terry brown
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| posted on 15/12/16 at 03:52 PM |
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Andy Bates? Anyone seen him
Been trying to speak to him for nearly a month now, has he changed fone no. or does he usually not answer people? Cant work out whats going on.
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HowardB
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| posted on 15/12/16 at 04:01 PM |
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he's posted on Facebook, I seem to recall that he's been unwell too,. try AB
Performance
hth
Howard
Fisher Fury was 2000 Zetec - now a 1600 (it Lives again  and goes zoom)
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Stevie_P
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| posted on 15/12/16 at 04:38 PM |
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I've tried ringing and leaving a message a couple of times without getting a reply.
I want my fireblade carbs sorting out and he's the guy to do it but just can't get them to him!
Steve
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terry brown
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| posted on 17/12/16 at 09:57 AM |
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I've tried every way i can think of to get a reply from him but to no avail. Has he closed for Christmas? His Facebook pages show him still
working but he's ignoring his customers.
I understand theres some issues with phone connection but if i send a text or a voicemail sooner or later he WILL pick it up, so I'm getting the
feeling he's choosing not to reply.
Not impressed with the quality of work so far or the after service. If i paid over 4k for a rebuild I'd expect better than he's currently
giving.
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Toprivetguns
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| posted on 17/12/16 at 07:29 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by terry brown
I've tried every way i can think of to get a reply from him but to no avail. Has he closed for Christmas? His Facebook pages show him still
working but he's ignoring his customers.
I understand theres some issues with phone connection but if i send a text or a voicemail sooner or later he WILL pick it up, so I'm getting the
feeling he's choosing not to reply.
Not impressed with the quality of work so far or the after service. If i paid over 4k for a rebuild I'd expect better than he's currently
giving.
If your unhappy with the service provided perhaps a trip on the weekend to pay a visit is needed. Many people have had nothing but good experiences
with AB performance so be careful when you start making statements that your not impressed with quality. If I was spending 4k it means I trust the
person I'm handing my hard earned cash to. I can only assume Christmas, race season testing and general workload are keeping him extremely busy.
Only drive as fast as your angel can fly... !
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adithorp
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| posted on 17/12/16 at 08:30 PM |
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Always had excellent, fast service from Andy and renowned for going out of his way to help, so I suspect there'll be a reasonable explanation.
"A witty saying proves nothing" Voltaire
http://jpsc.org.uk/forum/
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shaun fulcrum
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| posted on 17/12/16 at 09:20 PM |
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It can be hard to get hold of Andy sometimes, normally due to workload. In my experience (regular customer) it's frustrating but worth the wait
Doesn't help you but hopefully reassures you.
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terry brown
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| posted on 17/12/16 at 09:39 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Toprivetguns
quote:
Originally posted by terry brown
I've tried every way i can think of to get a reply from him but to no avail. Has he closed for Christmas? His Facebook pages show him still
working but he's ignoring his customers.
I understand theres some issues with phone connection but if i send a text or a voicemail sooner or later he WILL pick it up, so I'm getting the
feeling he's choosing not to reply.
Not impressed with the quality of work so far or the after service. If i paid over 4k for a rebuild I'd expect better than he's currently
giving.
If your unhappy with the service provided perhaps a trip on the weekend to pay a visit is needed. Many people have had nothing but good experiences
with AB performance so be careful when you start making statements that your not impressed with quality. If I was spending 4k it means I trust the
person I'm handing my hard earned cash to. I can only assume Christmas, race season testing and general workload are keeping him extremely busy.
Well tbh i gave him a very poorly hayabusa, needed a lot of work hence a total rebuild inc exhaust.
When i got it back its done nothing but leak oil quite badly from places i have had to pay for and repair some of the work carried out. Non standard
oil seperator gasket causing one of the leaks, i would of expected oem one for such a simple part.
The oil scavenge pump needed work doing to it which i believe was a total rebuild, hats off he did a good job but as soon as i got home from there it
was pouring out oil from a union that was from a damaged sealing face, i had to buy and do the rework despite numerous requests for it to be looked
at. No offer was made to rectify the problem. That cost me over a hundred pounds to rectify along with another oil hose leaking beyond repair.
The oil pressure sender was loose and leaking oil. I fixed that.
There was a long bolt running near the fuel rail which lost a nut and was sliding back n forth. I fixed that.
The horn siren bracket came back snapped off leaving the horn bouncing about, i made a new bracket.
The cam cover gasket leaks along with the sump gasket i think. The cam cover gasket i still need to fix.
I asked for the lower rear wishbone bushes to be replaced, he didnt do that either but said theres nothing wrong with them, I've changed them,
they were shot, the bush in the metalastic rubber was worn out and was rattling like a good n.
