( Deep Breath... Ok Here we go ) Please read the entire thread...
As many of you know i
have been in the process of rebuilding my bike for 2 years and i have a
lot of you guys to thank for helping me along the way. As of Nov 08,
I
contacted Insight Custom's out of Indiana to complete my project. He
specialized in metric bikes and was a local builder for me, he actually
build Josh's bike (3rdday) and i loved the stance of that bike and
wanted something one off. I explained i have limited funds to
complete this project and everything done must fall within my budget
which was $3000 ( since i still needed to have the bike painted ). We
emailed back
and forth for about a month discussing parts and at the beginning of
this year we finalized an est. which included...
1. Install of BMS 6 degree tree's w/ new front brake tee for mounting
2. Custom fabricated ( 1 off ) bars w/ chrome tips raked 6 degree to match trees
3. Front & Rear Stainless steel lines w/ install
4. Install of PCIII, along with custom tune & dyno
5. Cleaning up electrical system wiring
6. Tricky Air ride install
7. Custom Fabricate Heat Shield
8. (9) piece red LED kit
9. Install of LED's
10. Custom Fab rear fender w/ LED pocket
11. Install of flex array front & rear LED turn & brakes lights
12. Hidden rear brake caliper mod
13. Fishing bolt out of oil tank
14. Chroming hand controls, perch, cam cover, and the entire left side of the bike
On
Jan 16th i approved the est. so work could be started on the bike, i
spent the next month researching and purchasing parts many of which
where from forum members.
Royale5 _ custom seat
Gryphon - Tach
Scottser - Tricky air
Chester5040- Handle bar's
Danny Cavanaugh - stock seat used for custom useBluesnake - 6 degree tree's
Phongleremote - Entire front end
Allcreationwept73- wheels
All of the parts i purchased where in fantastic condition from forum members, the new parts i purchased where
Tribal grips & pegs - XO products
PCIII - purchased used
Tribal chrome mirrors - Demon Customs
11in fender blank
Scorpion i900 alarm - Scorpion Directly
Custom Made Tribal Key
None of these products where purchased without consulting Ben at insight to make sure they where the correct fitment.
On
Feb 10th Ben came and picked up my motorcycle and i signed a contract
for work, it asked for 50% down before any work would be started. I
offered to pay it all up front because i was egar to get this ball
rolling, Ben said i didnt need to because i was providing him with
thousands of dollars worth of parts. Before taking the bike we walked
around it pointing out issues like oxidation from sitting in the garage
for a year, rust and other things that will come up when building a
show bike. He explained he would need to wash the bike and would due a
full inspection just to make sure there werent any other issues that
where hidden. I was impressed with his thoroughness initially and signed
the contract to begin work and he took the bike that night quoting me
4-6 weeks total for repair.
I contact him on Feb 16th
since it
had been a week with no update on the inspection, i was a little
worried because he left me a vm the day after he picked the bike up
stating there was more oxidation than
he thought but it should be easily cleaned up, if not he would use some
type of spray that harley owners use on there engines to keep the black
from peeling. I sent him over ( 4 )
examples of custom fenders that i really liked and wanted his opinion
and how long would fabrication take. I also confirmed bolt and thread
sizes for my order with XO products as well as confirmed the pricing
for chroming the custom heat shield.
On Feb 19th we exchanged
emails confirming the size for the fender blank i ordered and what
gauge strength i needed, i sent over a few pictures because i wasnt
sure which to purchase. He gave me his recommendation and i purchased
the fender and had it shipped.
Up to this point i havent heard
anything about the inspection or any potention issues, just chatting
and mapping out the direction for the bike....
Feb 20th received
a quote from Paulous for a custom lower cowl from Lithuania, i emailed
some pics to Ben to make sure it matched with the direction of the
bike. It did so i ordered it that day.
March 4th rolls around
and no follow up or contact since Feb 20th, we where quickly approaching the
1/2 way mark of the 4-6 week est. and i have still have yet to hear anything about custom
fenders, handle bars, chrome, electrical, etc... Just silence so i
resent the email from Feb 16th with the examples of fender plus a few
additional examples.
