baustin Posted January 23, 2009 Share #1 Posted January 23, 2009 Got my 2008 Venture home today from her first service and decided to give her a bath. So I removed all the bolts from left saddlebag and turned around to carefully pace the bolts on the ground when I heard the bag go skiding down the driveway about 12 feet. Needless to say my drawers were ruined and after retrieving the bag found deep scratches all over the side and top. Called the dealer and they want $785 for a new one and told me if I tried to repaint it the paint would not match because of different batches of paint. Moral of story: wear old drawers when working on bike, NEVER turn your head to store a bolt, and make friends with a good body/paint guy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beyeker Posted January 23, 2009 Share #2 Posted January 23, 2009 If the paint batches are that different, how can your dealer order one that will match? Get some paint and find a bodyshop that is reasonable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freebird Posted January 23, 2009 Share #3 Posted January 23, 2009 I agree. It is a shame that happened and I sincerely feel for you. I know how sick you must feel. BUT....any reputable body shop should be able to match the paint so that you won't be able to tell. I think your dealer is full of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronhenry4 Posted January 23, 2009 Share #4 Posted January 23, 2009 Or you could wait for a meet and eat..... bring your allen wrenches... and when no one is looking..... snag one sorry about what happened to you but look on the bright side it didnt get scratched up while you were riding and no one got hurt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baustin Posted January 23, 2009 Author Share #5 Posted January 23, 2009 I agree. It is a shame that happened and I sincerely feel for you. I know how sick you must feel. BUT....any reputable body shop should be able to match the paint so that you won't be able to tell. I think your dealer is full of it. I kinda thought they were just trying to sell me a new bag, so when I asked about paint and they told me about matching problems, they still offered to sell me a pint of color-coded paint for $89. Is that a reasonable price? Will I have to order the pinstriping too or can a good body man work around it? I don't have a clue and I don't want to get ripped off so any advice is greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DragonRider Posted January 23, 2009 Share #6 Posted January 23, 2009 From my experience, and most others here too, are most dealers full of it.......... I agree. It is a shame that happened and I sincerely feel for you. I know how sick you must feel. BUT....any reputable body shop should be able to match the paint so that you won't be able to tell. I think your dealer is full of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beyeker Posted January 23, 2009 Share #7 Posted January 23, 2009 That price for the paint sounds about right. But I would talk to the bodyshop first. Paint shops can match any paint now adays. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mraf Posted January 23, 2009 Share #8 Posted January 23, 2009 Never underestimate the skill of a professional bodyman. I watched a pro fill a large dent in the hood of a 70 Lincoln Continental, back before time. A very large flat hood. When he was done you would have never known. Perfect. Pick your pro wisely for your baby. Anyone in your area restore automobiles? If a bodyshop owner puts out a sweet looking resto once and awhile it's a good bet that they have the knowhow to fix your bag to " primo condition". Yeah, by the way don't ya just hate it when "Gravity Sucks"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waterbug Posted January 23, 2009 Share #9 Posted January 23, 2009 I dont know what kind of shops are around you in your area but alot have a camera that can take the picture of the paint and with the paint code or with out it can get very close, I use one everyday at work since I paint cars for a living. Now if they dont have one they can have the paint store come by and take a picture of the part to match, alot of shops dont have these since they are around 11k if I remeber rite. as far as the stripe goes you are better off to replace it then to try to paint over the old one or clear over it as alot of times they will shrink under the clear then you have a bigger mess you dont want. there are striping companies that might be able to match your stripes and if they can you can get a roll of say 50ft for around 20 to 30 bucks if they can match it. Take it to a good bodyshop and have it done rite it will pay for itself in the long run, there are alot of shops that wont mess with bikes so you might have to look around. Good luck!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mariner Fan Posted January 23, 2009 Share #10 Posted January 23, 2009 Any automotive body shop can match the paint. Good luck on the repair. So, do you normally take the saddlebags off to wash the bike? