it to good use. My brother used some independant out in San Jose off of Stevens Creek Blvd, but I'll be darned if I can remember the name of the place. I used Grand Prix Yamaha for parts when I was out that way. I'd steer clear of the Yamaha dealer in Oakland, they weren't that good. Best of luck finding your happy place.

 

I don't have a garage yet, I just meant that when I next move the place will damn sure have a garage, but that's not for a few months yet. Until then, I have to drive 40 minutes to my mom's house if I want to tinker with anything. It's a real drag.