Time goes by and we come to March 25th, i have seen
no design or sketchs, pictures or updates and i email Ben requesting
all of the above. My painter is waiting for the tank, front & rear
( modified ) fenders, tach cowl & side covers... I again request
for pic's and updates; I let Ben know i will be starting a thread on rwassior to track the
build. His wife Kelly had explained Ben had been sick & they had a
tribute bike that had taken longer than expected and thats why nothing was started on
my bike even though we are already at the 6 weeks i originally quoted.
I rolled with it because i felt the end of this 2 yrs ordeal approaching and didnt
want to cause an issue.
2 days later ( March 27th ) i get a reply from Kelly
saying Ben is working on a card board template for the fender and
quotes me 4-5 days to get the heat shield cut out by the water jet
company. * Funny seeing as i have yet to see any pics or design for my
approval * Since i work a lot my time is limits so rather than
continue to email i asked to meet with Ben that week. Her reply was
that he was meeting with a solider from iraq that week and needed to
complete his bike and would follow up with me. At this point i am
very irrate its 6 weeks into this build and absolutely nothing has been
done....
April 15th, still no reply or updates since it has
gone far beyond my expected completion date i decided to chrome several parts since
my heat shield needed to be chromed anyway. I contacted Bucky to get
his chromer's info and email him to get an est. on price around ( $400). I made a
detailed list of parts i would like chromed and emailed them to Ben, as
well as i listed all the parts that where supposed to be out to the
powder coater and water jet companies.
See below...
Here is a list of the parts im looking at getting chromed
1. Brake/Clutch Lever ( after you cut the tip )
2. Switch Boxes
3. Clutch Perch
4. Master Cylinder
5. Gas Cap and Trim Ring
6. Cam Cover (102 Cover
7. Crankcase Cover (Includes Clutch Cover, Generator Cover and Yamaha Insert)
8. Rear Pulley Housing
9. Oil lines
10. Left & right side covers
11. Frontrotors ( not sure if they can chrome them or if they would just have to be polished )
12. Spike tips from the handle bars
13. Heat Shield ( already have pricing on this piece )
Here is the list of parts for the powder coater
1. Front Calipers
2. Rear Calipers
3. Handle Bars
4. Foot Control levers ( gloss black to match up with the bars )
Here is the list of parts for the water jet company
1. Heat shield ( already working on )
2. Foot control levers ( Tribal design ) to go with the bigger pegs
April 24th, no answers yet or direction on things. I get an email
thanking me for hanging in there through all the issues. He will be
able to get caught up this week and will touch base with me.
At this point Insight is relocating to Herbon IN, which is about
15 min away from where he was but the shop closed for a week. The plan
was to have all the fabrication done at this point so the painter would
have all the parts back once they where settled in their new place.
It
sounded great but in reality nothing had been done in over 2 months.
So now im highly upset, I sent him an emailed demanding to see progress
but still in a respectful manner. We had open lines of communication
and i understood his company was experiencing growing pains but that
did not absolve him of his responsibility to me as a paying customer.
I had
paid him $1000 and he had my bike as well as $5000 worth of parts and i
hadnt seen as much as a picture by this point.
His reply on May 4th was that he didnt like the tone
of my email
& he doesnt like being told what to do, he spent a few hours
researching parts for me back in November of last year and was upset
that i
didnt purchase them from him ( pegs, grips, fender, pcIII, etc...) all
of
which can be found on any metic builder site. He then listed at
update saying my tricky air leaked, quoted me $750 for chrome (
almost double previous quote from 2 other chromers) & $200 for powder coating and ended
his email
again with he doesnt take kindly to demands.
At this point im pushed into a corner, he has my money, my
bike,
my parts and is not coraporating but what can be done? I take the
humble route, reply and apologize for the issues & tone in my
email but
expressed my concerns about time frame again.
