How much to fix my GSX600F’s chain and sprockets?

I recently bought a Suzuki GSX600FW. The chain looks really dodgy as do the sprockets, while the brakes need some attention as well, particularly the discs. Where can I source these parts at a reasonable price? If I were to put the bike into a garage how much would I expect to pay?

MCN’s own website MCN Shop is really useful for pricing up the bits you are looking for, as are big retailer like M&P. Ebay is also worth checking. Your chain and sprockets should be £80-£100 for a heavy duty set.

As for the discs it depends on what you want – they can vary greatly in price. Don’t be tempted by used discs as these may end up being in a worse state that the ones you already have. On that subject, it is actually worth having yours checked before binning them. It is possible that they may not be pretty but could be within serviceable limits.

One final thing, Suzuki have just reduced the cost of a lot of consumables for their bikes so it is possible that you could now get original equipment items from Suzuki for a good price.

As for garage prices, a franchised dealer will charge about £45 an hour for workshop time, while an independent mechanic could be around £30.

For future reference, when buying used bikes it is worth checking all the consumables carefully as they are expensive. This includes tyres. Consumables in good condition show that the last owner is likely to have looked after the bike properly. You don’t want to buy an older bike and then spend as much as the bike cost you all over again getting it roadworthy. A ‘fixer upper’ is rarely a bargain.