A $67 lesson...

Remember all that money I saved by getting the short shift kit off of ebay? Well, let's just say that I'm all caught up and there is no such thing as a free lunch.

After much research and lots of phone calls I found that the little plastic ring that I need to replace is only available as part of a set (the entire shifter assembly to be exact) and costs $98 from the dealer.

A few more phone calls located a parts supplier that can sell me one for $67 + shipping. So I bought it. The way I see it- I f'ed up and now I'm payin' for it and that's fine. I learned a lesson- and the lesson is this:

"Never get involved in a land war in Asia..." No wait that's another lesson

The lesson is this:

"Listen to yer gut cause yer gut don't lie"

And I think those are words to live by- sux that it's cost me ($67 + shipping) dollars to finally lock that one down- but sometimes that's how things go- I shoulda listened to my instincts.

The other interesting thing that I learned during my ring research was this- There are ALOT of people who have had this same issue due to faulty instructions- apparently is REALLY common. So that's good - I feel somewhat validated and a little less stoopid.

The new part should arrive just in time for me to leave town for 2 weeks - so it won't be going in any time soon.

In the meantime the shifting is functional at best - and that's a bummer- but it's all part of the game.

Oh! I left out one important part of the story when I last posted - and it's this- despite all of the snags and busted knuckles- the install was indeed good times- if it wasn't challenging and a little risky it wouldn't be any fun.

To be continued...