LesFlamands

'Sold as seen' is implied if you sell a used vehicle without a written guarantee, however, as in the UK,  if you sell a vehicle with a dangerous fault without declaring it (whether you know about it or not) you can be liable for any consequences. I'm another one who would be hard pressed to justify yet another bike but a classic Ducati does look tempting[:)]

[quote user="Tony F Dordogne"] there's going to be a huge crack down on people working on the black in 24, checking building sites, non-French artisans with adverts on their vans, people that advertise on supermarket boards, paper shops etc.  He told me that this is a new government initiative so it looks like Sarkosy's reforms may be kicking in from both ends, nationally and locally. [/quote] I don't know about Sarkosy's reforms but hopefully they are taking notice of people like me and numerous native French artisans who are just fed up with being chased up if we are a day late sending in our over complicated TVA returns, when there are literally thousands of brits and other nationalities out there working  on the black. The end result is our social charges go up to help pay for the 'unemployed' half of whom are undercutting legal artisans who then find it hard to get enough work to cover their social charges. I have no conscience for reporting people working on the black - I just wish someone would do something about it.

[quote user="Tony F Dordogne"]OK, 24 is a fairly big area - where are you in 24, sort of narrow the search area a bit?[/quote] Excideuil, north eastern Dordogne. The stone known as Pierre d'Excideuil is a beige sandstone and is/was quarried to the north and west of Excideuil as far as Sorge and Corgnac sur l'Isle I think, but it is also used to the south and east as the alternatives are Payzac stone which is a limestone and not particularly attractive or easy to work with, and brassieres (spelling?) rouge which is the very dark red sandstone which is very soft and erodes badly. We are building a traditional style barn for a French client who would very much like it to blend in with the house. I also need some more reclaimed flat tiles. I have about 8000 but need another 5 0r 6000.

I'm looking for a good quantity of reclaimed building stone, or a building which can be demolished. I need about 15 to 20 cubic metres in all but it doesn't have to come from one source. I've asked around locally but as yet no luck so if anyone knows of any old buildings in this area that need to be demolished please let me know.

[quote user="Tiger Lilly"] Thank you for that info.  How long does it usually take for a unit to be made? Is it days or weeks? [/quote] Usually about 2 weeks

We use Delzongle in Perigueux. You need to check the thickness of the unit. Most suppliers these days only supply 24mm and thicker so it can be difficult to get replacements for some older units.

[quote user="tj"] Building materials in France are at best questionable, I would recommend using swimming pool grade adhesive and grout, the small extra cost is worth it for peace of mind. [/quote]   What! products made by Weber Broutin and Mapei (to name just two) are sold worldwide and extremely good quality. use the right glue and grout for the job - your builders merchant will advise you, use tiles at least 6 mm thick on the floor. If the floor is rough it is best to use some self levelling compound (regreage) as the money spent on this will be saved in glue. Use a 10 or 15 mm comb trowel to spread the glue.

I have a 1954 BSA A10 which I've had since 1974 so it is undergoing yet another rebuild. I also have a 1979 Moto Guzzi Le Mans which I've had from new. Over the years, I've had several other bikes which would now be classics.

[quote user="Bob T"]shall we make this a regular thing? [/quote] Bob, we'd be keen to come next time. We work for a living but can usually make a weekday with a bit of notice. We're only just up the road from you, in fact, we have some jobs coming up in Rouffignac soon.

The term 'Builder' is widely used to describe anyone from a building labourer to the managing director of a large house building company. Successful builders are often much better at the practicalities, including plans, project management, personnel management and actual construction than any of the so called building professions (Architects etc.). Tradesmen, in my experience, are generally very good at their trade and I have the greatest of respect for tradesmen who realise their skill is just a grounding and enjoy developing their skills further by taking on challenging jobs that they haven't done before. Unfortunately, there are some tradesmen who seem to think that work rate and therefore money is the be all and end all. The end result is poor quality work that reflects on the whole building industry. In the domestic side of things this has lead to customers being unrealistic and assuming the builder is out to rip them off so costs are cut at every corner leading to more shoddy work, leading to an even worse reputation. There you go - didn't mention France or England once[:)]

There are lots of companies offering guided tours in 4x4s and by motorbike. Guides now have to attand some training and one aspect of the training is to do with identifying and avoiding nature reserves etc. and generally respecting the rights of others in the countryside. The hunters have to do a similar thing!

