Topic: Legal Action BIG H v David Silver Spares

[AshimotoK0]

DSS are great. I first dealt with him in 1986 when I restored my 400/4 and he was working part time from his house and had bought a container load of NOS parts and sold though MotorCycleNews (a UK motorcycle paper). Typical prices then were: rear fender £10, caliper complete with pads £12 !! etc etc. Without him I could never have restored my bike for such a low cost!!

Now I learn that the big H are trying to take legal action against him !!!   Perhaps we should campaign for him!!!

http://www.lawdit.co.uk/reading_room/room/view_article.asp?name=../articles/4317-honda-v-david-silver.htm


Please also see:
http://www.sohc.co.uk/index.php?topic=3113.0


Cheers

Ash

[domer]

ouch i dont think id like to take on honda in court...

[Alan F.]

Too bad the big H doesn't get the fact that people like their old bikes still.  Too many NLA parts and no retro-style bikes in countries where they'd really sell.

I guess their CEO doesn't ride, just like the HD CEO... who killed off Buell purely on his personal opinion.

[Hondawggie]

DSS are great. I first dealt with him in 1986 when I restored my 400/4 and he was working part time from his house and had bought a container load of NOS parts and sold though MotorCycleNews (a UK motorcycle paper). Typical prices then were: rear fender £10, caliper complete with pads £12 !! etc etc. Without him I could never have restored my bike for such a low cost!!

Now I learn that the big H are trying to take legal action against him !!!   Perhaps we should campaign for him!!!

http://www.lawdit.co.uk/reading_room/room/view_article.asp?name=../articles/4317-honda-v-david-silver.htm


Please also see:
http://www.sohc.co.uk/index.php?topic=3113.0


Cheers

Ash

Okay then, so Honda is cutting its own throat with those of us who restore/own/ride vintage Honda.   As if Honda is the only vintage bike out there!  I'm a customer of DSS.  Really really sorry to hear about this. 

When a company is not serving its vintage customers, and then on top of that squashes those who are, the message to its vintage customers is "Number #1, we won't be of much help to you since we sell new bikes, and.......Number #2, if anyone TRIES to help you vintage owners out, we will crush them, not in the market place, but on a technicality.  F you vintage owners."

Like Honda is the only vintage bike out there to restore.  Reminds me of the bad old days when Microsoft was crushing everyone.  No one likes a pig.  I mean really, what INFINITESIMAL percentage of Honda's revenue does DSS represent?  .000000001% ?

[Operator]

Does this mean that if I have parts that were exported to Canada, I cannot sell them to my fellow forum members that are part of the EEA without the expressed permission of Honda?

[Thunder]

Wonder if a online petition of some kind (worldwide) to Honda expressing customer dissatisfaction will carry any weight. If Honda carries this through , the others will follow...

[AshimotoK0]

Wonder if a online petition of some kind (worldwide) to Honda expressing customer dissatisfaction will carry any weight. If Honda carries this through , the others will follow...

I am all for that +1

Ash

[Hush]

Sign me up for a petition.
Without DSS there is no way I would ahve got my bike on the road and since then I have become a customer of the local Honda dealer so Honda make money by my having a living ridable bike.
Also most of us have another modern Honda in the shed as well, Honda should give that some careful consideration.

[CB750faces.com (Lecram)]

I like DSS, because they can supply so many parts, new or NOS (I just bought a set of K0 gauges at DSS) against reasonble prices.

But: every one has to be compliant and if the judge says that he is, then there is no problem.

[BobbyR]

OK I see what they are doing, they are yanking his crank over bringing parts back into the UK that were intended for sale outside. This was meant to suppress the "gray market". This is ridiculous, these parts are essentially obsolete.

[turboguzzi]

OK, people, how many are we? lets flex some muscle.

DSS is a superb service and deserves our help.

Glenn, what do you say?

[eithr]

This certainly steals some of the air from my joy balloon, as I am just getting started on my first restoration project which just happens to be a Honda bike.

Even though I'm a newb, keep me posted if a petition or something gets going. Influence in numbers.

[MCRider]

We don't even know what part of Honda started this. All major corporations keep trademark attorneys on retainer. Their job is to defend the trademark. They have to pick a target, preferably high profile, and go after them once in a while to prove they are defending the trademark. If they don't have proof that they aggressively defend their trademark, they can lose the right to it.

