Motorcycle Tools & Tool Kits

Traditional ethylene glycol (EG) coolant is nasty stuff. Yes, it serves its purpose well, but it is toxic (even deadly) to humans and animals if ingested and is very environmentally unfriendly.

OK, so what if I told you there is a product that cools much more effectively than EG antifreeze ...

I buy and sell a lot of motorcycles. My wife would say it's either a compulsion or an addiction. She may be right. Anyway, if you are like me, you'd better know the relative value of the bike you are selling or buying. Obviously, the more ...

A couple of years back, a few friends and I were riding through the mountains above Taos, New Mexico. In the process of exploring, we took a "detour" through some tiny mountain towns. Suddenly, a friend got a flat on his Honda SuperHawk. There we were ...

We have reviewed numerous aftermarket exhaust systems here on SpotMotorcycles. No matter what motorcycle style an exhaust will be fitted to, there are two common considerations. One is that they are expensive; the other is that left untreated, they will discolor over time.

Kreem Blue Shield is a product ...

I've reviewed the GoPro Motorsports camera for this site. In short, I love the product. It comes with a variety of mounting options out of the box -- some of which are more secure than others.

Dirt bike mounting poses its own unique issues due to vibration, banging, tree branches, ...

If you have a small fleet of motorcycles and power toys, the Pulse Tech Battery Maintainer Pro12 could be a real find. We have looked at several battery "tenders" on SpotMotorcycles. However, this is the first one that I have seen that services multiple batteries.

The Pulse Tech ...

Chain lube. It's not glamorous or exciting, but unless you ride a belt or shaft-driven motorcycle, it's a necessary evil. The simple fact is that modern chains and sprockets are expensive. They are also longer lasting than ever -- that is, if you pay them ...

Unless you ride with a sidecar attached, you probably don't carry a spare on your bike. With that fact in mind, smart riders carry some kind of option for fixing a flat. Some of the options include a spare tube and tire irons (for tube type tires), a ...

Picture the scene: You pull into a parking spot in the city, you secure your helmet on the bike's helmet lock, you put your disk lock in place, and you are ready to go to lunch. But wait -- you don't want to lug your jacket and tank bag to ...

We have talked here on SpotMotorcycles about the issues plaguing motorcycle batteries. The combination of small size, infrequent charging, high power demands, and a plethora of other ravages take a toll on our relatively small electrical storage boxes. Eventually, every motorcyclist is going to need a jump. ...

A good service manual is invaluable to the shade-tree mechanic. To me, working on my motorcycles is almost as enjoyable, and therapeutic, as riding them. Here we have a factory Yamaha manual. To be honest, I have had factory manuals with which I was less than impressed. ...

Fuel injection has become more and more common in the world of motorcycles. That being said, there are still a lot of carbureted motorcycles out there. My primary street bike is a Kawasaki ZZR1200. It is a big, powerful, reliable sport touring motorcycle that happens to ...

Motorcycle center stands are handy items. They make tire removal, chain lubrication, oil changes, and virtually every other aspect of motorcycle maintenance and tuning easier. However, the simple fact is that not all bikes have center stands. In fact, center stands are becoming a rarity. That is ...

Battery maintenance is a necessary nuisance for a motorcyclist. There are factors that affect motorcycle batteries more severely than those installed in automobiles. First and foremost, motorcycles are generally used less often than their four-wheeled counterparts, especially in the cruel winter months. Thus, they don't sustain as ...

Many riders like to wrench on their motorcycles almost as much as they like to ride. Any tool that makes working on motorcycles easier and more convenient is OK in my book. When doing things like changing tires or working on suspension components, the motorcycle has to be ...

Now here is a product I never thought I needed. In fact, the Air Force Blaster 4.0 HP Motorcycle Dryer is a product I didn't know existed. Heck, my first mini bike didn't even have 4 horsepower! This thing has serious motorcycle drying power. ...

