Tool for the motorbike

[Niro]

I have never hade an motorbike, now i am sone 50 and i think its about time! I going to buy a smaller 250cc bike, use it  for doing errands downtown and day trips in the mountains.
I still haven't bought the bike but already thinking about what tool to go with it.

I have Squirt P4 on my keychain, this always go with me. At home i also have a skeletool, i use that one for diving but i think it wold work on a motorbike also. Then i have my Ti Charge and a Juice S2. At work i also have a Rebar and a Crunch.

I am thinking Rebar or Crunch but since i don't have these at home and i really like my Charge with al the bits. But then the Rebar.... and the Crunsh is nice and i, well i don't know.

Please advice!

[ducttapetech]

If you carry your Charge, that will hande most things. Still I would suggest a small spanner, duct tape,electrical tape, couple of zipties and a couple of spare fusses. This is what I keep on my bike.

live from Nate's mobile

[lowtech]

...and a big Hammer. Pack a flask of your favourite poison, too - You´ll need it after you are doen with the Hammer. 
Kidding aside, I very much agree with Ducttapetech and woudl say the best MT is one that you are familiar with.

[colt 1911]

Leatherman crunch, IMO the best for a bike , just because you can use it as a clutch lever if needed.


Swiss Army knives .

[Chako]

What bike are you thinking of getting? Any MT should do the trick on the side of a road. I opted for a Leatheman MUT for several reasons. Long driver reach, a built in hammer, and a built in strap cutter.

[lowtech]

What bike are you thinking of getting? Any MT should do the trick on the side of a road. I opted for a Leatheman MUT for several reasons. Long driver reach, a built in hammer, and a built in strap cutter.

See? Hammer.

[PTRSAK]

What bike are you thinking of getting? Any MT should do the trick on the side of a road. I opted for a Leatheman MUT for several reasons. Long driver reach, a built in hammer, and a built in strap cutter.

See? Hammer.

[Niro]

 

What bike are you thinking of getting? Any MT should do the trick on the side of a road. I opted for a Leatheman MUT for several reasons. Long driver reach, a built in hammer, and a built in strap cutter.

I am going to buy a Honda CRF250M.
As i wrote before my Rebar and my Crunch is at work, and as my work is on the other side of the world it is not easy to bring them with me back home. Otherwise i think the Rebar wold have been my first choice. As for now i think i just go with my Charge, but on the other hand i wanted to buy a MUT for a long time and this is an excuse as good as any.
Someone mentioned hammer, and i want a hammer!

[pietervn]

Leatherman crunch, IMO the best for a bike , just because you can use it as a clutch lever if needed.

G'Day,

I have a Crunch rolled up in my bike tool-set that stays under the seat. My reasons were partly as colt stated but also the ability to use the 1/4" bit driver and the locking pliers. I always carry a Charge with me too. On a recent trip I added the MUT (new tool to play with + HAMMER!!!) and no one had any break downs. 

Most bike tools that come with the bike will have pretty average tools and you will be lucky to get any sort of pliers. Having a good set of pliers is important. I added some cable-ties, duct tape and heap of additional 1/4" bits. One thing I also do is to use the tools that come with the bike when I do some work on it. That way I can see that the tools work, and if not replace it with something better. I also marked all my tools with red electrical tape which helps identify it when it gets used during a break down, and they don't get mixed up with my regular tools in the garage.

Enjoy the bike, I know I cannot live without mine!!!

Cheers,

Pete

[Chako]

Oh and if yours comes with a motorcycle tool kit, be sure to check it out. Mine came in a not water tight vinyl pouch that fits behind the batter on the left side under the seat. When I looked at it after a year, water had gotten inside and started to corrode the tools with a very light spattering of surface rust. After a good cleaning and drying, I tossed everything in a ziplock bag and back into that vinyl carrier.

[Chako]

Oh and just to  .

[av8r1]

I would recommend something with a bit driver and the Bit Kit.  Motorcycles tend to be made out of metric allens (my Ninja certainly is).

A modification I would make to any bike with a clutch cable:  Buy a new clutch cable, put it in place alongside the existing one, and zip tie it out of the way.  If the cable breaks, you can switch them on the side of the road.

