[HitchcocksMotorcycles]

Hello,

Just to give everyone who uses this board a quick update on the position of the forum.

This forum contains a huge amount of useful content that Enfield Owners of all models and years can use, as well as many active users who contribute with valuable information. In recent times, it appears that there are few updates required and bugs looking at in order for the forum to continue to operate efficiently for the Enfield community. Due to this, we, at Hitchcocks Motorcycles have now taken over the board and will hopefully be able to make improvements for everyone using it. We do not plan to make any major changes to the platform or face of the forum, and primarily we would like to address any of the operating/running issues that might be present so users can continue to enjoy the board.

So, if anyone has any known problems with the forum that they face when viewing/posting, we would appreciate it if you could let us know by posting in the "forum improvements" section for us to look into. 

Another point I would like to mention is, new users may have had difficulties signing up and receiving the confirmation e-mail. This is an issue which was on going for some time, hopefully this has now been resolved and any new users wishing to join should be able to do so, and we would advise they try again now. If there is anyone out there still experiencing this "registering issue", please contact us directly via e-mail at: cmw@hitchcocksmotorcycles.com 

Regards,
Dan

[GSS]

Dan,
Thank you. I stopped posting regularly after finding that a vast majority of my responses would get rejected with an error message while using an iPad, iphone or a Mac. Had the same trouble with a PC as well.

It looks like line spacing, special characters, paragraphs and punctuations are problematic. My only workaround for my rare responses is to post a one line response, and then to use the modify button to add additional text.

The forum usage has been dwindling and hopefully your ownership will restore stability and credibility. Thanks.

[tooseevee]

     Hey Dan,

             At last we know for sure who's running things

              Been on here since 2009 and have spent many many hours here and as of right now I have absolutely no problems at all.

               I would never have gotten my '08 AVL (bought brand new) to the stage it is at now without the people on these forums (all of them). Many have followed my whole saga since '09 and I hope it has added to the knowledge base that is ONLY here. I lurked here for a long time just reading before I even FOUND the bike.

               I've ordered from you a few times and I wish you and us a whole bunch of good luck. Your online catalog needs work. As it is now, if you search on parts for a particular bike you are given a whole bunch of listings for other bikes as well. If you search on the AVL bikes you should get just parts for AVL bikes. As it is now, it's a mish-mash.
 

[GSS]

I agree as well. Having ordered several times from HMC, while their service and products are outstanding, they should fire whoever built their absolutely abysmal new web site.  The opaque navigation and inability to find products in an intuitive manner has led to my moving on to suppliers on EBay.

[mattsz]

If that's the Hitchcocks website experience, I don't hold out much hope for improvements to this forum.  However, let's stay on topic, guys - the discussion here is the forum, not their commercial website...

[Enfield Pro]

I'm going to play devil's advocate here and say it's not possible to craft a website that fits EVERYONE'S browsing preferences.

HMC invested in an interactive catalog and parts books. That Sh*t ain't cheap. The HMC site seems to get regular updates and fixes, for example the search function works a lot better then it used to. Overall it's a nice site and a great resource.

I would suggest if you are having difficulty simply ask for help before giving your money to a middle man like eBay. It's important to remember,  you can find parts on the internet for cheap. But the majority of those vendors are doing nothing to support the Royal Enfield brand in the U.S. / U.K. Support your brand first!

[Adrian II]

Of course, if you need parts for a Redditch-built RE or Indian, there are a good many parts which our friends in India will be blissfully unaware of.

A.

[Dantheman]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the comments, obviously updates/changes will take time to implement, but hopefully we can get them improved in the long run.

     Hey Dan,

             At last we know for sure who's running things

              Been on here since 2009 and have spent many many hours here and as of right now I have absolutely no problems at all.

               I would never have gotten my '08 AVL (bought brand new) to the stage it is at now without the people on these forums (all of them). Many have followed my whole saga since '09 and I hope it has added to the knowledge base that is ONLY here. I lurked here for a long time just reading before I even FOUND the bike.

               I've ordered from you a few times and I wish you and us a whole bunch of good luck. Your online catalog needs work. As it is now, if you search on parts for a particular bike you are given a whole bunch of listings for other bikes as well. If you search on the AVL bikes you should get just parts for AVL bikes. As it is now, it's a mish-mash.