I have always wondered about these frame-hitch mounted motorcycle carriers. I have used something similar with mountain bikes. However, with bicycles, we are carrying (at most) about 50 pounds total. Cycle Country rates the Wedge-Lok at 400 pounds. That is a lot of weight on the ...

Loading your motorcycle onto your truck or trailer can be like walking the plank with a 500-pound load. Using the wrong ramp can be downright dangerous. All of us would all rather ride than tow, but motorcycle transport is a necessary evil. The 5 Star Shine 7' ...

So you've bought the best motorcycle tires for your ride and think that you're set to go. Not so fast. Choosing the right tire is only half the battle. Proper tire inflation is crucial to safe riding. Most of us turn to the tried-and-true manual tire ...

Tire pressure gauges are nothing tools. You can pick them up for under a buck at most auto parts stores and, if you want to get fancy, you can get a $4 gauge. This is how I once saw tire gauges. Now, every time I want to check my air, I ...

I don't change my own tires. I don't have the equipment. I do, however, help my buddy change his using his ragtag collection of substandard tools. That's a fun afternoon of blood and grease, I'm telling you. You really want to save the getting stabbed with a screwdriver till the ...

You'd think that someone designing a product for motorcycles would have more sense than to call it a bike diaper. The last associations I'd like to make with my bike are of parenting or incontinence. I'm going to call it an oil sling.

The oil sling mounts to the bike using a harness and comes ...

Talking about chain tools seems... wrong. I have a shaft drive and I love it. I really, really love it. Chains do, however, offer a lighter machine and a greater degree of personalization when it comes to function. With a chain, knowing how to care for and adjust your bike's ...

With this whole healthcare debate (no, I will not be getting political here), we've heard a lot about preventative care. Everyone knows it's a good thing. You nip a problem in the bud, and you end up with fewer troubles in the future. The body is little more than a ...

Last year I went riding with my brother-in-law. He had just gotten a used KLR that shook some very important bolts free. He felt a dangerous wobble and pulled over. Fortunately I had my handy-dandy tool kit with me, otherwise he would have been doing a lot of pushing.

A single loose ...

If you have to resurrect a dead battery, you've been neglectful. Shame on you. Okay, so I'm being harsh, but to prevent this kind of situation, or recover from it, the TecMate Optimate 4 charger has a few features that are pleasantly surprising in a charger that only costs around ...

I've been pretty lucky with my most recent battery. Even after winter storage, I didn't need to give it any electrical pep talk before getting my bike going. That wasn't the story with my last battery. It was moody as a 14-year-old and would approach death if I didn't ride for a ...

There's no shortage of options when you're looking for a bike stand, and every company, of course, declares their stand the best. In reality, most will get the job done, but just getting something done is not the same as doing it with smooth action, confidence, and reliability.

Riders are smitten ...

Most accidents happen in the home. I don't know if this is actually true, but you hear it everywhere, and I know for a fact that bikes can face serious hazards during indoor storage. Not to mention the forces of nature that make their way in, such as rodents. Garages can harbor ...

Unless you're a mechanic by trade, you've probably improvised a tool or two. Sometimes pliers are wrenches, zip ties are clamps, and you guess at the torque you're putting on that wrench. All of these things are bad for you bike and bad for your hardware, but buying all the right ...

I've seen, and almost purchased, motorcycle lifts for over $300 that paled in comparison to the OTC 1545 Stinger. Able to lift and hold up to 1,500 pounds, finding a lift of equal quality and capacity for around $200 will leave you enough cash to invest in other tools and ...

Unfortunately, working with wiring is more than cutting and splicing. On the rare occasions that I sit down to do electrical work, I lay out my collection of cheap wire cutters and proceed to make a bloody mess out of my wiring. This is not entirely due to incompetence, although there's a ...

Much has been written and more has been said about which brand of pre-mix to use for your engine and what fuel-to-mix ratio is best. If you own and ride a two-stroke, you've heard lots of stuff, and maybe made up some of your own lore. But the real answers ...