May 12th, i recieve my 1st set of pics, the front end is off and
he found uni-foam under the tank. ( Dundee ) He mocks up my fender but
say's the fender doesnt look right for the design im going for. He
complains about the radious or something and convinces me to purchase
one from him, I know this is a game to get me to spend more money
but i dont care at this point all i want is the bike done.
May 20th, I emailed Ben to offer my set of hands
to help out
since its been only him working in the shop. I am anxious and want
this all completed, he reply's stating he hired two other guys, and
for insurance reasons i couldnt come help. Still
nothing from the water jet or powder coating or chrome company. Which
is funny since he wont give me there contact information. He then
request for an additional $1000 as they will have money due for parts
coming and going for chrome. Now based on the original paperwork the
balance was owed at the end of the project and no where did it state
payments or arrangements needed to be set before hand. Its now 4
months into the project and
he's asking for more money? I let him know i have some funds coming in
soon but would like to keep the project moving and will make a deposit
soon. I requested a formal invoice in writing which was never sent.
June 5th, no reply from Ben or anyone from the office at this
point i feel like im getting ripped off. The riding season is 1/2 over
and still nothing is done just more excuses on top of excuses. I call
them several times so i could ride down and talk face to face, im sick
of emails and complaining. I want them to own up to the contact and
complete this build.
I call and email on June 9th, 14th & finally on June 16th i
agree to make an additional payment of $1000 and on June 20th i get an email from Ben with the
template for the heat shields. I immediately approved them and got a
reply from his wife Kelly that Ben was now out of town for a week at an
auto & bike auction. So i wait and finally head down on to their shop on June
26th. Its been 5 months since i met with Ben face to face and we walk
around the bike.
1. He never even rinsed it off the dust to see the issues
2. Bike is still in pieces, no air ride, no new electrical work
3. Tank is off as well as entire front end, but no test fitting yet for the bars
4. No mock up for the fender & no chrome or powdercoating, no air ride install.
He explains it away again stating that we are on schedule now and
it should all be completed. We talk and set aside all differences and
after 2 hours we agree to complete the project by Aug 1st ( my
birthday ). He again states more money is needed to cover for chrome
and things, so i make an additional payment of $800 on July 1st, he
tells me he will email the final fender design. Which is puzzling
because he has had my designs since Febuary. I also make formal request
for paperwork showing where my money is being spent an accounting overall.
Which he shows me written in pencil, i ask for a copy and he says he needs to go over it with
Kelly since she does the books and will email it to me tomorrow. ( never happened )
July 8th, still no design less than 3 weeks till the new due
date. I email " since thats the only way i can get a reply " wanted to
make sure i have all the fabrication parts to the painter by July 17th so they
could be back in time for assembly. I again asked about the accounting.
July 10th, finally modification has started on the front &
rear fenders and he quotes me pricing on the heat shield but still no
pic's or plasitic templates ( which he has talked about for 4 months). Only his word that things have begun.
July 15th, Ben emails me saying he's working on the
fenders but
ill need to make an additional deposit to keep working moving on the
bike. I reply and state I am not going to do that given the history
with this build. I
want to see movement before another dollar is spent. Per the contract
residual payment is due at the end not before. I have seen no
invoices, no bills for payment, no past due invoices, no accounting,
not even a revised completion date.
July 17th, Ben emails me again saying i need to pay him an
additional $1000 and that since i didnt put 50% at the start of the
project in Febuary he was now going to charge me, late fee's, storage fee's &
finance charges. He went into a tirad stating this bike has had no
flow or design until recently and he will not play games. I explain to him we are less than 2 weeks
before the end of this and i will bring him $1000 once i pick up the
fenders for the painter.
July 18th, He finally sends me the actual fender design's which
are nothing like what i sent him months ago but i wasnt about to argue. I
wanted it done i approved the designs immediately and said i would be there in a few days
to pick them up. He asked for the weekend to finish them and would
follow up with me.
July 24th, I finally get an email showing the
design's cut out of
the fender and its close to being done, i am still hoping for the 1st
week of august or so for completion. But need major movement, against
my better judgement i called and paid Insight the additional $1000
bringing my total paid to $2800. I did so with strict stipulations
that i wanted dates the chrome was gona be in, powder coat dates &
heat shield dates & custom bars that ive asked about 10 times for a
test fitment or at least seeing and approving a design for them.