Unfortunatley once the attys pick a target they have to go for the kill. backing away defeats the purpose.

So lets hope DSS has a point. But if they lose, they will likely be given a wink and a nod that if they do it "this way' everything will be fine.

Accumulation of semi-knowledge from personal experience and reading.

PS: I can't imagine that anything about the restoration/vintage market is anything but a royal pain in the ass to Honda corporate. Outside of their own personal interest. (Execs with CB77s, etc.)

[Duke McDukiedook]

I have a simple, elegant solution to the problem- Honda needs to remanufacture every part for every bike under the Honda umbrella so we don't have to sweat this.  

[HondanutRider]

Laudy Gad...if Soichiro were still alive he'd skin them - those Honda attorneys that is!

Seems that I recall he had a policy that if ever a model of Honda was sold in a particular market area, then that Honda area would be required to stock and continue selling all the parts for that model.  This was to ensure that owners of Honda motorcycles would always be able to fix and keep running one of his motorcycles.  That WAS a Honda promise.  Then Soichiro Honda died.   Then the "bean counters" had a look at all the idle inventory in Honda warehouses and out came the "crushers".   You know "crushers": those big machines that can turn tanks, fenders, what-nots into useless scrap!  A tax write-off!  And lots of unhappy owners who can no longer get parts for their old Honda motorcycles.  Then along comes Saint David of Silver, who locates and buys-up all sorts of "surplus" stock from all over the world (as well as having some new parts made as the old would be), and then offers it at reasonable prices to desperate Honda owners all over the world.

Hey Honda Corp, are you listening?   This made me so mad a few years ago, I bought a couple of new Yamahas instead of even looking at new Honda models.   I'll bet I know what Mr Honda would do.

[AshimotoK0]

I notice they don't go for Yamiya who sometimes sells Genuine parts cheaper than DSS and clones NO.No Pipes, seats and double cut Fenders at $1300 a throw. Not that I am knocking Yamiya. people tell me their parts are superb.
Linked this post to the Sandcastonly site and the sister UK site.

Cheers

Ash

[MCRider]

While I sympathize totally, do we think that Yamaha wouldn't or doesn't do the same thing?

As to yamiya, it may have been politically motivated, but more likely simply who had the higher profile for a target.

I had a friend (husband and wife team) who had a mailorder dancewear studio (out of their home!) they called CelestialBodies. Guess who came after them?  The hippies at Celestial Teas. Or more accurately the trademark attys. Would the hippies really do that?

My friends capitulated quickly.   

[AshimotoK0]

Yes Soichiro would turn in his grave!!! I watched this Cheesy grin Corporate Honda guy on the Honda 'Twist the Throttle' Video waxing on about how revolutionary the CB750 was and they showed a Vic World Honda Museum bike. I wonder if that bike has any DSS sourced parts on it?

[Thunder]

I reckon someone who knows the guys at DSS check with em what the story is and see if any kinda petition on would help, ...or in someway hurt his case.
If he reckons it can't hurt, then I'm in.

[HondanutRider]

While I sympathize totally, do we think that Yamaha wouldn't or doesn't do the same thing?

Shhh...I know, I know.  It just indicates how low Honda has gone and what loyal customers think.  (If they aren't any different/better than the other guys, why not give them other guys a run?)

[bikerbart]

this is sad.The big H is just another corporate entity now.Nothing personal about it anymore.

[mick750F]

   From a personal view this is how ridiculous Honda is being...The last time, and I do mean the last time, I went into my local Honda dealership looking for a part for my '78 750F I was told by the parts manager that they would no longer be able to source parts for my "old" bike and I'd be better off looking for them online. WTF!!! I said to myself as I walked out the door. Here I was trying to spend my $$ locally AND trying to buy from Honda and I was basically shown the door. Between that experience and the fact that they are now going after DSS I can say this without any remorse...Hey Honda! GFY!!!

Mike

[HondanutRider]

 ...Hey Honda! GFY!!!

Mike

Mike...go buy a Yamy...or a Kawy...or a Suzi.  (I agree. )

[Don R]

Forkem.

[dave500]

im a little worried,ive only just started buying parts online and have already gotten quite a few parts from silvers,whats the worst case outcome here for him?a fine,cease trading order?im all for a letter straight to honda,we love their old bikes and so should they,its a mobile bill board on two wheels for honda at gatherings /shows etc when all these great bikes are present,i think its an honour thing,the old ways must be forgotten.