Ducati Monster Forum

Making a move to Brisvegas from Sydney town soon and the real bummer is that due to work I will not get enough time to take a road trip. Thus I am thinking of using a bike carrier. If any has any good tips or feedback in relation to bike carriers it would be greatly appreciated, I am a tad anxious about handing my baby over to someone without knowing the ins and outs.

One company I have looked at so far is Bike Logistics, the quoted price and estimated turn around times are pretty reasonable however the terms and conditions are scary :o, they also ask for up front payment.

G'day Luke

I've been looking into this recently for a possible purchase, and I've seen alot of positive feedback for fergusons motorcycle transport. I've got a quote from there for $380 all inclusive from Melbourne to Sydney, door to door. That includes full insurance and gst...

I haven't got any quotes from any other places yet, but Ive also heard some good reviews for bikenut, so I'm gonna get a quote from them as well and see how they compare.

Damo

bikes only i have used personally and can recommend them highly.

I'm with Loony, Bikes Only.

Have done a couple of moves with them and never had a problem.

I've used Fergusson's and I wouldn't use them again.

They weren't the cheapest option, but I chose them because my brother had good and cheap service from them in the past, so they were worth a go.

It took me four weeks to get my bike from QLD to Melbourne. I'm not talking far NE QLD either. It was on the border of QLD and NSW. By their admission, it's only a 3-4 day trip.

When I would call to see what the holdup was, I wasn't very satisfied with their responses either.

I would give another mob a go.

I've heard that someone who used to work for them has left them to start their own business. I'll see if I can get those details

GK

Just got the number.

The lady's name is Maxine Shaw. 0431454960

Cheers,

GK

I've used bikes only and they were great. Even let me get a local bike transporter pick my bike up after hours from the depot when I couldn't wait over the weekend.

Thanks for all the input guys, and thanks GK for tracking down that number, though I ended up going with bikes only. The whole thing ended up costing 360 door to door and estimated transit time is 5 days, I'll let you know how it all goes.

Bike got here in one piece and on time. Was kept in contact the whole way through. Took exactly the time they said it would and I couldn't really fault the guys at bikes only at all. [thumbsup] [thumbsup].

Now the monster is here i might got for a run this weekend to see what hills are around Brissy [Dolph]

Well done.

Keep a look out for my Jack-in-the-box copper mate with his lydar video gun.
He jumped out from behind some bins at Nebo and ran on the road behind me with that thing and put the wind up me. I was sure I wasn't speeding but it's hard to tell up there. I learnt later he was testing the thing and nothing has turned up in the post after more than a month so looks like I was all good.
Not sure what you're used to but they cops also have been noticed videoing bikes from unmarked small unmarked hatch backs and even from other unmarked bikes. You probably won't even know you've done something wrong until a week later when the notice turns up.

Don't want to put you off, just have fun and take it easy is all I'm saying.

Thats great news Luke. I hope the weather is warmer up there for you to get some great riding in. And don't forget when your down this way let us know so we can organize a ride with ya

WARNING!

I recently had a bike shipped from Brisbane to Darwin with Fergussons who subcontracted it to Bikes Only.

They turned up a day late to collect the bike (some mechanical issues with their vehicle, ok fare enough) They gave the bike a look over & marked the ONE paint chip that it had (which I pointed out & was caused by a mechanic,  honesty is the best policy). It was noted down on the consignment, I took some good photos of the bikes condition before it left, so far so good right?

The Bike turned up covered in dust!
It now has scratches in a number of locations & a few extra paint chips. I was disappointed to say the least! I told the guys & they said I had to call/email the office. On the way home the right hand mirror swings in & strikes my forearm! WTF! Not something I was expecting!

As you can imagine I was non to pleased right about now!

Upon emailing the office of both Fergussons & Bikes Only including photos of the damage that they caused (proof is in the photos sent to them) I was told;
"All the scratches and paint chips you mentioned in your email was noted on our consignment note upon pick up, unfortunately the mirror becoming loose is not covered by insurance as there could have been a loose connection to begin with."

I triple checked the 2 consignment notes that I had. One from pick up (Fergussons) the other from delivery (Bikes only) They don't even match!

Now they will not even answer emails! Pathetic service from 2 companies that are obviously in the wrong.

I wont be letting this one rest until I get a satisfactory resolution. They charge us a lot of money & we entrust or precious bikes to careless individuals that should be made to pay for the repairs for the damage they cause!


Hayze. (The owner of 1 now not so pristine Ducati)

That's not very good news at all.
It's a hard battle to fight once you've paid money and the bike I'd delivered.
When you say the consignments didn't match, do you mean the numbers or the notes.
I'm sure you would have been left with a copy of the notes upon the bikes departure with the single scratch noted. 
What do they have to say about this or do they just not acknowledge that it left in that condition.
Keep it up to them, I do hope you get someone with it and if not take it as public as you can.
Letters to The Editor of all the bike mags even if they don't get published they'll still know of the average service and might not recommend them in there future publications.

Mattyvas,

The notes & locations of the paint chip's don't match on the consignment notes. The second one has the paint chip marked in the same place on both sides of the bike! Perhaps that one was put in for good measure, but no chip there!

I signed the 1st note when they picked up the bike as it listed the single paint chip accurately in accordance with the bikes condition. Either way very poor service & denying responsibility is pathetic.

They are just replying to emails now...

If no satisfactory outcome I will be writing letters to every bike mag I can think of!

Hayze (The owner of 1 not so pristine Ducati)

do you have full comp insurance ?

if so i would be in contact with them since you have photos of before and after

let the insurance company fight it out

Yes I have full comprehensive insurance but I should not have to resort to that. They are supposed to be "professional" bike carriers & should conduct themselves as such.