July 28th Several emails exchange still no confirmation on
anything. I finally snap! Still no fender or chrome, powder coating
nothing. I **** near pleaded with him the whole month so i could get
this done by the 1st.
Here is his reply and i quote " I'm not going into the money thing with you because you don't like what
i say on how i run my builds and my payment arrangements. So, there is
no sense in you missing riding season (that will go well into Nov. this
year) i will stop all design and build operations on the bike and have
everything here for you to pick up (unfinished) as of 8/1/09 which you
can have some one else that will give you that "one off " bike you are
looking for with all thier bolt on parts that everyone else has on
their warrior already. I have been more than reasonable with you and
doing this project without the proper funds( which carry penalties and
storage charges- for the last guy that ended up at $1800.00)and
floating cash to cover my time. So if you choose to follow this path we
can make arrangements for your pick up of your stuff that can only be
done while I'm here or if you choose to let this bike take shape and
come to be one off you can call me Weds. the 29th after 7:30 pm and we
can talk. "
So after reading his email basicly threatening me with
additional fee's, charges, false storage fee's that would total up to
exactly the residual
left on the build, i opted to stay and requested he complete the
build. I was working so i sent a friend to drive down on thursday June
30th to pick
up the fenders. I contact the BBB and file a formal complaint against
Insight Custom but i request that it be put on hold until i get Ben's
reply. Even after all the drama this was his business and family
lively hood so rather than tarnish his name i waited to see if he would actually make some movement on this project. I asked
him to complete the build
because as i explained at the beginning of the year i only had $3000 to
spend on the build, over the course of the 8 months i added $1000 worth of work and he now has $2800 of
that $4000, there is no other funds left to find another builder.
So my friend takes the fenders down to the painter in southern indiana
and the very next day i recieved 20+ high def pictures and a long email
from my painter stating there was some serious issues. The fender's
was in horrible condition, none of the cuts made where straight and all of
the sides and curves where crooked. None of them where symetrical,
and the rear fender had holes cut out and re-welded as if to cover up a
mistake. He explained that the fenders would need a lot of bodywork to
complete. Now of course i call insight and dont get a reply. I was
on my way out of the town on friday 31st.
I returned yesterday and immediatly emailed Ben the pic's from the
painter explaining each issue and asked what could be done. I let him
know i attempted to contact him before i left with no reply and that i
was forced to pay my painter to correct & repair the mistakes on
the fenders.
Ben's final email which came late tonight stated he was canceling
my project and keeping my funds. He stated that all of his metal work
requires bodywork and didnt need to explain why my fender was cut into
pieces. He stated I can make arrangments to come and pick up my bike
( in
pieces, none of the wiring or anything completed ) he would charge me
storage fee's, finance charges & late fee's. And that would be the
end of it. Now when he came and picked up my bike i from my building,
my warrior was in running condition ( battery was dead but fully assembled, he picked it up inside of my
building which has cameras as you pull in & inside of the garage). The only thing it needed was the
swingarm torqued down to spec from my 260 kit i installed. To be told
i was gona get a frame & engine back and i would be forced to pick
up only pieces isnt right at all, that is not how the bike was picked up and it is not how it should be returned.
I have taken the time to write this email because i am at a
complete loss, I am reaching out to my fellow forum members for
assistance in this matter but i also wanted to post because I found
Insight Customs on this forum and dont want any other member to
experience the hassle that i have.
Every single date listed above i have a corresponding email for
that date, i have docuemented all my requests for updates, pictures,
status reports. Everything over the last 6 months. I really need
some help guys any suggestion would be appreciated. I will also be
posting pictures of the work done on my fenders just so others can see the horrible metal work. My painter has also
written a notarized statement on the conditions of the fenders and took
detailed photos of the repair work he is still in the process of
completeing. ( Completeing welding, metal fab, grinding, body filer and more )
Please guys i need some help...
