Parts searching for dummies 101

[WFO Speedracer]

On both here and on PWCT I get people looking for parts all the time, the thing is no one wants to due their due diligence, either they are too lazy or maybe they just don't know how to look for parts.
,If you are too lazy this post will not help you at at all,may I suggest a cattle prod.

However if you just don't know how to search for parts , maybe I can help.

First you need to know what the part is called, not what you think it's called, what the manufacturer actually calls the part, you will get this info and a lot more by looking it up on an online microfiche.

There are plenty of them around but I usually use https://www.kawasakipartswarehouse.com or https://www.yamahawarehouse.com.

Go to the website and look up the part, now you know what the part is called if you can find it on the microfiche, if you can't find it keep looking because trust me it is on the fiche somewhere.

You should NOW have a part number, now it's time to do some real searching, you are going to search in two places, Google and Ebay by putting the part number for the part in the search box you will get all relevant searches for that part, who has it, probably what it fits and the many different vendors who have it for sale.

Bask in the glory of what you have done and you didn't even have to start a new thread to do it.

 

[Big Kahuna]

Great Post Terry.

 

[brapperdoodle]

Great post! I would like to add, if you are looking for a part that is non-specific you should check out www.mcmaster.com
It took me a while to figure out how to navigate the site, but there are TONS of great solutions to odd challenges we come across in this sport. This site is especially helpful if you are doing a custom build. Not to mention most of the time my parts arrive next day with incredibly reasonable shipping cost!

 

[OCD Solutions]

Another great trick to searching the forum itself is to do a google search but specify the forum site itself.
This works for any item and any site if you change the site address and search criteria.
copy and past the following text into your google search bar.
Kawasaki Bed plate site:www.x-h2o.com

If you want to narrow things down even further, click on the "tools" button just under the search bar, and a drop down men will appear that let's you select the time frame you want the search to look at. No sense dragging up 2 yr old sale threads where everything has already sold.

 

[WFO Speedracer]

It never ceases to amaze me when people post up that they can't find a part and 30 seconds later I have a list of several for sale, it makes me wonder did you even look, where did you look, did you have your glasses on when you looked, do you need glasses but don't know it yet, these are real questions I need answers to.

I am putting a Kawasaki KLF 220 together right now, this thing was pulled apart about six years ago, the place where it was at flooded, the unit was moved from there to my shop in Greenville, then mooved again to my house, there are pieces missing and I mean big pieces, so far there is not a single piece I haven't been able to find on Ebay but you have to be careful, there are some real parts gougers on Ebay that charge ridiculous prices on small items.

I always check sites like Kawasaki parts wharehouse first to see what the new part costs, then I get a pretty substantial break on the price of Kawi parts from the dealership , no shipping costs and no sales tax, a lot of times I am better off buying the parts new.

As an example I am missing a spring on the decompressor shaft, Ebay wants $12.99 plus $4.13 shipping plus tax, the part sells for $5.48 new, it will probably cost me a little over $4.00 out the door.

 

[WFO Speedracer]

The WFO search engine is offline for updates, please refer to the first post for all your parts search needs.

 

[WFO Speedracer]

Great post! I would like to add, if you are looking for a part that is non-specific you should check out www.mcmaster.com
It took me a while to figure out how to navigate the site, but there are TONS of great solutions to odd challenges we come across in this sport. This site is especially helpful if you are doing a custom build. Not to mention most of the time my parts arrive next day with incredibly reasonable shipping cost!

One thing I like about Mcmaster carr are the exploded diagrams with all the info on the product, information no one else will bother to give you I guarentee you that.

 

[beerdart]

Great post! I would like to add, if you are looking for a part that is non-specific you should check out www.mcmaster.com
It took me a while to figure out how to navigate the site, but there are TONS of great solutions to odd challenges we come across in this sport. This site is especially helpful if you are doing a custom build. Not to mention most of the time my parts arrive next day with incredibly reasonable shipping cost!

Another great resource about McMaster is the download in 3D for creating Cad assembly's or 3D printing.

 

[Storbeck]

To me McMaster is the site by which all others are judged and it is by far the best. They make it easy to search and compare and they give you way more info way more conveniently than anything else I've ever seen. Not cheap though.

 

[WFO Speedracer]

To me McMaster is the site by which all others are judged and it is by far the best. They make it easy to search and compare and they give you way more info way more conveniently than anything else I've ever seen. Not cheap though.

You are correct they are not cheap, but shopping there is usually cheaper than buying something just to find out it doesn't fit, then having to return it and try again, time and money are interchangable commodoties in the service business.

 

[aboarder]

Another great trick to searching the forum itself is to do a google search but specify the forum site itself.
This works for any item and any site if you change the site address and search criteria.
copy and past the following text into your google search bar.
Kawasaki Bed plate site:www.x-h2o.com

This was life changing when I figured it out. I used it constantly on my last build.