Just to touch on our HMC website, its something that is constantly changing and being updated to ultimately try and give improvements to the end user. Obviously, this doesn't always go to plan, and due to some rather big changes I completely understand the difficulty in being able to search through for a particular parts.

Perhaps there is a particular area I could try and walk through?

For example, if I was searching for standard parts for an AVL bike (what we would call the Electra X), I would use the online parts book as below, from here you can open up the group of components and click on the individual items to bring up price, picture, availability and add to cart:
https://www.hitchcocksmotorcycles.com/partsbook/111/2006-electra-x

If I was searching for upgraded parts or accessories, I would search through the accessory catalogue tab off the main page, then select the "find parts by category" and select the type of parts I was looking for. This will then bring up a list of parts listed under that category, where you can then narrow down the parts suitable for your particular bike by selecting the "Electra X" tick box.

And the last option, if you know the part number already, just type it into the search function at the top.

The difficulty for us comes with the large range of different parts we have available (15000+ different part numbers), so there is always going to be a few search options required to get started, and subsequently narrow down to your model of bike. 

[Adrian II]

That's good stuff, Dan.

The problems can come when we start dealing with Indian home market bikes which have escaped to the UK/USA. There are also some different models sold in the UK and USA. Your current range of on-line parts books, brilliant as it is, doesn't yet cover those models as such.

The 500 AVL Classic was never a UK import, so a mix of Electra-X and Iron Barrel Bullet parts books for the engine/power-train and cycle parts respectively would be needed.

Again the 5 speed E/S Deluxe was never sold officially in the UK, which only had the Sixty-5 and the army green bikes for the 5 speed E/S version of the classic Bullet. The differences were pretty minor: fork gaiters for the Sixty-5, tin fork shrouds for the E/S Deluxe. You also have metallic paint jobs for the Sixty-5 tinware while the 5 Speed E/S Deluxe has the chrome fenders and chrome/painted tank. The Sixty-5 would cover most of it, but you'd have to add in the 4 Speed Deluxe parts list for full coverage.

I really should get out more.

A.

[mattsz]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the comments, obviously updates/changes will take time to implement, but hopefully we can get them improved in the long run.

Just to touch on our HMC website...

I withdraw my previous statement... 

[GSS]

Dan,
Thank you for the explanation and totally understand the complexity....and truly appreciate all your wonderful work. There was previously a bit of navigational simplicity where GT 535 products were clearly batched together as were some others. Handlebars and other parts had a bit of description regarding fit and options. Clearly that is not possible with all 15,000+ parts, but maybe reducing the amount of generic, non-model specific stuff that get displayed, might be something to consider.  Looking forward to great things at this forum and your store.  Best regards.

GSS

[GSS]

Wow! Forum is already better

Message above got posted without a glitch on my first attempt

Thank you!

[tooseevee]

        Why isn't my bike, a 2008 AVL 500 Classic built in January '08 with front drum brake and triangular side cases, recognized on the Hitchcock site as it's own model?

         Only the Electra is called out. My parts book (November 2004) also is an Electra book, not a Classic book. Is there a Classic Parts Book?

         I have wondered about this for years.

[Adrian II]

You didn't see my post above dated 4th October tooseevee, the AVL Classic was never a UK import so Hitchcocks' on-line parts books aren't geared up for it, or any of the Indian home market models that escaped to the UK or USA.

A.

[tooseevee]

You didn't see my post above dated 4th October tooseevee, the AVL Classic was never a UK import so Hitchcocks' on-line pa ???rts books aren't geared up for it, or any of the Indian home market models that escaped to the UK or USA.

A.

           Yes, I did. I read EVery one of your posts with "baited" breath  I depend on you to make my day at least once a day here

           I still doesn'r keep me from asking "where's MY parts book  Waaa   

           (Just kidding. I know where to get stuff) )

[Adrian II]

Oh well, cut and paste the Electra-X engine and electrics pages into the 5 speed electric start C.I. Bullet parts book and you're pretty much sorted.

I depend on you to make my day at least once a day here

Not in the Dirty Harry sense, I hope! 

A.

[olhogrider]

A few suggestions. First, update the format so we don't have to jump through hoops to post pictures. The Hitchcock's forum doesn't make you resize every picture before you post.

Second, have a place for RE/Motorcycle in general info. I have seen camping reports and product evaluations hidden in the UCE forum. That should be reserved for UCE specific posts.