Buy and carry an extra clutch lever.  A Crunch definitely won't do the job.

[colt 1911]

Yes it will in a pinch.


Swiss Army knives .

[av8r1]

  A clutch lever (or a front brake lever) nearly never fails while the bike is moving. A cable might, but the lever probably won't.  Clutch levers usually break when the bike has been dropped or crashed. If the lever breaks in exactly the right way--where the handlebar, hinge pin, cable gnarp and so on are still usable, the lever has snapped off instead of bent and just the right amount of it is left to grip with vice grips--maybe.  Most OEM levers bend rather than break.  It's not going to be the same shape as the original lever, so your muscle memory is going to be off, plus the throw is probably going to be different so you might not disengage the clutch all the way at full pull. 

Also, if you hit that little tab that releases your pliers, or if you didn't have them on there tight enough and they just slip off, you'll be at highway speed, you'll get hit in the knee with a pair of vice grips that bounced off the road, and you'll be without control of your clutch at highway speed, and a 70 year old glaucoma patient will end up with your corneas.

Tools =/= parts.

[colt 1911]

Okay what ever .


Swiss Army knives .

[ducttapetech]

I have used visegrips as clutch lever. Work fine so I could limp the bike back home to fix it. Also used vicegrips for the throttle on a 830 Case tractor. I have lost track how many times I have used visegrips to rig a piece of equipment to finish a job or to limp it back to the barn.

live from Nate's mobile

[Niro]

Sounds like a lot of you have hade some problem withe the clutch. As for now i think i will start with my Charge and se what happens. I dont think i can go wrong with a Charge and some bits.

[colt 1911]

I have used visegrips as clutch lever. Work fine so I could limp the bike back home to fix it. Also used vicegrips for the throttle on a 830 Case tractor. I have lost track how many times I have used visegrips to rig a piece of equipment to finish a job or to limp it back to the barn.

live from Nate's mobile

Man me two, countless busted throttle cables on my Baja bug , if there is a will there is a way.


Swiss Army knives .

[Sparkydave]

As well as a MT i would suggest a spark plug spanner and commonly used sockets and small wratchet also all of the allens on my ducati is 6mm so I keep a socket allen head in my kit

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

[Chako]

All this talk has me charging my battery which I store inside during the winter. Starting to get that itch. Now if only the weather might cooperate sometime soon.

[av8r1]

KEEP THE STOCK TOOL ROLL.  In fact, I probably wouldn't buy a bike if it didn't have it's stock tools. My Kawasaki came with it's own articulated spark plug socket, and there isn't any other tool that will easily remove the spark plugs while the engine is still mounted in the frame. And NO other tool exists that can get to them with the tank installed.  They also usually come with a wheel nut wrench.

It's also a good idea to carry some zip ties, extra fuses, and an extra tail light bulb if you can.  I don't travel on my bike at night if I don't have a spare tail bulb on board.

[ducttapetech]

All this talk has me charging my battery which I store inside during the winter. Starting to get that itch. Now if only the weather might cooperate sometime soon.

Me too man. I been watching people riding up a down the road all day. I got to take mine to the shop and get some new tires for it.

live from Nate's mobile

[lowtech]

On the clutch lever:
Without arguing if a vise grip will or will not work, I can recommend filing a weak spot into teh lever about 2 " from teh outermost point - the lever will snap there and leave you with enough lever length to get back home.
Many modern bikes already haev this weak point incorporated in teh design. Many other levers will, as mentioned, bend rather than break. And if you smash the clutch lever including it´s bar mount most likely you won´t feel liek riding home anyways.

I would inspect the OEM toosl and replace them with quality tools where necessary. Nothing more annoying than having a tool that won´t work and finding out while attempting a roadside repair in the cold and dark...

And on Riding: I need to get back on a bike, too! Mine only needs it´s cylinder block and head refitted....

[PTRSAK]

As well as a MT i would suggest a spark plug spanner and commonly used sockets and small wratchet also all of the allens on my Ducati is 6mm so I keep a socket allen head in my kit

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

  to a fellow Duc pilot.

        Ducati
Turning riders into mechanics since 1953