DIY servicing, bike values?

Hi all. I have just been reading Ride mag for November & there is an interesting topic on diy servicing.
Most of us can do our own oil changes, plugs & air filters etc to save money rather than pay over the top prices at dealers but I wonder what members views are on second hand values when a buyer is interested in your bike & there are no stamps or service records in the service booklet apart from the initial running in service from new.
The second hand car business seems to use service history as if its carved in stone for a cars value.
Looking forward to members replies, regards Keith h

Swings and Roundabouts,
I'd like to think someone who's done all thier own work would know what they were doing/had an interest in learning about bikes. But alas this is not always the case - Just as often as its a compitent diy mechanic who as owned it, its a divvy who is selling it because they've fudged it (panic sale)

If an owner has a full dealer service history on a bike then they either:
a - Have more money than time/sense
b - Have no interest in the mechanics and in which case there could be anything wrong with it. (panic sale)

Sidenote: Read the service threads on here, just because a service stamp is in your book its doesnt always mean they've actually done a service!

Best Case Senario is IMO, buying from someone you know who's a competent mechanic (diy or profeshional) service history is irrelvent if you know the bikes been looked after.

I write in my service book when I service her and what I change (i.e oil filter, air filter, plugs) along with date and mileage as normal.

Don't know how any respective buyer would view this but it saves me money and is clear the bike is serviced on-time and looked after

Just hope you get a buyer like me.

Service book? What service book?

[yorkie_chris]

It's a load of bollox. Nobody cares unless they're buying something new-ish. Anything <£2k and it's beyond point of making any difference.

Even something new except for any warranty issues (questionable anyway...), you're still better doing it yourself if you do the miles.

just because the book is stamped doesn't give me any extra piece of mind-bike could still have been ragged raw and serviced by a brain dead idiot who has made an erse of a job -unless you buy new you never know what your bike been treated/miss treated to and by whom.

[Jayneflakes]

I do my own servicing and was recently complimented by a Professional Mechanic that it was obvious that the bike is very well looked after and not just cleaned. Made my day that did. To be honest, I would rather do it myself and take my time over it to ensure that it is done right, than trust a busy mechanic who will not do as precise a job as me because they have fifty other bike to do in that hour!

It has been a learning curve for me and I service my bike once a year for the big stuff and clean and service the basic stuff when it needs it. I have not bothered to stamp it in the book because frankly, it does not bother me. I have no plans on selling Sylvie, so re-sale value is meaningless. With a book price of a bit less than £2K for a K3 these days and an age of nearly nine years, will anyone really care that it has been serviced at home by an ex mechanic and a keen learner?

Ones I would personally avoid are bikes that have had loads of mods done to them, owners playing with piston types and cam profiles would lead me to worry that the bike may have been raced or hammered hard on the road. What hidden repair costs will be in there when replacing a non standard part?

Even if the bike's value was to drop a little, it won't match the amount of money spent at dealers for simple things like oil changes, plugs or filters. Plus, as it has been said, getting your hands greasy has the added advantage of keeping the bike in top shape all the time while discovering faults before they develop. I would personally buy a well looked after bike from a competent DIYer with no stamps in the service book without any problems.

Keep reciepts for parts, and write on them which service interval you used them for, and it should be enough to match up with the service book which you've filled in at the same time.

Depends on the buyer. Some buyers want to see FDSH and wont touch it without, some dont even ask whether its been serviced and arent bothered as they want that particular bike. Ive seen bodge jobs by DIY and dealers, either are no promise that the bikes been serviced.

BTW considering most people think a service is just an oil and filter change, if they are doing it DIY then ask them what they have done, that will soon show whether its been done properly or just tickled!!!