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V7Goose Posted January 23, 2009 Share #11 Posted January 23, 2009 Well, I know it doesn't help you now, but if you are going to be taking those bags off a lot, get the chrome side rails - they will prevent the bag from ever falling off by itself, and they actually provide quite a bit of protection if the bike goes down or hits something. Goose Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baustin Posted January 23, 2009 Author Share #12 Posted January 23, 2009 Any automotive body shop can match the paint. Good luck on the repair. So, do you normally take the saddlebags off to wash the bike? I do if I'm going to detail it but I'm thinking I might not anymore, or at least be more careful. It's hard to get the wheels clean without removing the bags. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eazyduzzit Posted January 23, 2009 Share #13 Posted January 23, 2009 Hey neighbor! (I live in Knoxville). I'm sorry about your saddlebag. I know that would make you sick. A friend of mine had his lid open on the saddlebag and accidentally ran into it and cracked it with his other bike. Ouch! Holler at me sometime and we'll have a cup or go for a ride. Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baustin Posted January 24, 2009 Author Share #14 Posted January 24, 2009 Hey neighbor! (I live in Knoxville). I'm sorry about your saddlebag. I know that would make you sick. A friend of mine had his lid open on the saddlebag and accidentally ran into it and cracked it with his other bike. Ouch! Holler at me sometime and we'll have a cup or go for a ride. Jim Will do. We have a motley crew who get together about every weekend that weather permts so I'll put you on the call list. I called my insurance company and they said they would call me Monday with a settlement so hopefully everything will work out. Have any suggestions on a good body shop? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eazyduzzit Posted January 24, 2009 Share #15 Posted January 24, 2009 Have any suggestions on a good body shop? The only one I've used is Cars Inc. on Callahan Dr. They do a lot of work there, and they did a good job matching the paint on my truck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuddyRich Posted January 24, 2009 Share #16 Posted January 24, 2009 An automotive paint dealer can easily match your paint. And since the bag does not touch and other parts with the same color any very slight differences won't be seen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CMIKE Posted January 24, 2009 Share #17 Posted January 24, 2009 I am so sorry to hear about what happend. I would have a pain in my stomach for a while over that. Tip for the future...drop the bolts in the saddle bag for storage while you are removing the bags. Also Colorright http://www.colorrite.com/matrix-step1.cfm?type=2 sells touch up paint and I think up to quarts of paint to match most all bikes. If the scarches are not too bad....you will be surprized what you can do with touch up paint and some 3M finishing glaze. When I bought my bike it had a scratch on the rear trunk. I have a Midnight that is more of a metalic black. The touch up paint matched perfectly. After it was dry I polished it with the filling or finishing glaze. You have to look real good to see that it had a scratch on it. If it is not really really bad...I think I would try it before I spent all that money on body a body man. WORTH a Try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baustin Posted January 31, 2009 Author Share #18 Posted January 31, 2009 Thanks for all the help. Now I have one more problem. I evidently, in my flustered state, lost one of the bottom bolts for the saddlebag. Does anybody know what size they are so I can get another one? It has simply vanished and I'm hoping my local Ace has one but I don't know the thread size. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BradT Posted January 31, 2009 Share #19 Posted January 31, 2009 Tip for the future...drop the bolts in the saddle bag for storage while you are removing the bags. . Then the washers fall off and try and fish those things out from where they get lost and stuck. Best option just see below. Brad PS for some reason 6mm thread comes to mind. But do not quote me on that, but it is metric, just measure one of the ones you have. Well, I know it doesn't help you now, but if you are going to be taking those bags off a lot, get the chrome side rails - they will prevent the bag from ever falling off by itself, and they actually provide quite a bit of protection if the bike goes down or hits something. Goose Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GunnyButch Posted January 31, 2009 Share #20 Posted January 31, 2009 The short bolts are M6X35, long ones M6X55. One thing I am curious about, how steep is your driveway? 12 feet is a long way to tumble. Good luck on the paint, the damage is fixable by a good painter but it probably won't be real cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedRider Posted January 31, 2009 Share #21 Posted January 31, 2009 Look in the classified and get a set of Rick Butler's saddlebag bolts. They have knobs on them that make it easy to remove without tools. +1 on just dropping the bolts in the bag when removed. Colorrite.com should have the correct paint codes for your ride. RR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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