When i dropped the car off i said that 'if there's any faults at all fix them' but you know politely of course!
Andy did a reasonable job in my eyes BUT theres something wrong if a customer gets their nice new rebuilt engine back (i mean nearly everything was
renewed inc gearbox) and its not right. I asked if he gave a warranty with his work... No one gets a warranty he says due to the nature of what the
cars do, race. So what about those who never see a track? Those that just tour in it? They get no come back? Surely we have a right to quality of
work?
Now I've spoken a few months ago to andy regarding this he did send me a package with some new oil, the 2 gaskets (cam and separator) and a
power commander 5 to address maybe the engine is running too hot, blowing out oil. Sigh... I've just gave bim a huge wedge to sort it out.
The PC 5 was the wrong one, so he said send it back, i did, soon as i could packaged n posted, he acknowledged he'd got it and would order the
right one.. Ok great... I've still got a chew on to sort it out but hey ho... 2 months ago. So now I'm trying to see whats happening,
every way i try to contact andy nothing. He is at work, he does have internet as facebook updates with pictures tell me. So why can he not answer the
fone or emails? I'm not trying to be awkward or pushy just common courtesy wouldn't hurt, even if he said look bog off i dont care, thats
something but you know yourself if i email or text you sooner or later you will pick it up - we're all busy - i work 6 full days a week
sometimes i then continue after work but i still make time to speak to people. Especially if i was talking to your bread n butter customers.
Not trying to bad mouth andy, he's a nice guy but this is not good service i have had especially for a bill of over 4k, the QA inspection needs
to be a bit more thorough imho. It should never of got to me in that state.
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Jon Ison
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| posted on 17/12/16 at 10:22 PM |
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Everything I read above is the polar opposite of the Andy I know, genuinly hope you get sorted but your not describing the AB I know.
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terry brown
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 08:31 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Jon Ison
Everything I read above is the polar opposite of the Andy I know, genuinly hope you get sorted but your not describing the AB I know.
Your right, before I took the car there I'd heard nothing but great reviews, fantastic i said, this is the place to renew my cars engine. As
you know we're all fussy about these cars myself more so being a car inspector of 25 yrs experience, i can spot straight forward faults pretty
easily. Hence when i got home which is 3-4 hrs away i let andy know straight away i was having issues, i wasnt impressed. The car was obviously much
healthier but there was still a lot of work not done properly. Theres an old saying pretty simple, you never inspect your own work. As its too easy to
say ahh its ok, i fitted that, it'll be alright. Where in reality you should always have someone else do that or have a rigorous laid out
operation standard which is adhered to, signed off and delivered. All car manufacturers use these standards for years, theres no reason small
businesses cannot deploy similar systems to avoid what happened. A simple standard operating procedure would save a lot of grief.what would the
outcome be if the work carried out god forbid someone got injured as a result ? With no pre laid out system its poor practice. Now i did have a quick
look round the car, straight away i noticed some huge blue gouging on the rear wheel arch, something had obviously crashed into it beyond repair. I
said dont worry about it I'll live with it. No offer was made to repair or replace. Again as you said it doesnt sound like andy, i just wanted
my car back as i was going to scotland and was collecting it on the way home from france. As a new first time customer to andy he doesn't want
to lose possible income.
Now the reason I've put these words on locost builders is that i know andy reads these, how else can i get him to reply if all else has failed?
He's too far away to pop in, thats a full day out.
Im hoping he can read this, take onboard whats gone on and please have the courtesy to answer my messages, text, fone calls, emails, msn messenger,
what next? Without leaving a message that may embarrass on a Facebook page i cant do anymore.
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wylliezx9r
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 11:16 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Jon Ison
Everything I read above is the polar opposite of the Andy I know, genuinly hope you get sorted but your not describing the AB I know.
Agree I've only ever had brilliant service and have never heard a bad word said about Andy or AB performance.
I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered.
George Best
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terry brown
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 12:28 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by wylliezx9r
quote:
Originally posted by Jon Ison
Everything I read above is the polar opposite of the Andy I know, genuinly hope you get sorted but your not describing the AB I know.
Agree I've only ever had brilliant service and have never heard a bad word said about Andy or AB performance.
Just wish there was an explanation for this tho, an off day? Sorry he had my car for weeks.
Why would he not answer my messages? Im not asking much i dont buy the im busy thing or communication issues with bt or whoever, if theres a
connection to facebook theres connection to customers, if you cant be arsed to reply then god help us..
Unless he's ignoring me for....... What reason? Im asking not a lot..
