AF newbie. What the heck do I need?

[Bowenman]

Hi All

Being a comfirmed metric boy all my motorcycling life, I find that I have no good AF kit to speak of.

What do I need apart from an array of hammers to look after my 97 Road King? Sockets, Allens and Spanners? What are the must haves for a carry with you on the road kit? (yes I already have a euro rescue card). All help gratefully received.

Best regards

David

 

[SJC69]

Re: AF newbie. What the heck do I need?

Have a look here, it will give you a good idea of the sort of sizes and types of tools you might need for a carry round kit, then make you own up.

http://www.cruztools.com/Contents.pdf

http://www.cruztools.com/toolkits.html

This is a Harley type basic carry along kit quite minimal.

 

[Monkeybrain]

Re: AF newbie. What the heck do I need?

the main item to get yourself is a 12 point AF socket set that goes down to 1/4 inch, it will be hard to find and may cost you a fair bit.

I managed to find a reasonably priced set that went down to 3/4", then trawled found some independant tool merchants and managed to pick up individual sockets at the smaller sizes at a ?1 a go.

Then there is the a/f 12 point ring spanner set, the a/f allen key set and a decent torque wrench.

Don't bother with B&Q or Halfords, find the little old man with the grubby shop and just don't accept the invite to see his puppies......


You'll end up in a box in the basement with a leather suit and a ball-gag.

 

[kiwidave]

Re: AF newbie. What the heck do I need?

search the archives : key word ''tools''

this has come up quite a few times and there are some handy posts

 

[S.T.Chapman]

Re: AF newbie. What the heck do I need?

It depends on how much you want to do and how much you want to spend?
personally most of my kit is from the halfords pro range their spanner are the equal of snap-on and they do a good set of ratchet combo spanners.
as for sockets and such they more or less everything, the only thing they dont do is a 12 point 1/4" socket which is required for the brake pad retaining pins (had to pay the snap-on guy mega bucks for one )
take a good look and you will probabley find all you need in one of their kits if you dont mind having a load of metric stuff too.
As a tradesman Ive used tools all my working life and you get to know the feel of a good tool as opposed to a piece of cheap crap and having loads of snap-on tackle I regret having paid their prices over the years and now I prefer to use the pro tools (maybe its a fetish but they feel good )
other than that you will need a set of AF allen keys, I prefer ball point ended ones.
I dont know wether mocco were using torx fixings back then?
anyway your money your choice.

 

[FXSTC Dave]

Re: AF newbie. What the heck do I need?

Hi there.
I got this off the club site when I joined.
So I'll put it up here for you and others to
look at for guidance.

FXSTC Dave.


Tools for Harley Davidsons.

Make sure all yer spanners have a ring end - far, far better grip on those bolts.

10mm spanner - this is the token metric tool but Vital - for battery bolts.

Spanners:
1/2, 7/16, 9/16, 11/16, 3/8, 5/8 are the most common sizes.
You can get ratcheting spanners with half on on end and 9/16
on the other - VERY handy.

But you will find that smaller and bigger sizes get the use too.

Sockets: same again. Sometimes you need a socket, sometimes a spanner
works best, often you need to hold the bolt with the socket while
You loosen/tighten the nut with the spanner. Cover yourself on both.

14mm spark plug socket.

Oil filter strap socket

Big, big socket sizes like 1 1/16 come in very handy when you start removing
rear axle, removing compensator sprocket. These can fetch ?10-15 a socket.
To make sure you buy right, look at the metric/imperial conversion guide in
your factory manual (VERY handy page that), use your metric socket/s as a guide, and go to the shop informed !

3/8 drive breaker bar for some of the above jobs.

Whatever drive you choose, get a little extension bar and a knuckle (bendy bit for tight fits). A very good quality socket wrench is worth 5 cheap ones

Needle nose pliers - these also fish out nuts that you have dropped

?2 Magnetic 'pen' - see above

Quality torque wrench - critical if you get into base gasket job, primary
teardown, etc, but buy one that covers the values you need
(typically 12-160 ft lb)

Leatherman multi-tool

Ratchet screw driver with magnetic bits

Rubber/plastic mallet/hammer

Heavy ''No 1 tool'' skullcrusher hammer for driving out axles, bearing
races with drifts, etc

Allen key set with BALL ends at one end - these let you get to tight allen
heads at an angle

Break out the propane torch and ruin, sorry, *customise* an 11/16 spanner by bending it so you can hold the clutch adjuster nut while altering the adjustment with allen key. without removing outer primary.... I'll show you my one in spring!

I aways carry 3ft spare wire & connectors, spare circuit breaker/s, bulb or two, spare battery ground cable, battery bolts.

The key with tools is always Buy Good Ones. You don't have to go to Snap On (who can afford them ?) but stay away from the Taiwanese specials at the street market.

Junk will always ending up biting you in the ass.