Third, rename the Continental GT page something like the 535GT. It is kind of dumb to have a single and a twin with the same name but it is time for this forum to differentiate between them.

[Kevin Mahoney]

RE has done an absolutely terrible job when it comes to parts books and maintenance manuals. The man at RE that did both manuals told me that the one thing he was sure of was that they were wrong when they were published. RE had the horrible habit of making undocumented changes. For the most part we found out about the change in parts and bikes from customers and dealers not from the factory. When they did make changes they used multiple ways of numbering them. For example, part# 143143 might become 143143/A then 143143/B and then go back to 143143. The factory often times had to ask Tim at our shop what the correct parts were. My point is that Hitchcocks has done a tremendous job trying to sort this out. There are some mysteries that may never be solved. RE might use one part on Monday, a different on Tuesday and then the original part of Friday. It can take a bit of sluthuing to find the correct parts in a few cases but Hitchcock has them cataloged better than anyone. I don't know if the madness has gotten better with the 650's, I sure hope so.

[Kevin Mahoney]

Another area that RE was really lame in was naming conventions. Many of the names were given to them by importers who were frustrated with RE for not naming them.    Electra is one of those items. The Electra name was first used in India for the AVL engine in a 350 form somewhat like their Thunderbird. When the AVL came out here there was an attempt to make it an updated looking design with the new (to the export markets) AVL engine which has an electronic ignition. Out of frustration, we (importers from the UK, Germany and the US) named it the '"Electra" to distinguish it from other models in the export markets. The confusion was no big deal until markets started to overlap with Indian products.

The "65" got it's name from the UK importer because RE had given it no name. The idea was that it was supposed to look like a model from the 60's. It had a few parts from the Indian market Electra. Confused yet?

[Adrian II]

Kevin,

the original Electra was a 350 iron barrel Bullet for the Indian market, the "Electra" bit probably attributed to the fact that it was the first RE (India) model (still with 4 speed right-foot shift box) with electronic ignition, originally CDI, but it changed to TCI after a year or two. Five speed left foot shift versions in kick start and electric start form also appeared later on. The 5 speed E/S looks a lot like the Sixty-5.

The first AVL model was the A350 Machismo, CDI ignition, 4 speed right-foot shift box, later 5 speed (which kept the CDI) and electric start 5 speed (which was TCI). In 2007 the factory brought out the limited edition A500 Machismo which is somewhere between the 500 AVL Classic and the Electra-X, specification-wise.

Then we have the350 AVL Thunderbird (the "factory custom" which replaced the 535 Lightning), 5 speed from the get-go, CDI for kickstart, TCI for the final electric start version.

Drum front brake, early versions of the above, including some Thunderbirds, disk on the later stuff.

Phew...

My factory-issued Combined Spare Parts Catalogue, Retired Models, is jealously guarded.

To their credit Hitchcocks' DO have some spares for the home-market models that escaped from India, though it's not their core business, which is why tooseevee can't find any on-line parts book for the AVL Classic!

A.

[Kevin Mahoney]

The world's best RE parts savant (not kidding or exaggerating) is on this forum. He goes by "Enfield Pro". He is Tim our former parts manager. We would play a game in the office called "who can stump Tim". He never lost.

[Enfield Pro]

The world's best RE parts savant (not kidding or exaggerating) is on this forum. He goes by "Enfield Pro". He is Tim our former parts manager. We would play a game in the office called "who can stump Tim". He never lost.

The knowledge is simply a byproduct of taking 50 phone calls a day every day for 12 years. While most of the crew was out working the endless bike shows every year. I was in the shop selling the "updated" kick starter pawl, the correct starter relay for your bike, or telling the 551st person "do not fill your oil to the full mark."

The majority of what I know was gained from other Royal Enfield riders.

[Adrian II]

Back to the forum itself, yet another plea to our new admins regarding the dreaded Database Error message.

The forum will now let me post a single picture from a photo hosting web site but still won't let me post an update on one of my projects with has lots of pictures, which is how we like it.

I have been through my post and as far as I can tell I have removed all the characters that cause the error message, no joy. I can at least preview but that is as far as it will let me get.

There is still this last bit of un-breaking needed with this forum.

A.