I found him a nice guy when i met him for the first time, he made me coffee after my long journey specially to see him, great. But all that doesnt
explain the shoddy workmanship. These faults didnt just appear. I know he's a one man band and stuffs not easy financially, he asked for the
cash upfont to buy alllll the bits required to crack on, yea, no problem, there ya are, £1800 no quibble. See ya in however many weeks, that was
july? Summink like that, yet here i am still waiting on him.
I even paid the final bill bank transfer, there ya go no problems. Id expect just a little courtesy in return.
[Edited on 18/12/16 by terry brown]
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Andy B
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 02:43 PM |
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Hi Terry,
I found this thread yesterday after a friend pointed me in its direction and to be honest it is deeply disappointing to read your comments. I would
however like to thank the various people on here for their vote of confidence.
I have run this company for 14 years during which time we have placed massive emphasis on doing a proper job and supporting customers, indeed I have
always maintained that it is imperative to make time for people and have spent many hours on the phone diagnosing issues, offering free advice and
generally trying to assist people with their builds. Those free hours are paid for by working late to make up time and usually 7 days a week often at
the expense of family time and my own personal time. Indeed I even left my wife's 40th birthday meal to open the unit at nearly midnight to
repair a racers broken driveshaft - the car wasn't mine and i had never worked on it before but it got done anyway as that's how we
roll.
In those 14 years I have been laid up ill twice, once with pneumonia and a completely stuffed lung and recently with a damaged disc in my back as I
told you in my last correspondence. I can assure you I have never taken easily to my bed, the results for the business are not good and the resulting
backlog and stress make it a decision I don't take lightly. In this instance I tried to carry on working but it just got worse and worse to the
point that driving was excruciating and standing, sitting or bending over for anything other than a short period of time became impossible.
I have the lads at the unit carrying on with the fundamental jobs, but I do the engines and most of the electrical installs and this has piled up in
my absence and needs getting back on track.
I have checked my emails and I do not have any mail from you, I did see a missed call late Friday evening which looks to have been you but I had
promised the Wife and kids a work free weekend getting a Christmas tree and putting the decs up (most of which they have had to do) and would have
come back to you at the weekend, I think I also missed a message from you on Thursday as my messenger continually tells me I have 19 new notifications
(I don't know why) and so didn't pick up on until I went looking.
You will have to excuse the long email but as you have chosen to air your views on a public forum I will exercise my right to reply and address your
points......
You are correct in your statement that you did indeed bring in a very sick Hayabusa engine - when it arrived it was running way too hot, pressurising
its crack cases, blowing oil and everything was covered in oil and grime to the point where ascertaining the exact source was going to be difficult,
in addition it had a slipping clutch. I was very puzzled about the amount of crankcase pressure but started to get an idea of an underlying issue
when you told me you repacked what appeared to be a sealed and welded silencer, sure enough when we took the silencer apart we found a failed cat
blocking the exit further exacerbated by a quantity of exhaust wadding that had been packed inside the perf tube. This had effectively blocked the
exit pipe causing huge internal engine pressure and massively elevated cylinder head and oil temps.
Prior to commencing work I sent you an estimate of labour to remove the engine, strip it, rebuild it and subsequently a complete breakdown of parts, I
allowed a day to remove and reinstall the engine, a day to strip and rebuild the engine and some odd hours for commissioning and snagging.
I subsequently sent you a complete list of engine internals that needed replacing this included -
Cam chain
Cam chain tensioner seal
Cam chain tensioner gasket
Head gasket
Base Gasket
Valve stem seals
Exhaust gaskets
Piston rings
big end shells
Main bearing shells
A complete engine gasket gasket set
Clutch frictions
Clutch nut
Heavy duty clutch springs
Oil
O/S 3rd gear
O/S 2nd gear
O/s 4th gear
M/S 3rd/4th slider gear
Dry sump belt
Dry sump shaft seal
Spark plugs
Fabricate a copy of your exhaust silencer (not just fit an aftermarket replacement as it was an unusual one off)
total parts were over £2k with the vat ( I believe we added one extra gearset that was found to have damage) and you told me to commence work. I came
back to you and told you just one gearset was not in stock and we would have to await delivery at which point you told me to phone Suzuki and tell
them it was urgent and your vehicle was OTR until it arrived -in all honesty do you really think Suzuki give a hoot about a 1999 Busa engine in a car
- their delivery protocols for the parts follow laid down procedures and they certainly aren't going to go out of their way to move them
quicker.
Upon commencing the removal of the engine we immediately discovered what a nightmare install it was - the dry sump tank had been cut and shut around a
chassis rail meaning it was effectively locked into position until the engine was removed making access to mounting bolts extremely difficult. As an
aside dry sump tanks are round to allow the oil to centrifuge around them as they make their way down to the outlet, this helps to separate air in
suspension from the oil and ensure we do not get cavitation. Cutting lumps out and fabricating large internal clearance structures is a bad idea but
that's how it had been done.
