Tools & Maintenance

I took a motorcycle maintenance class last weekend. It was geared toward women and beginners and was taught by a woman out of her garage. She is a mechanic (built her own Harley) and also an MSF instructor. My hubby has taught me a few things and it turns out he'd already taught me most of what we learned in the class. But, it was a good refresher for me and I did learn a few things. And, most importantly, I got to do these things myself on my own bike - which is the main point of the class. We started out by doing a pre-ride check. This is something taught in the BCR but it is so much better to be able to practice it on your own bike. Then we went over what kind of tools were out there, which ones would fit our particular bikes, and discussed which ones we might want to carry all the time versus on a long trip. I was the only person with a chain so I got that one on one instruction. We checked tires and air filter. The other two students were going to change their oil but I didn't need to so I was able to take off early.

The instructor was impressed with the tools that I'd brought with me in my saddle bags so I thought I'd blog a bit about those. Hubby has me set up quite well with tools although I've got my own so we don't have to share. We also have different bikes and I ride more often than not without him (commuting to work) so it is better for me to have my own. Anyway, the tools aren't anything special or expensive.

Aside from the tire pressure gauge and the Sharpies, these are the tools that came with my bike. They came in a plastic case that fit in the little locking compartment under the seat. (You don't have to take the seat off or anything to access it.) I got rid of the plastic case and now carry them in a cloth folding bag that has a velcro strap. The tools include an 8mm & 12mm open ended wrench, a 10mm & 12mm open ended wrench, a 14mm & 17mm open ended wrench, a 24mm box wrench with a leverage extender, two phillips and one flat head with handle, rear shock adjuster tool, and a spark plug tool.

I also carry some pocket or multi-tools. The green one is a torx wrench set. The yellow is a standard allen wrench set. The red one is a tool I got when I became a member of the Honda Riders Club of America. It has 4 different sized metric allen wrenches, two screwdrivers, 8mm, 10mm, and 12mm sockets with an adapter, and 12mm and 14mm small wrenches.





All of these tools fit in my saddle bags without trouble. They also fit nicely in my tool bag but we haven't made a bracket to hold it on the bike since the light bar is on the bike.

I haven't had to use too many of these tools while riding but have used them for some daily stuff. Even though I have a metric bike, there are many parts that are standard. It is an old used bike so things have been replaced or added to the bike that require a multitude of tools. So, it is nice to be able to carry the folding multi-tools.