Sometimes I think my friends have the memories of fruit flies. Every year, at least one of them has a dead battery after they left it in their bike all winter. Usually we can resuscitate the battery, but sometimes it won't take a charge -- and it's off to the ...

Measuring your bike in inches, not centimeters, is a prerequisite for this kit. These kits don't come in metric sizes. It's SAE, man. That's Standard American Equivalent -- in case you've ever wondered -- for working on American-made motorcycles, standard or not.

You get a fair pile of tools ...

Eating nothing but junk food is not going to kill you right away, but when you reach your older years you'll wish you'd taken better care of your system. Your bike is the same way. Giving your machine cheap oil may not show immediate degradation, but if you want your machine to ...

We've all been at that place in our lives where we travel from rental to rental like hapless vagabonds. If you find yourself living in a crime-ridden neighborhood, there's probably no garage to store the bikes. One of my buddies near Detroit used to keep his little Honda in the living room ...

If you learn how to work on carbs you will be a neighborhood hero, and might even be able to pick up a little cash. Every year bike shops are full of folks who are running lean, sputtering, or having any number of other problems that can be linked to poorly adjusted ...

After four months of storage, my beautiful bike started without a glitch. On that first warm April day, all I had to do was hook up the battery and turn on the gas. I attribute my hassle-free start -- at least partially -- to proper winterization. I have never winterized without putting ...

Reality can be a hard thing to swallow. The reality that I'm talking about is the fact that you can lock your bike up with all the chains in the world, but if you leave it sitting on an easy-to-boost trailer while you stuff your face with Grand Slam breakfasts at ...

I can always trust Motion Pro to give me a specified tool that is meant to fulfill a particular need. This, by no means, limits the tool to that use, but will definitely make the task less grueling.

Take, for instance, Motion Pro's 90 Degree Hex Driver. Manufactured of aircraft grade ...

RK Excel America is probably best-known for their after-market wheels. They also make spokes to go with their wheels, and now have come up with a wrench to help you set the spokes to the correct torque.

If you've ever considered purchasing a custom wheel, yet were intimidated by the ...

Why is organization so difficult? I have a shelf set aside for my cleaning products, but I still have supplies scattered around -- and, oddly enough, have to spend an hour hunting before I clean my bike properly. When you're disorganized, your bike can be on the road in less than ideal condition, ...

This link will lead you to the back end of your motorcycle -- to the chain, that is; and this is all about breaking one. The typical time of use for a chain-breaking tool is when installing a new chain, and rarely otherwise, except when changing sprocket sizes to ...

If you're in the market for a valve spring compressor, then you're in one of three stages: you're about to work on your valves for the first time, you've done it before but need a new compressor, or you've done it before without the right equipment and learned a very valuable ...

In order to maintain your bike, there are a few chores that need to be done regularly. Changing your oil is one of these tasks. Depending on your make and model, this can be easy, and you'll want to buy a beer for the engineers that made everything so accessible. But ...

How much riders love their machines is no secret. Without the kind of passion that you find in the motorcycle community, we wouldn't have products like this on the market: the Air Force Blaster motorcycle dryer.

Some folks might argue that the only proper way to dry a bike is ...

Most of us have had the conversation about why we ought to keep our carburetors tuned and in time. It's simple: carbs keep the engine turning and if they're not working their best, neither is your engine. End of story.

There are many styles of synchronization tools for your carbs, and they ...

If I tried to carry every tool I wanted on my bike, I'd have to add a couple of extra wheels and call it a car. I have a tendency to overpack, especially when it comes to the functional things. When I camp, I usually find myself with lots of extra ...

Like maladjusted children, a maladjusted chain can do some serious damage. If you want a safe ride without replacing your sprockets and chain all that often, you need to check the alignment. Personally, this is exactly why I ride a bike with a shaft drive these days. I was tired of futzing ...