Back when I was doing partial restorations, a customer brought me a bike that, as was typical with that particular model, needed a lot of attention even to make it safe to ride, let alone to perform its best. The fork clamps had been modified and so badly that shims were inserted between the clamps and the fork tubes. The fork stem was loose in the bottom clamp, the steering bearings were loose, and there were pliers marks on the most important fasteners. However, none of this was why he brought it to me, but rather, he intuited that the machine was not running its best. Commendable, that. But this guy did not deserve to own this iconic vintage Honda.

One of the many glaring symbols of neglect was the bike's aftermarket alternator, one that was part of a kit that utilized an alternator from a Kawasaki and included pieces to convert it to the Honda. The inside of the Kawasaki alternator showed dirt and silver spray paint, the fasteners were incorrect lengths, and the custom-machined housing was incorrectly made and interfered with the wiring. These were easily fixed. But this kit obviously was hurriedly put together. And it was sold without a warranty.

Eventually, my customer accepted the need to correct not only the engine tune but more importantly the chassis neglect and abuse, which needed a lot more attention. But to the point of this article, he also demonstrated a peculiar obsession with aftermarket parts. Throughout the duration of the job, he sent me parts he found online, all of them aftermarket crap. With no heads up. They just appeared at regular intervals. More than a dozen parts. At first I called him and tried to educate him. But he didn't get it. So after a while, I simply tossed each shipment I received into a box wherein I saved these ill-advised purchases to give to the customer at the conclusion of his project. He was happy with the job, but I am sure he was confused about the box of new but unused parts.

The level of trust that people put in aftermarket replacement parts astounds me still, even after more than a half century of being a mechanic. Aftermarket replacement parts derangement is practically endemic among motorcycle riders. Obviously, not all aftermarket parts are bad. There are many kinds of aftermarket parts, including high performance parts. But in respect to just replacement and maintenance related aftermarket parts, every thinking mechanic knows nearly all of them are in fact junk and any other view is aftermarket derangement.