The Westfield dry sump is not a nice piece of kit, welded bolt on ports are known to crack and have no beading relying on a jubilee clip to secure
basic rubber hoses to the scavenges in what is a critically important area. The scavenge pump bracket is prone to failure and is often seen with
welded strengtheners. In short it is not a good system and certainly not what I would fit out of choice and a removal exercise I had budgeted half a
day for took a full day. Next issue was removing the scavenge pump drive gear, this has to come off to get the pick up cover off and expose the timing
marks, a wrong pitch bolt had been used and what appeared to be permanent loctite resulting in another wasted day while we tried to extract it without
shearing it off in the crank which would have been disastrous and which we finally managed to avoid.
The rebuild was straightforward although the cylinder head was in such a state (I sent you the photos) It took a full day to strip, clean, lap new
valves in, rebuild and shim and as I have already explained the breather vent gasket, part number 1138-24F01 is no longer available and Suzuki suggest
using RTV, I did not, opting to fit an aftermarket gasket instead
At this point in time you were quick to remind me that it was not a limitless budget, you had a target of £4k max and I said that despite the extra
days involved I would stick to my original estimate to help with finances.
The scavenge pump was not rebuilt, it was cleaned inspected and reinstalled on new belt and seals ( which we had to source ourselves as Westfield had
no idea what parts they were) and you were not charged for any internal scavenge pump parts.
I also wasted another day messing around trying to bleed Westfields wonderful clutch slave cylinder which you informed me was notoriously difficult
and probably needed replacing.
Having installed, commissioned and run the car up I took her for a 2 mile plus test drive, it was then left overnight in the unit and the next day
inspected for leaks - nothing. The car was then put through two more heat cycles, net result no leaks and engine sweet as so far from shoddy I feel we
carried out a logical shakedown or Q/A protocol as you are keen to call it.
When you came to collect I took you for another test drive on the same route I had used - you reported a smoother car with more power and everything
seemed good. Again no leaks.
After driving it home I received an email saying she went great but no horn which you had traced to a bracket that had snapped - how the hell can we
be held responsible for that - if you hang half a pound of horn on a 2mm bent alloy bracket its bound to fail eventually.
You also didn't like the clutch action - so what do you want a clutch that slips, generates heat and fills your oil with clutch particulate or
the heavy duty springs that everybody fits as a matter of course, the answer is a different ratio on the pedal but that's a Westfield design
problem not ours.
After then failing emissions I told you to adjust the power commander and you said it didn't have one, I had assumed being road legal it must
have been under the dash (an area where we didn't go) Frankly I was amazed one wasn't fitted, it is after all a road car and must have had
to get through emissions in the past. I advised you to fit one as they tend to run lean and the car had a history of running hot. You replied that
they were expensive and you couldn't justify fitting one at the moment, I told you it should be considered a necessity not a luxury and offered
you a brand new unit for £200 some £80 below rrp and you sent back a mail telling me you would wait until I dropped it to under £200?????
You reported back that your 1400 mile road trip of Scotland went well but it had developed an oil leak which appeared to come from the cam cover. This
was surprising as it had a brand new cam cover gasket fitted, you also felt it was weeping from the breather, again odd as it was a new gasket too. I
sent a replacement cam cover gasket and heavy duty american breather gasket albeit it took a little time to get the breather gasket and even longer to
get a delivery address from you to send it to.
You are adamant that we damaged a hose face, I am adamant we didn't and bearing in mind the whole engine was smothered in oil how do you know it
wasn't leaking from here on day one. We did not remove the oil pressure sender as we did not need to.
However in order to assist I sent you £100 of oil and £280 power commander free of charge. Now I know you sent the power commander back but I told you
I would replace it with the earlier model you require and will do when I get back to the factory next week.
Bearing in mind the parts bill was by my reckoning £2380 and the final bill was £4200 and we put over 50 hours of work into the car and rebuild and
stuck to our initial estimate of labour even though we put a load more time in and subsequently sent you £380 worth of parts FOC I don't think
you were too hard done by.
You say you gave me a remit to do whatever needed doing, my question is what about the budget - we were already over the threshold and I can assure
you we didn't replace anything that wasn't totally goosed.
On the subject of warranty - let me put it like this
You want to take a 17 year old engine, turn it around, run it on a dry sump that I would never recommend, using oil I didn't recommend,
ignore(until now) my insistence on running a power commander and having it mapped, drag nearly 3 times the weight of the bike with it and run it on
way grippier tyres with 10 times the contact patch and want me to warranty it. What happens if the crank snaps, or it melts a valve or woe betide the
horn falls off????