As many of you know i
have been in the process of rebuilding my bike for 2 years and i have a
lot of you guys to thank for helping me along the way. As of Nov 08,
I
contacted Insight Custom's out of Indiana to complete my project. He
specialized in metric bikes and was a local builder for me, he actually
build Josh's bike (3rdday) and i loved the stance of that bike and
wanted something one off. I explained i have limited funds to
complete this project and everything done must fall within my budget
which was $3000 ( since i still needed to have the bike painted ). We
emailed back
and forth for about a month discussing parts and at the beginning of
this year we finalized an est. which included...
1. Install of BMS 6 degree tree's w/ new front brake tee for mounting
2. Custom fabricated ( 1 off ) bars w/ chrome tips raked 6 degree to match trees
3. Front & Rear Stainless steel lines w/ install
4. Install of PCIII, along with custom tune & dyno
5. Cleaning up electrical system wiring
6. Tricky Air ride install
7. Custom Fabricate Heat Shield
8. (9) piece red LED kit
9. Install of LED's
10. Custom Fab rear fender w/ LED pocket
11. Install of flex array front & rear LED turn & brakes lights
12. Hidden rear brake caliper mod
13. Fishing bolt out of oil tank
14. Chroming hand controls, perch, cam cover, and the entire left side of the bike
On
Jan 16th i approved the est. so work could be started on the bike, i
spent the next month researching and purchasing parts many of which
where from forum members.
Royale5 _ custom seat
Gryphon - Tach
Scottser - Tricky air
Chester5040- Handle bar's
Danny Cavanaugh - stock seat used for custom useBluesnake - 6 degree tree's
Phongleremote - Entire front end
Allcreationwept73- wheels
All of the parts i purchased where in fantastic condition from forum members, the new parts i purchased where
Tribal grips & pegs - XO products
PCIII - purchased used
Tribal chrome mirrors - Demon Customs
11in fender blank
Scorpion i900 alarm - Scorpion Directly
Custom Made Tribal Key
None of these products where purchased without consulting Ben at insight to make sure they where the correct fitment.
On
Feb 10th Ben came and picked up my motorcycle and i signed a contract
for work, it asked for 50% down before any work would be started. I
offered to pay it all up front because i was egar to get this ball
rolling, Ben said i didnt need to because i was providing him with
thousands of dollars worth of parts. Before taking the bike we walked
around it pointing out issues like oxidation from sitting in the garage
for a year, rust and other things that will come up when building a
show bike. He explained he would need to wash the bike and would due a
full inspection just to make sure there werent any other issues that
where hidden. I was impressed with his thoroughness initially and signed
the contract to begin work and he took the bike that night quoting me
4-6 weeks total for repair.
I contact him on Feb 16th
since it
had been a week with no update on the inspection, i was a little
worried because he left me a vm the day after he picked the bike up
stating there was more oxidation than
he thought but it should be easily cleaned up, if not he would use some
type of spray that harley owners use on there engines to keep the black
from peeling. I sent him over ( 4 )
examples of custom fenders that i really liked and wanted his opinion
and how long would fabrication take. I also confirmed bolt and thread
sizes for my order with XO products as well as confirmed the pricing
for chroming the custom heat shield.
On Feb 19th we exchanged
emails confirming the size for the fender blank i ordered and what
gauge strength i needed, i sent over a few pictures because i wasnt
sure which to purchase. He gave me his recommendation and i purchased
the fender and had it shipped.
Up to this point i havent heard
anything about the inspection or any potention issues, just chatting
and mapping out the direction for the bike....
Feb 20th received
a quote from Paulous for a custom lower cowl from Lithuania, i emailed
some pics to Ben to make sure it matched with the direction of the
bike. It did so i ordered it that day.
March 4th rolls around
and no follow up or contact since Feb 20th, we where quickly approaching the
1/2 way mark of the 4-6 week est. and i have still have yet to hear anything about custom
fenders, handle bars, chrome, electrical, etc... Just silence so i
resent the email from Feb 16th with the examples of fender plus a few
additional examples.
