You can find examples of ANY part failing on here if you search hard enough. I would hardly use that as a reason to carry said parts. As I said before, swapping wheel bearings is a non-trivial job. You'd need to carry circlip pliers and a long punch (and find a large rock to use as a hammer), at the bare minimum. The same thing is true for lots of other weird parts. Brake caliper pistons, pads, clutch discs, rings, air filter (and oil), oil filters, and a hundred other things...
I never worry about this. I put clothes in one bag and toolkit, spares, and cooking kit in the other which is probably a few pounds side-to-side discrepency. If it makes a difference in the handling, I can't detect it with all the other factors. If you're really anal, you'll find most bikes have a little pull to one side or the other unloaded (ride hands off to discover which) so you can use the toolkit weight to trim the bike. And you never want to put heavy stuff in a top box. I find using one is handy for trundling around town, but on tour, I don't want this weight up high nor the destabilizing aero influence, so the top box stays home. - Mark
This looks like an excellent kit. I might add a pair of vise grips. While racing an enduro about 30 years back I was able to not only get out of the woods but finish the race after I lost the front axel nut. Found the axel. Clamped vice grips on where nut would normally reside, wrapped aircraft wire around the handle of vice grip and fork tube then electrical tape to hold in the closed position and prevent spinning. Worked like a charm. Wish I invented the idea but I had read about it somewhere.
It's been done well before here... ...correct/agree. I mostly carry basic stuff for small cuts and abrasions, too...and of course all the pharmaceuticals I listed, just for delaying symptoms and getting to a safer place to rest and get treatment. As far as large/bleeding wound dressings and the like, there are some pretty amazing solutions out there but many are large and heavy so I have never carried them on the bike or on my person either. When I have had to deal with people with broken bones, we've always managed to make a splint out of available stuff on site - branches of trees, plastic fenders cut into strips, sacrificed elbowpad plastic for a broken wrist, etc. I have never been in a situation where I needed to make a stretcher, but carrying some nylon line or strap could make this possible with any sort of trees available, etc.
I carry both: paracord and nylon webbing. Great maids-of-all-work: for rigging a tarp, bear-bagging food, making lashings, repairing gear, splints...lots of stuff.
I have seen these put to use quite nicely: http://www.survivalstraps.com/ ...if I were to ever design a garment, I think I would incorporate something similar. It's actually not hard to do yourself, just tedious...
Is there such thing as the 'best' multi tool leatherman style dealio? I rarely need much on the trail, and I am tired of carrying all these heavy combo screwdrivers and full sized wrenches, pliers, etc.
Good question. I have five bikes and do not carry full tools on all of them. My minimum took kit is an M-14 Multitool, a Leatherman Crunch, and a tire repair kit which differs between bikes with and without tubes. You might be surprised how much you can do with just that.
--edit-- Guess I should keep up with this thread, rather than reading it ever month or so. The Motion Pro tool discussed in detail in this thread is designed exactly for what you describe. But you should tailor it to your bike, like add the torx / allens / sockets, what ever you bike needs. Personally I don't find the leatherman style tools useful at all for a bike, except for a compact set of pliers, that's all they are really good for.
Wasn't there a four or five page saga a few weeks ago of how this Motion Pro tool failed in the field? The socket driver spun uselessly in the handle. edit: found it, Team FTB posted this http://www.advrider.com/forums/showpost.php?p=17527848&postcount=1280 and then many followups. Bottom line, the tool is crap.
Here's my basic kit, still need to add some things, but I don't see a need to way over complicate things. My KLR didn't come with a stock kit. On the right side, I have the tractor manual tube held on with 2 stainless clamps. Stashed inside I have: 1) Lineman's pliers: pliers, cutters, and work well as a hammer 2)Small flat screwdriver with magnet on the handle side 3)Needle nose vice grip 4)Combo wrench, fits both front and rear axle 5)1/4" drive ratchet 6)Socket assortment, modified to remove sizes that the bike doesn't have and added a 1/4" to fit driver bits 7)Small needle nose 8)1/4" driver-doubles as extension for ratchet 9)Allen wrench in correct size to fit bars and forks 10)8,10,and 13mm wrenches 11) Big crescent wrench I'm going to replace the driver and 1/4" ratchet with a 1/4" extension and use the 13mm wrench as a handle as soon as I make a 1/4" to 13mm adapter. In the lid I have sand paper in 160 and 400 grit rolled around the edges and a cut off sock stuffed in with a selection of hose clamps and cotter pins. Still need to locate a stamped spark plug socket I relocated the stock bag from the rear fender to the front fender and in it I carry: 1)Spark plug caddy-one side is a plug, the other holds misc electrical crimp connectors 2)Motion Pro tire levers, not the fancy Ti ones, mainly because I ride a KLR.... 3)Spare 21" tube w/core tool 4) Gutted cheapo tire pump. Paid 50 cents for it at a garage sale, works great. I have a 12V cig outlet on the bike, so with 2 alligator clips, the cord becomes a charger to revive other bike's batteries. I still want to add a small patch kit up here. I didn't pull it all out, but in the ammo can I have: 1) Cheap rain gear-neoprene face cover 2) Spare lenses for my goggles 3)Harbor freight ratchet strap -tow strap or to hang the bike(or myself depending on the severity of the failure) from a tree 4)14 Ga wire double the length of the bike 5) Mechanics wire 6) zip ties in various sizes 7) Two short jumper wires
Totally disagree. If there was a pattern of failure then fair enough but that was the only one that was reported to have failed right ?
I'm the guy with the failed Motion Pro tool. That tool is wonderful and compact, I never had any issues with the sockets, hex's or screwdrivers using the tool. It was simply the driver for the sockets is multiple pieces and the pieces began to spin instead of funtioning as one single piece. This sucked (and is horrific when you encounter the failing the piece in the field as I did instead of the garage) but I was able to fix it by welding, as detailed in the thread. My unit is now fixed and I worked with it in the garage for another couple weeks to test it out and then began taking it on rides again as its so wonderfully compact and it fits in a convenient pocket in the Camelbak for easy access. I posted in the thread so that people who own the piece can address any issues before taking it into the field. One failed unit is indeed not enough to condemn the tool as Flagger pointed out, however according to tech at Motion Pro it has been reported to them more than a few times (as feared by Mercury264), and is not unheard of, so in my eyes you are a gambling man if you rely on this tool without addressing the potential issue I described earlier in the thread. Here's the tool after I modified (welded solid) the driver, working on my drowned 525 on a river bank in Lao, pictured on the righthand rock and another time in my left hand after removing the right side engine case. If I owned a MP multi tool I WOULD NOT rely on it without welding the driver pieces together. Once welded, you can then once again enjoy the convenience the tool has to offer. Edit: Just to clarify I don't think the tool is crap, it's just not trustworthy in my eyes until the potential weakness in the system (driver) is addressed.
Is anyone importing the Asahi Lightool double-ended wrenches with any reliability? If I've gotta pay $20 import fees on a $25 set of wrenches, marked up to $55... might as well buy titanium.
Ballast. You know those KTMs are awful light. On the other matter, why spend $50 on a tool that you have to weld due to a design flaw.