I think a big problem is you really do not understand the vehicle you have in as much as it is a hybrid, it is not a mass produced vehicle with a
massive dealer network behind it, it is a collection of parts never designed to be together with a number of systems fitted to try and harmonise them
as much as possible, in this instance the selection of systems is not great and we tried to work around some very ill advised components whilst
adhering to quite a tight budget.
Yes, once we agreed the parts required you paid for them - why wouldn't you, they were parts needed to rectify a number of major issues and as
such were necessary.
I don't think the word "shoddy" has ever been applied to what we do here, we have built hundreds of engines, won hundreds of races
and a fair number of championships and that doesn't happen using shoddy methods but for the most part we are using kit that we have designed and
a far more thorough understanding of the bike engine interface than is present in some builds.
To pick up on your point about how long we had the car, once out and stripped we then had to formulate a list of parts a, gain your consent to order
and then wait for them, in this instance we waited over 10 days for a gearset, my question is - do you really think I stood around twiddling my thumbs
- If i haven't got the part I cant close the engine and despite how important it is to you or us, Suzuki will move at Suzuki's pace. Once
it arrived it was fitted the same day, engine rebuilt and installed.
As for the long bolt on the throttle bodies, I don't even know what you mean, you have never raised it and we didn't strip the bodies,
just undid the clips and put them to one side
To finalise I am sorry that my recent injury has put you out and that I have not been on the end of a phone 24/7, I am aware that this industry is a
very small place and the internet a powerful tool that can, used irresponsibly, make or break companies. Your comments are particularly damaging and
whilst the invoice was not small, we can not be held responsible for the state your engine arrived in for the most part due to ill advised
maintenance.
You are obviously very dissatisfied with with the work we carried out but to be honest I cant keep up, you thought you had a rattle but when I
enquired you didn't, you had a clicking noise from the prop but that turned out to be a reverse unit low on oil, you don't like the clutch
action but you don't want clutch slip, you felt the clutch was dragging but then it wasn't and clearly the main parts suppliers do not
move at a pace that you are happy with.
I will dispatch the correct power commander to you next week when I get in to work - it will need mapping at the earliest opportunity - you have my
recommendation as to where and hopefully that will draw a line under it.
Andy
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terry brown
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 05:12 PM |
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Hi Andy, I'm sorry you've taken this the wrong way.
The engine i gave you was poorly regardless of why, to me all i wanted was it fixing, returned so i can crack on with other things. Hence the reason i
gave it to the place that i and hundreds of others have raved about. I still think the work you do is second to none, really i do, but.. Facts are i
told you these..
I drove 240 odd miles home, next day i noticed oil all over the floor, there was that much i didnt know where it was coming from as it was splashed
all over. In the end i traced it to the scavenge pump union face being scratched. That can only be damaged by disassembly. I've never taken this
apart since I've had the car or had reason to do so, This was not leaking previously at all. But i stumped up the cash to repair the damage, a
custom hose and union along with the other smaller one from the head about 8imln long, im not sure now where it goes without going out n looking,
looks like a caliper banjo hose, that was pouring out.
The leaking union you wouldn't of seen any oil on the floor because it leaks onto the chassis rail then into the fibreglass 'shelf'
filling that up first then escapes to the floor.. It was everywhere. This is the next day after using it once. The oil seperator gasket was a non oem
one used which didnt fit the hole pattern, the holes were not in the right place. This caused a kink in the side long run, oil leak.
The oil sender was loose, how i dunno but it just needed tightening.
I had presumed maybe wrongly that if the engine was a total and utter strip down and rebuild that ALL nut, bolt and clips etc would be subject to a
check whether it be a simple spanner check or torque check, i would of expected that to be honest but i may be wrong sorry.
The issues with westfields designs as standard are not the point here, im well aware of some peoples hatred of them but not all of them fail, mine has
never had any issues so I'll leave an open book on that.
When i picked up the car there was still a lot of settling in for the parts, it had only been driven 4 or 5 miles? The feel of the clutch was
different for me, its either taken time to get used to it or it's bedded in now, no issues, its my prerogative to give feedback. Same with the
engine rattle it has on start up, when cold it rattles like a dog.. Then settles once warm. Worries me tbh, but i take your advice being the engine
specialist.
I've tried to contact you in various ways as stated but i do feel like I'm not contacting you at all, somethings wrong with comms, i used
the same phone numbers i contacted you previously and i dont get any reply, have i got the right number yes, so maybe your texts are getting lost, all
of mine never got to you it seems, which is odd tbh, never heard of that before.
