I've had a little bit of an injury, specifically putting a jigsaw through my hand, so I've been off the project for a bit. But it's just about healed, so work has continued!
It's been a pretty crazy series of events thus far. I've had some issues getting hardware. Before I sound like I'm bitching, I just want to say that the people at Buggy Depot have been super nice. But, I can't say it's been the best experience thus far. And I've certainly spent a lot...
First, I wanted to order their beefed up a-arms, paired with their HD ball joints and spindles. The problem was, they didn't have any a-arms in stock. So I ordered brand new a-arms from BMI, with the intention of sending them to BD for their reinforcement service. I wanted to be certain all the parts worked as intended.
If you look at the BD website, it says that if you order the a-arm reinforcement service you will receive an email with your receipt detailing where to send your a-arms. Well, I ordered the service and never received an email. I waited for about a week days, and finally emailed them. No response. I called and asked for the address, explaining the issue with the order process. Took longer than I hoped, but I finally sent in my a-arms.
Nearly three weeks go by. Nothing. No confirmation of receiving them, nothing. Finally I emailed them, asking for an update. A few days later I got a very apologetic email, telling me they would do the work and send out my a-arms that day. Great.
Well, after about a week I received the a-arms. Here's the thing, they weren't the a-arms I sent. They sent me a set of their HD a-arms. These were the ones I wanted in the beginning. Normally I would be ok with that, but I've built an entire new front end - using the 5/8 inch bolt size, not the 1/2 inch. I sent them a set of 5/8 a-arms, and got back a set of 1/2inch HD a-arms. At this point, I couldn't bare contacting them and explaining the situation and waiting for the 5/8 ones, so I had to cut shims from 1/2 -> 5/8 pipe so the bolts fit both my bulkhead (5/8) and the BD a-arms (1/2). Doing this is how I cut my hand. I had the pipe clamped, but the saw bound up and jumped. It came back down into my hand, sending me to the ER.
Ok if this was the only snafu I'd be ok. But no. I also ordered the BD stage three rear shocks back in January. They were out of stock, but I was told they were coming in two weeks. A month later, I emailed and asked for a status. They told me a week or so. A month later, still nothing. I emailed again. Was told two weeks. Finally when I just about gave up, they came.
It gets so much better. I also ordered the performance front wheel upgrade back in Jan. This is the one with the big wheels and ATV hubs. The hubs never came. I called. They told me they had been sent, but would come in a different package. A month later, still nothing. I called again. "Oh, they are in the wrong warehouse. I'll get them out today". Almost a month later, and finally at my wits end, I emailed asking for a status on all this stuff. I got this very polite email explaining that they were doing all the shipping that day. Finally they came.
Oh, I'm not done yet. I also ordered the stage three front end suspension upgrade. Because of all the waiting for the a-arms and hubs, I only recently dug into my suspension upgrade package. I can believe it, but they didn't include the tie-rod extensions. Ugh. I didn't even bother emailing them at this point. I just ordered a set and I'll suck up the cost.
All the while, I've ordered a bunch of stuff from BMI. It's all come quickly, and completely. The people at BD have been super nice, but I can't say I'm going to order much more. It's a bummer to, they have a decent catalog.