P.S. Still waiting for a reply to emails...


Hayze  (The owner of 1 not so pristine Ducati!)

Might be a company to avoid.  He (was/is) riding in the group I'm in so will update the outcome when I return.

"H*****r arrived in Melbourne from WA this morning and went straight to the transport depot to collect his bike. A big week planned with Turismo then 6 days through the Southern Highlands of NSW. But WA Freightlines have LOST his bike!!!!!!! After an hour and a half of checking it seems (via the video footage) that someone might have moved it out of the arrival bay and put it into the leaving bay and it seems to be on its way back to WA. He is still waiting to make sure but all his leathers & clothes are with it. What a make the beast with two backs up!!!!!"

Heatherp - What! they lost his bike!! Damn, now that's bad. What company was that?.

I'm also in the process of looking into interstate bike transport (SYD-CAIRNS) so thanks for all the posts. Don't think I'm keen to use any of these companies at all.

There's a motorcycle courier who lives in my area. Next time I'm walking past his place (hopefully tomorrow morning) if one of his vehicles is still there, I'll grab the details and post them up.

Cheers,

GK

None of his vehicles were there this morning, however I'm pretty sure his business is Motorcycle Movers!

Just checked on the net and these are the guys.

http://www.motorcyclemovers.com.au/ (http://www.motorcyclemovers.com.au/)

Don't know much about them, apart from the fact that they deliver for Honda (found that info on their site).

Had another quick look at the site, they pick up and deliver within Victoria only.  [thumbsdown]

Cheers,

GK

WA Freightlines

Update:
The bike arrived from WA into Melbourne.  Someone moved the bike into the wrong area and it ended up on a truck back to Perth where it was subsequently located.  
The rider affected has used the company before without problem and says he would use them again.

He ended up being lent a bike and riding gear and still attended Turismo and the after ride we had planned.  So all up he's a happy camper.

GK, I tried that number with no sucess, do you think this may be her business? http://www.motorbiketransport.com.au/ (http://www.motorbiketransport.com.au/)

Still looking at options. Are there any opinions or experiences out there on using a removalist business. I know some will carry bikes.

Thought I'd just update the thread with some info which may provide useful to someone in the future.

 I'll be driving to Cairns now (van + bike) but I did encounter one guy who seemed to me to be a good choice. I'll use him to transport all my other stuff when the time comes.

His name is Glen from Alstonville Furniture Removals (Qld). Had a good chat with him, he's a rider himself and is happy to carry bikes if required. Being a rider himself he was acutely aware of the preciousness of bikes to their owners and therefore how to load them safely. His number for anyone who may wish to contact him is 04one2 66425eight.

So sorry for the late reply, I didn't notice that anyone had posted here.

I don't think that's her business, but couldn't be sure.

GK

For further info, mine is being shipped from Sydney to Geraldton with bikes only, under subcontract from allied pickfords, who are doing the rest of the house.

Thus far it's been a bit of a schemozzle. Work were painfully slow in getting the order to allied, who then found bikes only were unable to pick up on the appointed day. As we had to be gone the next day, I borrowed a ute and dropped my bike off at the store at work, and gave all the pickup details to allied.

So today we're in Adelaide, and I get a phone call from bikes only asking for the pickup address...

Oh we'll. I can only hope I end up with my bike back at the other end.

For anyone who may like to know my bike made it to Cairns without a scratch. It went via two carriers and I can certainly recommend both.

From Sydney to Brisbane by Allwest Motorcycle Carriers (96032979). These guys were great, picked up the bike at the arranged time in an Iveco van fitted out with all the necessary tie downs etc. These guys all ride bikes and appreciate how we feel about our bikes and I felt confident right from the start they would take all the necessary care.

Brisbane to Cairns was done by Carters Transport. Peter is the man there (0418754316) however I made arrangements with Richard in the Brisbane depot (54451572) and I'm not sure exactly how this works but the bike was delivered (by Allwest) to their Brisbane Depot which is K&R Cooper Transport Shed 2.  1717 Ipswitch Rd Rocklea.

The bike sat safely at the Cairns depot for a day or two. I arrived in Cairns about 2:30pm, rang up the driver who told me where their depot was then rang to make sure someone was still there. He called me straight back, told me fellow was still there but leaving in half an hour, though I suspect he would have lingered longer if necessary. I went and picked it up, paid them the cash I owed and it couldn't have been easier.

I was really happy with both carriers so if you ever need your bike taken anywhere either of these two carriers service, give them a try.

Actually I forgot to mention that I'm having another bike sent up to Cairns and have used Allwest again for the first leg. What I wanted to mention is that if anyone is in need of a helpful bike shop in Brisbane, look up Matt at Rocker Classic Motorcycles. He has been really helpful throught my second undertaking.

Always recon it's worth mentioning the good guys around the industry so thanks Matt.

I'm starting to get pretty shitty with bikes only. They've had my bike more than a month now, with no contact to arrange delivery. I rang them yesterday and the earliest they can do it is the 18th, another 2 weeks.

How make the beast with two backsing hard can it be? The rest of our stuff has been here since the 13th of December...

Just a final word on the moving exercise. The second bike arrived safely and without a scratch the other day.

It was carried by MMS (Motorcycle Movement Specialists). Fantastic, they have a fully outfitted closed in Mack. The truck is designed to carry bikes and Glen was all you could ask for. On time, polite, helpful and well priced.

MMS (Glen Gale) can be reached on 0407 988007 or mmsglen  at  iprimus.com dot au

So, anyone needing a bike moved in Qld I highly recommend their services.

Update??

That's your friends partner, yeah? Looks like a nicely presented website and they're close to my work. I'll have to drop in and say g'day.

It arrived on the 18th, dirty but undamaged.

Can't really recommend them.