I've not wanted to fall out with you but if i cant get through to you what am i supposed to do? I'm waiting on the pc5 (which you havnt
yet invoiced me for btw) what was it £200? Cant remember. Dont say foc, i dont want you to give it away. Without this the car is running still hot, so
effectively its still off the road till its done.
I wish i didnt have to write this all on here but if no one answers what else do i do?
With regards to warranty, i never meant to take it to the extremes, you said you give no warranty at all due to the nature of the car type useage,
fair point as a lot are ragged about, thats fair, but if you leave loose parts or damage something you cannot walk away from that and say i dont
warranty it. As a customer they have rights to quality of work, not saying anything in particular here but customers do have rights to getting a car
back as intended. Not all people rag them into the ground. I get the bike engine in a car thing, dont think for one minute I'm that thick i dont
understand the principles of it, i do. I've worked on cars now for 35 years. I gave you the whole car instead of just the engine so that when i
got it back all work would be done, turn the key, drive away no worries. It was also much easier for you to see the car as a whole and to set it up
again. I know its not easy thats the nature of the job, the nature of a hybrid car, even a non hybrid cec is no different, I've taken apart
both on many occasions and modified both on many occasions, the only difference this time is the engine, i was advised to get it done professionally,
of course, I'm not trained for that part.
If i remember you owned up and said you were working in the area near the horn when trying to remove the dry sump tank, it could of snapped off there.
Np tho i fixed it now.
But moving on, i do hope in future that comms can be improved however, its not my place to tell you what to do, just frustrating for to never get any
reply for weeks on end..
Regards Terry
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spiderman
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 05:23 PM |
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Hope the back gets better soon Andy, take it easy on your return to work, you don't want to damage your disc again.
Being a chronic back sufferer for years now I know your pain. Build your back up to full strength before rattling through the backlog of work,
damaging yourself permanently is not worth it, as a lifetime of strong painkillers is not nice. If you damage it too much they may not operate to put
it right, it's risky and the prognosis is not that high a rate of success.
They won't operate on mine, so I am drawing up plans for a Locost off road, electric wheelchair.  hope I will never need it but always best
to have a plan B.
All the best and hope you have a pain free Christmas.
Spider.
Spider
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terry brown
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 06:00 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by spiderman
Hope the back gets better soon Andy, take it easy on your return to work, you don't want to damage your disc again.
Being a chronic back sufferer for years now I know your pain. Build your back up to full strength before rattling through the backlog of work,
damaging yourself permanently is not worth it, as a lifetime of strong painkillers is not nice. If you damage it too much they may not operate to put
it right, it's risky and the prognosis is not that high a rate of success.
They won't operate on mine, so I am drawing up plans for a Locost off road, electric wheelchair. hope I will never need it but always best
to have a plan B.
All the best and hope you have a pain free Christmas.
Spider.
I had my back operated on back in 2003 after 2 discs were found to be drying out and crumbling, i feared the worst, never gonna be able to walk again,
loss of use of bowels etc but worst of all, never being able to get in the westy again(i had a dax rush at the time) but after i had the surgery even
with the bandages on i was determined to get in that car. I went back to see the consultant in the car to show him i could do it.
They removed L4 & L5 discs replacing them with carbon fibre cages, added 2 titanium rods to keep it all aligned then used 6 titanium coach bolts
to bolt the lot down.
I can quite happily say it worked wonders. Previously i could hardly walk, had to sit very often and it was becoming a real life over taker. After
dozens of tests, MRI's x-rays etc thry decided to operate. 5 hour op went fine, knocked me out, woke up all done. Great lets get home.
Reason im telling this is if you have back problems identify exactly individual symptoms.
Be realistic, you'll never grt shot of all symptoms. Just work on thr learning to stand and walk agsin.
It took a few days to learn to walk again which was hard, I'll not sugar coat that.
But my advice after going through all that crap is this
Push the consultants all the time, dont wait for them, make yourself noticed in the queue.
Once you get any treatment keep moving, work on the strength of your lower torso, the muscles here need to be stronger to hold you up easier. Avoid
certain things like jobs with slight bends in them, simple bends like standing at a work bench or kitchen top are a killer, or hoovering.
Use a seat! Resting at work is hard, try squatting for a few minutes, it takes gravity off your spine and stretches out your lower back.
I really hope you get some paon relief from this as i know how much it hurts.
See your GP for dihydracodiene 200mg. This is a nerve painkiller in a slow release form. Normal painkillers work quick, wear off quick giving a spike
in relief, try to get these if you can, they wrk slow but release long, iv found they are much better than anything I've tried.
Hope you have success in your treatment
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spiderman
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 07:03 PM |
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I've had cervical vertebrae fused many years ago and couldn't be happier with the results so hoped they could do the same for my lower
back but I've been told I have too many problems for them to operate! Arthritis, joint facet disease, 3 prolapsed discs, damaged tendons..
