Welcome to the Worldwide V8 Bikers Forum

I just read on the Boss Hoss website under the heading of "Power Tour" that effective Monday October 24,2016 the Boss Hoss Factory will now be closed on Mondays. They are open from Tuesday through Friday.

That would be a great place to work.

Always be around beautiful bikes and trikes and have a 3 day weekend.

Or, is it a cost cutting measure? I hope not. Better for them to be working two shifts to keep up with demand

My guess and it is just a guess is that it is cost cutting BUT all Corporations / Businesses need to do what they have to do to survive....big or small...

Unfortunately Carl & Barry are spot on, IMHO.! This is step #1 for a company dealing with our shitty economy.
Next will be to cut work force - crap I don't like where this is going ! BH can't stay in business selling parts for older bikes & trikes, they have got to sell NEW machines to stay in business. Craig H.

Craig, IMHO the economy here in Michigan seems to be doing quite well! Real Estate is back at almost 2005-2007 prices, trucks are rolling on our Interstates, new restaurants and some new businesses opening as I speak. Hopefully it's four 10 hour shifts, instead of five 8 hour shifts for the closing of the BH Factory on Mondays. I like to try and stay POSITIVE! (8am-5pm Tuesday thru Friday, that would be 9 hours a day, 36 hours a week)

Triker, which trike and year do you ride ?

Craig, I ride a Sierra Truck Trike. The year is a 2008. The engine is a ZZ4 EFI 355 hp.

Just a guess, but I imagine this is where Triker comes back and tells you that though the economy is doing well by you, you're still riding a 2008, that made someone money in 2008.

In Buffalo the economy seems to be doing very well also. But I'm not in the market for a $75k bike that I can only ride 6 months out of the year. I cringe to think about paying for the repairs on the V8 bike I just built, which I put less than 100 miles on.

The economy is NOT doing very well in my opinion unlike what the Obama administration would like us to believe. How many new bikes has Boss Hoss sold and how many does it need to sell to be profitable. How many people have sixty or seventy thousand dollars for a motorcycle, or a trike, not many. Its not like there is no competition either, Stan is a bulldog and he also builds beautiful bikes and trikes and he sells them himself and he's good at it. ITS A TOUGH BUSINESS.

Jack wrote:Just a guess, but I imagine this is where Triker comes back and tells you that though the economy is doing well by you, you're still riding a 2008, that made someone money in 2008.

In Buffalo the economy seems to be doing very well also. But I'm not in the market for a $75k bike that I can only ride 6 months out of the year. I cringe to think about paying for the repairs on the V8 bike I just built, which I put less than 100 miles on.

So Jack, what's your point? In all due respect, we both agree with each other.

SQ4MN wrote:The economy is NOT doing very well in my opinion unlike what the Obama administration would like us to believe. How many new bikes has Boss Hoss sold and how many does it need to sell to be profitable. How many people have sixty or seventy thousand dollars for a motorcycle, or a trike, not many. Its not like there is no competition either, Stan is a bulldog and he also builds beautiful bikes and trikes and he sells them himself and he's good at it. ITS A TOUGH BUSINESS.

It's a tough business is an understatement.

Hummmm, maybe 57 chevy girl knows what she is talking about. You can't stay in business if you can't move product. Got to be affordable and need dealers to sell them.

57chevygirl wrote:Hummmm, maybe 57 chevy girl knows what she is talking about. You can't stay in business if you can't move product. Got to be affordable and need dealers to sell them.

For sure...you are the smartest one here obviously...you reappear on Halloween...coincidence...hmmmm

i am not on as much as Kim Kardasian but i look in on it now and then. Are they having a lot of clown sitings in ur area?

57chevygirl wrote:i am not on as much as Kim Kardasian but i look in on it now and then. Are they having a lot of clown sitings in ur area?

Only when you sign in on here is the only clown sighting...too bad you did not really tell us who, show a real picture of who you are rather than hiding behind the 57.whatever whatever...have a nice Halloween.

Triker wrote:

Jack wrote:Just a guess, but I imagine this is where Triker comes back and tells you that though the economy is doing well by you, you're still riding a 2008, that made someone money in 2008.

In Buffalo the economy seems to be doing very well also. But I'm not in the market for a $75k bike that I can only ride 6 months out of the year. I cringe to think about paying for the repairs on the V8 bike I just built, which I put less than 100 miles on.

So Jack, what's your point? In all due respect, we both agree with each other.

I agree with you 100%... I was just helping spell it out to him. I don't know anyone who is even remotely interested in spending that coin on a bike. I wish I did... I've sent a lot of people to the new site, telling them about the new ownership and the new product... just isn't that big of a market regardless of how well people are doing.

The new Raptor is $72k optioned out the way I want it... and I couldn't imagine spending that much on a truck, let alone a bike.

And I don't care about Obama, but where I work we've doubled our revenue in the last 3 years, to $8B. I don't know anyone that is out of work, but I know a bunch of people trying to hire. Maybe it is the company I keep, I dare say "Buffalo" and should probably emphasize that I'm 20 minutes outside of the city, but the city is actually on the rise for the first time in a century. I'll keep my distance though, 20 minutes is 20 minutes too close.