Time goes by and we come to March 25th, i have seen
no design or sketchs, pictures or updates and i email Ben requesting
all of the above. My painter is waiting for the tank, front & rear
( modified ) fenders, tach cowl & side covers... I again request
for pic's and updates; I let Ben know i will be starting a thread on rwassior to track the
build. His wife Kelly had explained Ben had been sick & they had a
tribute bike that had taken longer than expected and thats why nothing was started on
my bike even though we are already at the 6 weeks i originally quoted.
I rolled with it because i felt the end of this 2 yrs ordeal approaching and didnt
want to cause an issue.
2 days later ( March 27th ) i get a reply from Kelly
saying Ben is working on a card board template for the fender and
quotes me 4-5 days to get the heat shield cut out by the water jet
company. * Funny seeing as i have yet to see any pics or design for my
approval * Since i work a lot my time is limits so rather than
continue to email i asked to meet with Ben that week. Her reply was
that he was meeting with a solider from iraq that week and needed to
complete his bike and would follow up with me. At this point i am
very irrate its 6 weeks into this build and absolutely nothing has been
done....
April 15th, still no reply or updates since it has
gone far beyond my expected completion date i decided to chrome several parts since
my heat shield needed to be chromed anyway. I contacted Bucky to get
his chromer's info and email him to get an est. on price around ( $400). I made a
detailed list of parts i would like chromed and emailed them to Ben, as
well as i listed all the parts that where supposed to be out to the
powder coater and water jet companies.
See below...
Here is a list of the parts im looking at getting chromed
1. Brake/Clutch Lever ( after you cut the tip )
2. Switch Boxes
3. Clutch Perch
4. Master Cylinder
5. Gas Cap and Trim Ring
6. Cam Cover (102 Cover
7. Crankcase Cover (Includes Clutch Cover, Generator Cover and Yamaha Insert)
8. Rear Pulley Housing
9. Oil lines
10. Left & right side covers
11. Frontrotors ( not sure if they can chrome them or if they would just have to be polished )
12. Spike tips from the handle bars
13. Heat Shield ( already have pricing on this piece )
Here is the list of parts for the powder coater
1. Front Calipers
2. Rear Calipers
3. Handle Bars
4. Foot Control levers ( gloss black to match up with the bars )
Here is the list of parts for the water jet company
1. Heat shield ( already working on )
2. Foot control levers ( Tribal design ) to go with the bigger pegs
April 24th, no answers yet or direction on things. I get an email
thanking me for hanging in there through all the issues. He will be
able to get caught up this week and will touch base with me.
At this point Insight is relocating to Herbon IN, which is about
15 min away from where he was but the shop closed for a week. The plan
was to have all the fabrication done at this point so the painter would
have all the parts back once they where settled in their new place.
It
sounded great but in reality nothing had been done in over 2 months.
So now im highly upset, I sent him an emailed demanding to see progress
but still in a respectful manner. We had open lines of communication
and i understood his company was experiencing growing pains but that
did not absolve him of his responsibility to me as a paying customer.
I had
paid him $1000 and he had my bike as well as $5000 worth of parts and i
hadnt seen as much as a picture by this point.
His reply on May 4th was that he didnt like the tone
of my email
& he doesnt like being told what to do, he spent a few hours
researching parts for me back in November of last year and was upset
that i
didnt purchase them from him ( pegs, grips, fender, pcIII, etc...) all
of
which can be found on any metic builder site. He then listed at
update saying my tricky air leaked, quoted me $750 for chrome (
almost double previous quote from 2 other chromers) & $200 for powder coating and ended
his email
again with he doesnt take kindly to demands.
At this point im pushed into a corner, he has my money, my
bike,
my parts and is not coraporating but what can be done? I take the
humble route, reply and apologize for the issues & tone in my
email but
expressed my concerns about time frame again.