I am going to have some Prolotherapy to try and stabalise my lower spine, hopefully that will buy me some time, and keep doing research and perhaps
have to get a private consultation.
Tried dihydracodine, didn't work for me. I use pain management, exercises, and diazapam to relax muscles and tramadol when I really have to.
Tried lots of other meds but side effects were hard to live with and I didn't feel safe driving on them.
Slow release morphine patches and heated car seats are not a good combination. 
Spider
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BenB
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 07:16 PM |
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Andy B- that's a reply Quality! Your reputation is so good and shiny no amount of mud being thrown will do anything but bounce back on the
thrower. Don't stress dude.
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BenB
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 07:17 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by spiderman
I've had cervical vertebrae fused many years ago and couldn't be happier with the results so hoped they could do the same for my lower
back but I've been told I have too many problems for them to operate! Arthritis, joint facet disease, 3 prolapsed discs, damaged tendons..
I am going to have some Prolotherapy to try and stabalise my lower spine, hopefully that will buy me some time, and keep doing research and perhaps
have to get a private consultation.
Tried dihydracodine, didn't work for me. I use pain management, exercises, and diazapam to relax muscles and tramadol when I really have to.
Tried lots of other meds but side effects were hard to live with and I didn't feel safe driving on them.
Slow release morphine patches and heated car seats are not a good combination.
Or maybe too good a combination!!! Try cutting a fentanyl patch into 16 pieces and sticking them on. Actually don't do that- being able to
breathe is kind of useful.
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 07:29 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by BenB
Andy B- that's a reply Quality! Your reputation is so good and shiny no amount of mud being thrown will do anything but bounce back on the
thrower. Don't stress dude.
Actually, OP has finished with a sympathetic post so maybe everyone can calm down and get on with their life...
Apart from that, my brother-in-law had disc surgery about 4 weeks ago, after years of intense pain down his leg (prolapsed disc pushing on his spinal
cord). Currently can't bend, can't sit comfortably, basically can't do anything until 6 weeks after the operation while the wounds
heal, then he'll have to take it very carefully until he regains his fitness. This is not good as he's a dentist who has to bend over his
patients many times a day. Not treating it wasn't an option, as he was getting to the point where he couldn't work for long periods, and
it wasn't going to get better by itself. The up-side is that it has now been treated, so if he behaves himself for a few months he should be
largely sorted. Hopefully Andy can get sorted equally well.
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andyfiggy2002
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 10:04 PM |
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In 2004 i preferred to build a blade rather than a busa as they are less complicated & cheaper therefore i can vouch from experience BECs are very
fragile things not reliable enough for a 1400 mile tour round scotland but ideal for sunday blats, sprints, hill climbs & trackdays. This
particular busa sounded like a right dog when it was brought to andy & if someone doesn't reply to your emails or phone calls it's
very frustrating & you instantly think your being fobbed off with the silent treatment but in this instance to air your dirty washing in public
seems unjustified & like andy says can 'make or break a small business'.
However we all know andy from 'dragons den' & respect his vast knowledge on all things BEC & im sure all the guys on this forum
will wish him & his back a well earned rest over xmas
[Edited on 18/12/16 by andyfiggy2002]
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terry brown
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| posted on 18/12/16 at 11:43 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by andyfiggy2002
In 2004 i preferred to build a blade rather than a busa as they are less complicated & cheaper therefore i can vouch from experience BECs are very
fragile things not reliable enough for a 1400 mile tour round scotland but ideal for sunday blats, sprints, hill climbs & trackdays. This
particular busa sounded like a right dog when it was brought to andy & if someone doesn't reply to your emails or phone calls it's
very frustrating & you instantly think your being fobbed off with the silent treatment but in this instance to air your dirty washing in public
seems unjustified & like andy says can 'make or break a small business'.
However we all know andy from 'dragons den' & respect his vast knowledge on all things BEC & im sure all the guys on this forum
will wish him & his back a well earned rest over xmas
[Edited on 18/12/16 by andyfiggy2002]
Busa's have been used for years for touring with no more issues than any other cec, ive had both, both have issues. Both have weaknesses. Ive
run scotland for years sometimes things go wrong sometimes not, its not the car its the driver and how you treat it. Bray the living day lights out of
it it will break. It was a dog no worse than any other engine in need of a full rebuild.. Thats why people get full rebuilds. Or simply throw them
away and put another in.. No different. I chose rebuild rather than a 2nd hand unknown risk.
As far as I'm concerned job done, i couldnt get any response by normal means so how was i supposed to?