[quote user="Bob T"]Has this got anything to do with motorbikes? [/quote] Very much so. Nelly Olins circular (equivalent of a white paper, I think) proposed that motorbikes and 4x4s would only be allowed on 'carrosable' roads, or roads that would be passable in an ordinary car so effectively killing off trail riding. Sales of off road bikes dropped by 60% last year. Demonstrations arranged by pressure groups such as Codever have caused the goverment to back down almost entirely but I'm sure it will come back to the top of the list again in a couple of years. One thing that has come out of it is that off road tour companies are more regulated and guides now have to be qualified.

RD is not working in France where all work has to be against an agreed 'devis'. English building trade sharp practice is not that common in France, but if you choose a builder who wants to keep it informal, see how it goes etc. then you're the mug. T be honest, there are just as many French chancers trying it on with French clients. Please don't bury your head in the sand whichever side of the channel you live, there is a real world out there. There are plenty of highly skilled British tradesmen around who are trying their best to do a good job for their clients and make an honest living in order to support their families.

I'm fairly sure they are referred to as 'cable bougie' - plug cable

'Bush' camping is not allowed in France. I gather that the law was introduced because of the French obssession with camp fires which tended to lead to major forest fires in the summer, also their inability to take their litter with them when they leave. Municipal campsites are in general very good and much cheaper than the commercial equivalents. Space can be a problem in July and August

I respect his responsible attitude and wish him a speedy recovery

Buiders rates in France are no cheaper than in the UK. Property condition tends to be worse. Paying peanuts for a barn is not wise (purchase price +professional renovation cost will almost certainly be more than it's market value) unless you are able to realistically assess it's condition and then do all the work yourself. If you do ever want to sell it there will be extra costs to put in seperate water and electricity (when you buy it there may be extra Notaires and Geometres fees)

I think the manufacturer should be shot for putting a joint like that inside the loom.

[quote user="Sunday Driver"] With regard to 180bhp Busas, I suspect that French insurers just won't cover them.  Either that or the French motorcycling public are less concerned with outright power like they are in the UK.... [/quote] I imagine a lot of French owners remove the restrictors which would immediately invalidate the insurance.

Juin, have they ticked the 150€ box on your form. When I 'phoned BMW the lady I spoke to said the attestation was free (in my case). I assumed this was because of the age of the bike (1989). When I received the form I was surprised to see the bit about a fee of 150€ but then noticed that the box wasn't ticked so I'm still assuming I don't have to pay.

If you are insuring a general building company you will find some trades are included in others so it is not clear from the cover note what the full cover is. For example our plasterboard work is covered under the 'pose menuiserie' section, but if you only did plasterboarding you would have to insure this seperately. I imagine it works a little differently depending on the insurance company. As my agent also points out the decennale is for the Artisans benefit but is a legal requirement. It would normally be the Artisan who makes the claim and probably only in the case of a major defect. Obviously the insurance is still in place for 10 years but, realistically, in a lot of cases, it would hard to show that the defect had been caused by bad workmanship ten years previously. The cover is also different during the course of the works, but again this varies from company to company. In some cases, if we are working on a roof renovation the house owners insurance is in effect suspended and if any storm damage occurs during the works our decennale would cover it.

We buy most of our paint from professional suppliers. It is expensive but extremely good quality plus you also get good technical advice. The scam seems to be that even reputable paint manufacturers make a differnt range of products for distribution through DIY outlets. In the past I've bought Dulux 2.5 litres white emulsion at 24 euros that was worse than an unbranded product at 8 euros/2.5l

You need to bear in mind that the claimed output is not always accurate. It depends on the manufacturer and who rated the stove. Most manufacturers quote the absolute peak output which has little to do with real life usage. Some manufacturers quote the average output over, usually, four hours on one charge of wood which is much more useful but not always made clear in the spec.. My advice would be to buy a good, controlable stove (Jotul, Villager depending on budget) and make sure that it is slightly oversize for the volume.

I 'phoned BMW France who were very helpful. They are going to send me the inevitable 'dossier' which I have to complete and return with a copy of the V5 and a declaration from my local dealer stating that the headlight is correct and the speedometer kmh numbers are large enough. The 'atttestation d'identite' itself is supplied free of charge. I haven't actually spoken to anyone at Moto Guzzi yet but the number has changed to 01.58.74.74.00 Incidently, for those worried about insurance both bikes have been on French insurance for some time with GAN. My agent reminds me every time I renew the insurance that I'm supposed to be importing the bikes. He does say, however, that he only insures me because I have several other vehicles insured with him.

SD, thanks very much indeed - is there a charge for the attestation d'identite? Should I phone them first to see if they need a cheque?