[Richard230]

I am still having no luck posting a "cut and paste" message. Not even one that I first type on my computer's word processor, cut and then try to paste into to a message window here. If I do that I get the dreaded "database error" when I attempt to post it. Then if I return to my original message and try to change my text by deleting my original message and type an entirely new one from scratch, the "post" button is inactivated and system will not even let me post the entirely new message.     When that happens I have to go back a page and start all over. This is nothing that I have seen ever happen when visiting forums over the past 20 years.   

[Kevin Mahoney]

I'll look into it

[olhogrider]

 When that happens I have to go back a page and start all over. This is nothing that I have seen ever happen when visiting forums over the past 20 years.   

I just copied and pasted the above text. I don't think you can go back and edit your text after it is posted.

And Kevin, I posted a couple of pictures straight from my computer instead of a picture hosting site. They worked but now I'm back to error messages.

[mattsz]

I don't think you can go back and edit your text after it is posted.

I have no experience with this forum other than on a computer web browser, but even during database error screwups, I've always been able to edit or delete my own posts any time.  In the upper right side of everybody else's posts, you should see a " Quote button.  On your own posts, in that location you should also see a Modify button and an X Remove button.  Guess what those last two buttons do? 

Pic:

[Richard230]

I have no experience with this forum other than on a computer web browser, but even during database error screwups, I've always been able to edit or delete my own posts any time.  In the upper right side of everybody else's posts, you should see a " Quote button.  On your own posts, in that location you should also see a Modify button and an X Remove button.  Guess what those last two buttons do? 

Pic:

Once I get the database error message, if I return to my original post in the message box to make changes or delete my message and start over again, the "post" button will not work.  To re-post another message I have to go back another page and start a new message in a new box from scratch, without making another mistake that will trigger the database error again, of course. 

[mattsz]

Once I get the database error message, if I return to my original post in the message box to make changes or delete my message and start over again, the "post" button will not work.  To re-post another message I have to go back another page and start a new message in a new box from scratch, without making another mistake that will trigger the database error again, of course. 

Ah-so, I see what you meant now!  Maybe I'll go back and delete my previous post... 

I've run into that, or something similar... when it happens, I always select all the text I've written and copy it to the clipboard so I at least don't have to type everything again...

[Richard230]

One interesting thing that I have noticed:  If you can paste a message in the box before the red line at the top of the page reaches the right margin, you will not get the database error.  I just did that in a post for the Joke of the Day.  I posted my cut and paste joke message so fast that the database error just couldn't keep up.   

[mattsz]

One interesting thing that I have noticed:  If you can paste a message in the box before the red line at the top of the page reaches the right margin, you will not get the database error.  I just did that in a post for the Joke of the Day.  I posted my cut and paste joke message so fast that the database error just couldn't keep up.   

What sorcery is this?!?  I'm not sure what red line you mean, but this sounds like dark magic to me...

[Richard230]

When I open a message box there is a thin red line that moves across the top of the page, from left to right, just above the black forum banner and below my Firefox browser's line of tool boxes, address and search box. Once the line reaches the right-hand side of the page the forum database (or whatever) seems to gain control of the message box.     I assume that represents the progress of the complete downloading of the forum information.

[mattsz]

Huh - I see it now.  It's a proper "thin red line" on my screen, almost invisible - and it takes mine about 1/4 to 1/2 a second to zip across the screen and disappear.  Fast internet connection?  Not compared to most people I know...

[Dantheman]

Thanks for all the comments everyone, all though we don't reply back on each post, we do keep an eye on the feedback you give.

Just to give you a quick update, we have hopefully fixed a few of the bugs over the past few weeks. In particular, special characters seemed to have been causing a few problems when posting and giving database errors, hopefully the update which we have carried out today will resolve these errors and this particular issue will have improved and posting symbols like:  "'£$%@:;#@ will become less of a problem.


Dan

[Richard230]

Thanks, Dan.  Things seem to be working well for me now.   

[Kevin Mahoney]

Dan Hitchcock has also told me that they have invested in software fixes that should fix the photo download issues.

[Richard230]

Since they updated the forum software I haven't had a single problem posting anything.   

[Adrian II]

I think they've finally cracked the posting issues. Now if they could recover the old photo gallery that would be wonderful.

A.

[heloego]

The only real issue I've had has been the need to double-space replies so my sentences are actually separated when posted.