I use the car year round through the winter, no heater, screen or roof, it gets used not polished n used once the sun comes out. Driven how it was
meant to be driven not just on dry sunny days but whenever I can. , night rides, the lot. Got pictures somewhere in 6ft of snow over hartside
pass.
Dont get me wrong I've nothing against andy great guy but... There was something wrong here, faults dont just happen, maybe its simply not been
tested enough, or maybe lack of care when not being able to remove the oil tank easily. I had made it easier by removing one of the sides of the
retaining slot on the bottom allowing more movement, maybe moveing the tank snapped the horn off as its right behind it, i wouldnt like to say, maybe
the union got damaged during engine in/out afterall it was disconnected, engine on a dangling chain, i wouldnt like to say. Accidents happen! To
categorically deny responsibility is not fair tbh, they were fine previous. The damage to the wheel arch was lucky really as I'm not a polish n
bragger, theres enough of those about, bought the best, use it twice sell it on. I keep my cars and use them. Can you imagine if that happened in a
bmw or audi dealership to one of those cars, thered be hell on but i didnt kick off even tho the wheel arch is a write off. But where do you draw the
line between acceptable and not acceptable? Afterall i did ask for a full rebuild and any faults to be repaired trying as anyone would to not spend a
fortune. Costs can mount up quickly on a busa i was aware of that before i took it there so had to balance what was needed and not. I had to think
what was best done by a professional engine builder and what i can do. I didnt expect to have to rework the repairs id just paid for myself, thats
not fair.
Anyway to end this enough people have stood behind andy as he's obviously done nothing wrong and never does.
We're all human guys, we all make mistakes i do when i work on cars and i miss stuff during inpection of cars, we're human, the weak
link.
I know negative reviews are not good but part of this was andys fault for not replying for whatever reason thats none of my business, if he's
ill, i hope you get better, but from what i saw was facebook updates showing you at work happily doing whatever just days before, I'd no idea
you are ill why would I?
You didnt reply...
I wish you a speedy recovery and lets get this sorted once n for all, its against your character and past reviews which puzzles me, but lets move on,
Ps i notice no one thinks I've got a point with any of this, just saying... Now if it was your car....
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angliamotorsport
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| posted on 19/12/16 at 08:46 AM |
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Having read about your problems Terry brown, if you regarded them as being numerous and serious, it may have been better to visit the unit and speak
to Andy face to face rather than on a public forum.
It can be very difficult sometimes to make contact with Andy but he has always, without fail, responded. and I know dealing with an old tight fisted
scottish person like me is not easy.
All I can say is he has looked after me well, even when I have made the most stupid of mistakes, like the day before I was going to France for a
hillclimb and the car would not start, so in a panic took it round to Andy, who dropped everything and set about checking only to find that number one
numpty had turned the tip over sensor upside down.
His work has been excellent, not the cheapest but I always knew it had been done properly.
As far as I am concerned, if you think bike engine, you think Andy bates.
Problems, in my opinion are always solved more easily if you talk to people personally.
I hope nobody minds me making my comments but I just wanted to let people know how I have been treated.
Merry Christmas and a healthy new year.
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terry brown
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| posted on 19/12/16 at 03:31 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by angliamotorsport
Having read about your problems Terry brown, if you regarded them as being numerous and serious, it may have been better to visit the unit and speak
to Andy face to face rather than on a public forum.
It can be very difficult sometimes to make contact with Andy but he has always, without fail, responded. and I know dealing with an old tight fisted
scottish person like me is not easy.
All I can say is he has looked after me well, even when I have made the most stupid of mistakes, like the day before I was going to France for a
hillclimb and the car would not start, so in a panic took it round to Andy, who dropped everything and set about checking only to find that number one
numpty had turned the tip over sensor upside down.
His work has been excellent, not the cheapest but I always knew it had been done properly.
As far as I am concerned, if you think bike engine, you think Andy bates.
Problems, in my opinion are always solved more easily if you talk to people personally.
I hope nobody minds me making my comments but I just wanted to let people know how I have been treated.
Merry Christmas and a healthy new year.
If youd read the posts - its not easy when your 4 hours away.
Maybe you had your work done right glad for you but that doesn't mean anything, mistakes can be made.
Would you rectify work youd just paid for?
Anx again if he answered the fone..., emails, texts, messages, how else can i get him to reply? When i see him at work on Facebook theres no reason a
5 second reply to a text cant be done, especially as it wasnt just one. If andys ill, I'm sorry my crystal ball didnt tell me, having bad back
issues doesn't stop you texting, even an apology
Can we stop comments about people not knowing the full story
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terry brown
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| posted on 5/1/17 at 04:42 PM |
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BTTT
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