May 12th, i recieve my 1st set of pics, the front end is off and
he found uni-foam under the tank. ( Dundee ) He mocks up my fender but
say's the fender doesnt look right for the design im going for. He
complains about the radious or something and convinces me to purchase
one from him, I know this is a game to get me to spend more money
but i dont care at this point all i want is the bike done.
May 20th, I emailed Ben to offer my set of hands
to help out
since its been only him working in the shop. I am anxious and want
this all completed, he reply's stating he hired two other guys, and
for insurance reasons i couldnt come help. Still
nothing from the water jet or powder coating or chrome company. Which
is funny since he wont give me there contact information. He then
request for an additional $1000 as they will have money due for parts
coming and going for chrome. Now based on the original paperwork the
balance was owed at the end of the project and no where did it state
payments or arrangements needed to be set before hand. Its now 4
months into the project and
he's asking for more money? I let him know i have some funds coming in
soon but would like to keep the project moving and will make a deposit
soon. I requested a formal invoice in writing which was never sent.
June 5th, no reply from Ben or anyone from the office at this
point i feel like im getting ripped off. The riding season is 1/2 over
and still nothing is done just more excuses on top of excuses. I call
them several times so i could ride down and talk face to face, im sick
of emails and complaining. I want them to own up to the contact and
complete this build.
I call and email on June 9th, 14th & finally on June 16th i
agree to make an additional payment of $1000 and on June 20th i get an email from Ben with the
template for the heat shields. I immediately approved them and got a
reply from his wife Kelly that Ben was now out of town for a week at an
auto & bike auction. So i wait and finally head down on to their shop on June
26th. Its been 5 months since i met with Ben face to face and we walk
around the bike.
1. He never even rinsed it off the dust to see the issues
2. Bike is still in pieces, no air ride, no new electrical work
3. Tank is off as well as entire front end, but no test fitting yet for the bars
4. No mock up for the fender & no chrome or powdercoating, no air ride install.
He explains it away again stating that we are on schedule now and
it should all be completed. We talk and set aside all differences and
after 2 hours we agree to complete the project by Aug 1st ( my
birthday ). He again states more money is needed to cover for chrome
and things, so i make an additional payment of $800 on July 1st, he
tells me he will email the final fender design. Which is puzzling
because he has had my designs since Febuary. I also make formal request
for paperwork showing where my money is being spent an accounting overall.
Which he shows me written in pencil, i ask for a copy and he says he needs to go over it with
Kelly since she does the books and will email it to me tomorrow. ( never happened )
July 8th, still no design less than 3 weeks till the new due
date. I email " since thats the only way i can get a reply " wanted to
make sure i have all the fabrication parts to the painter by July 17th so they
could be back in time for assembly. I again asked about the accounting.
July 10th, finally modification has started on the front &
rear fenders and he quotes me pricing on the heat shield but still no
pic's or plasitic templates ( which he has talked about for 4 months). Only his word that things have begun.
July 15th, Ben emails me saying he's working on the
fenders but
ill need to make an additional deposit to keep working moving on the
bike. I reply and state I am not going to do that given the history
with this build. I
want to see movement before another dollar is spent. Per the contract
residual payment is due at the end not before. I have seen no
invoices, no bills for payment, no past due invoices, no accounting,
not even a revised completion date.
July 17th, Ben emails me again saying i need to pay him an
additional $1000 and that since i didnt put 50% at the start of the
project in Febuary he was now going to charge me, late fee's, storage fee's &
finance charges. He went into a tirad stating this bike has had no
flow or design until recently and he will not play games. I explain to him we are less than 2 weeks
before the end of this and i will bring him $1000 once i pick up the
fenders for the painter.
July 18th, He finally sends me the actual fender design's which
are nothing like what i sent him months ago but i wasnt about to argue. I
wanted it done i approved the designs immediately and said i would be there in a few days
to pick them up. He asked for the weekend to finish them and would
follow up with me.
July 24th, I finally get an email showing the
design's cut out of
the fender and its close to being done, i am still hoping for the 1st
week of august or so for completion. But need major movement, against
my better judgement i called and paid Insight the additional $1000
bringing my total paid to $2800. I did so with strict stipulations
that i wanted dates the chrome was gona be in, powder coat dates &
heat shield dates & custom bars that ive asked about 10 times for a
test fitment or at least seeing and approving a design for them.