In my opinion the V8 Bikes and to a lesser extent the V8 Trikes are impulse purchases. They are fairly easy to sell at the major shows like Sturgis and Daytona because many enthusiasts come and spend some days away from the reality of their real lives. If the bikes and trikes are appealing when a guy first sees them then a good salesman has the chance to close the deal. Once that same customer leaves the booth or the show and goes home it becomes much harder to sell him one. Many buyers came to those shows with no intention of buying a V8 bike or spending the money necessary to own one. I sold nearly thirty V8 Choppers at the shows when I used to do that and I can only remember two sales that the customer actually came there with the intention of buying a V8 Chopper. The bikes damn near sold themselves all I did was close the deal. The bikes had the WOW factor and so did the trikes, without it I might never have sold one. The shows provided an endless stream of potential customers. It was fun because many guys fantasized about riding something so outrageous when they first saw it, I just turned it into a reality. It would be much harder at a dealership in a different atmosphere where the customer had limited time before the realities of his daily schedule and his cell phone was calling him to leave the dealership and go home for dinner or work or whatever. The next way the V8's sell is thru the friends of those who own them already, guys that say if Fred can ride one maybe I can. Its a hard business. Wonderfull for those that just own and ride them but I can't think of a harder manufacturing business.

It is the lack of dealers around the country also that factors in.

As for price. Most of the guys buying big wheel baggers are spending as much or more than a Boss Hoss would cost them or a V8 Chopper...they are stuck on the HD V-Twin thing.

Back when Choppers were popular almost everyone sold around my area were more than I could have sold them a Boss Hoss for but they went for the V-Twin thing...go figure

AND...most riders are SCARED of the V8...being doing this long enough and heard it more than enough about the intimidation.

Don't judge... but some of my friends that were scared of the Boss Hoss, actually got a ride on the back.
Then they were really scared. Haha.

I have yet to see a V8 Chopper in WNY. If anyone knows anyone out this way with one, I'd love to check it out.

I ride my 2015 25th Anniversary Coupe to a lot of bike nights here in the Dallas / Ft. Worth area. It always draws a crowd. One of the first questions usually is "How much?" When I respond that this one was under $40k, they're impressed. Then they ask where the DFW dealer is located and I respond that the nearest showroom is in Houston, they're less impressed.

I would like to express my own opinion on several things said and not said in this thread and on this forum. I think everybody is entitled to have an opinion right or wrong without someone bashing them personally or result to name calling. I don’t think anybody should be bashing another member, a dealer, or any of the owners of a business. In my lifetime I have owned several brands of motorcycle and both Harley Davidson and Boss Hoss trikes, there was not one that I didn’t like when I owned them. I have sold nearly as many as I have owned (one wrecked, one stolen, and I currently own a 2012 BH Gangsta). I did test ride one of the new Gangsta trikes in Paris this year and will say that much of it really impressed me, especially the power. There were also several things that I didn’t like and heard several others who had similar opinions. I think they are vastly improved from what they were selling before and the owners are interested in our opinions and have implemented several issues we have voiced to the owners (Ricky) about. Folks, it can’t all be done overnight, give them time to learn and grow. Would I buy one of the new ones now? No, I think I will wait and see what they could do and make happen in the future. I personally don’t need all of that power, therefore would only be paying additional insurance for something I would not use to its fullest, and the roads here are not good enough or straight enough to do what I know I would try occasionally. Many businesses close an extra day of the week, especially if it is a seasonal business as I feel motorcycles and trikes are, except for those of you who are lucky enough to live out west. What does concern me though is that none of the dealers have ordered new models to sell themselves or order for a customer. I am sure that most of them have the experience to know what they can sell and what they can’t. I feel they are priced too high because there is no longer an entry model, only what I would consider a custom build which is why the price. This I think also hurts some of the dealers as a few create custom builds and may continue. I feel that the factory when started selling at the factory hurt the dealer network and took sales away from those businesses who were keeping the factory in business. It appears that several of the dealers have no inventory at all and certainly not of the new models why might that be? It is interesting to hear the opinion of others and also a great place to learn what is going on and a place to give or get advice. Thanks for hearing me out even if I didn’t really give you a chance not to, Bye for now, John

v8 bikes are always gonna be a niche market for the lucky few.
the average rider fears their power.
these days you can buy great performing motorcycles for very low prices ,so price is definatly a major factor.

i think a BarbarianV8 franchise in the USA will definately add to the popularity and accessability of v8 bikes.
retail price would start at about $35 000 .[bike and trike].
our kits allow a customer to build their own bike or trike for a whole lot less,which will allow a lot more people to be able to get into the v8 bike world.

nothing makes your heart beat faster than a v8 bike




.

I still think kits in various stages is a good thing. The big problem is customers want the bikes to cost less. That means the factory will make less. If the factory makes any less than it is now it probably won't stay in business. It might be possible if the volume of sales went way up but it won't. You could sell V8 bikes at 30000 and the volume of sales would not double. If it did you would be back to where you were selling half as many for 60000 and that isn't working out real good. You would have to sell 3 times as many to realize a significant profit change. My GUESS is the overhead is to high at Boss Hoss for its amount of sales. The bikes are much better than they ever were, I am not a trike guy so I don't know how much better they are. To me the trikes were mechanically fine before the new owners got it. The trikes needed a styling change and still do in my opinion. Changes cost money, money is always the problem. Like I said ITS A HARD BUSINESS.

BarbarianV8 is a good looking bike and probably performs well but a one speed just doesn't do it for me no matter what the brand.