July 28th Several emails exchange still no confirmation on
anything. I finally snap! Still no fender or chrome, powder coating
nothing. I **** near pleaded with him the whole month so i could get
this done by the 1st.
Here is his reply and i quote " I'm not going into the money thing with you because you don't like what
i say on how i run my builds and my payment arrangements. So, there is
no sense in you missing riding season (that will go well into Nov. this
year) i will stop all design and build operations on the bike and have
everything here for you to pick up (unfinished) as of 8/1/09 which you
can have some one else that will give you that "one off " bike you are
looking for with all thier bolt on parts that everyone else has on
their warrior already. I have been more than reasonable with you and
doing this project without the proper funds( which carry penalties and
storage charges- for the last guy that ended up at $1800.00)and
floating cash to cover my time. So if you choose to follow this path we
can make arrangements for your pick up of your stuff that can only be
done while I'm here or if you choose to let this bike take shape and
come to be one off you can call me Weds. the 29th after 7:30 pm and we
can talk. "
So after reading his email basicly threatening me with
additional fee's, charges, false storage fee's that would total up to
exactly the residual
left on the build, i opted to stay and requested he complete the
build. I was working so i sent a friend to drive down on thursday June
30th to pick
up the fenders. I contact the BBB and file a formal complaint against
Insight Custom but i request that it be put on hold until i get Ben's
reply. Even after all the drama this was his business and family
lively hood so rather than tarnish his name i waited to see if he would actually make some movement on this project. I asked
him to complete the build
because as i explained at the beginning of the year i only had $3000 to
spend on the build, over the course of the 8 months i added $1000 worth of work and he now has $2800 of
that $4000, there is no other funds left to find another builder.
So my friend takes the fenders down to the painter in southern indiana
and the very next day i recieved 20+ high def pictures and a long email
from my painter stating there was some serious issues. The fender's
was in horrible condition, none of the cuts made where straight and all of
the sides and curves where crooked. None of them where symetrical,
and the rear fender had holes cut out and re-welded as if to cover up a
mistake. He explained that the fenders would need a lot of bodywork to
complete. Now of course i call insight and dont get a reply. I was
on my way out of the town on friday 31st.
I returned yesterday and immediatly emailed Ben the pic's from the
painter explaining each issue and asked what could be done. I let him
know i attempted to contact him before i left with no reply and that i
was forced to pay my painter to correct & repair the mistakes on
the fenders.
Ben's final email which came late tonight stated he was canceling
my project and keeping my funds. He stated that all of his metal work
requires bodywork and didnt need to explain why my fender was cut into
pieces. He stated I can make arrangments to come and pick up my bike
( in
pieces, none of the wiring or anything completed ) he would charge me
storage fee's, finance charges & late fee's. And that would be the
end of it. Now when he came and picked up my bike i from my building,
my warrior was in running condition ( battery was dead but fully assembled, he picked it up inside of my
building which has cameras as you pull in & inside of the garage). The only thing it needed was the
swingarm torqued down to spec from my 260 kit i installed. To be told
i was gona get a frame & engine back and i would be forced to pick
up only pieces isnt right at all, that is not how the bike was picked up and it is not how it should be returned.
I have taken the time to write this email because i am at a
complete loss, I am reaching out to my fellow forum members for
assistance in this matter but i also wanted to post because I found
Insight Customs on this forum and dont want any other member to
experience the hassle that i have.
Every single date listed above i have a corresponding email for
that date, i have docuemented all my requests for updates, pictures,
status reports. Everything over the last 6 months. I really need
some help guys any suggestion would be appreciated. I will also be
posting pictures of the work done on my fenders just so others can see the horrible metal work. My painter has also
written a notarized statement on the conditions of the fenders and took
detailed photos of the repair work he is still in the process of
completeing. ( Completeing welding, metal fab, grinding, body filer and more )
Please guys i need some help...
