Frits' toolbox

A toolbox. Your toolbox. That's quite a thing. The toolbox recently played a starring role here again. That gets you thinking.

What Ab van Ginhoven did for four-stroke intake and exhaust tuning, Frits Overmars did for two-strokes. He also wrote fantastic columns about that—and much more—in Moto73We all have them for inspiration, of course. But when we wanted to write a post about tools, we realized we couldn't top this one. So: thanks to Frits Overmars:

Tool box

Toolboxes are heavy. Not inherently, because these days they're no longer those three-tiered, sheet-metal, fold-out cases you could never close because a hammer handle or wrench was stuck in the middle, and with those tin lids you could so viciously bump your shins on. These days, they're often made of plastic, hopefully oil- and petrol-resistant, otherwise your keys would get all sticky.

Toolboxes are heavy because people carry so much junk. I should know. My own car has enough tools to replace the crankshaft on the road if necessary. The only thing missing is a hoist to lift the engine block out of the body.

Why do I carry all this junk? Because I always had cars where it made sense. Although, these days it's not so bad. I'm driving something that's less than fifteen years old. I even have power windows that open (and usually close again); that's my air conditioning. Pretty convenient when you drive a lot in Italy.

Colorcodes

What's in your toolbox? Everything you need? And no junk you don't? There's an easy way to check. Turn your toolbox over next to your moped. Then, go through the entire moped. For every bolt, nut, and screw you encounter, find the appropriate tool. And remember: for an M8 bolt and nut, for example, you'll need two size 13 wrenches.

All the tools you need go into the box. Any tools left over were unnecessary and don't need to be lugged around in the future. And any tools you did need but weren't there, you'll have to buy. Or you'll have to replace the nuts and bolts you didn't have wrenches for with a different size. For example, you need a 13-width wrench for regular M8 bolts, but more and more Japanese machines use M8 bolts with a 12-width wrench. If you replace a few nuts and bolts here and there, you might be able to leave one of those wrench sizes at home in the future. This will save weight and the hassle of searching for the right wrench. To make searching easier, you can also apply a coat of paint to one end of your wrenches, for example, on all the odd-numbered sides. Those color codes are also handy if someone forgets which keys are yours and which are theirs.

Ring stitch

Ring wrenches are best; they don't slip off the nut easily, you can apply more force with them, and you can use them with angles of up to thirty degrees. I mentioned earlier that, for example, you need two size 13 wrenches for an M8 bolt and nut. But you can't reach everywhere with ring wrenches, so you also need a set of open-end wrenches. So, for that M8 bolt, that means two size 13 ring wrenches and two size 13 open-end wrenches. Couldn't that be a bit smaller?

Yes. Those wrenches all have a size 13 on one end and a size 14 on the other. But it's quite possible that your entire bike doesn't have a single nut or bolt with a 14-width wrench. You'd be lugging around a lot of unnecessary weight. But there's a simple solution: buy combination wrenches. They only have one size per wrench.

superglue

What do you do when someone asks to borrow key 13 for a moment? You're busy, so you say, "In the second compartment from the top. Will you put it back there?"

If that same person comes back an hour later with the same question, you say, "Go ahead; you know where it is." But if he comes back three more times to borrow it, it starts to get a bit tiresome, especially if he takes the key first and only asks if it's okay later. What do you do about that?

The best way to handle this situation is as follows. Have the key ready, preheated with a blowtorch as a courtesy. It always works. And if you don't have a blowtorch handy, a drop of super glue will work wonders. Just make sure someone's ready with a camera...

Rings

Superglue can also be very handy if you need to install a washer in a hard-to-reach spot: simply glue the washer to the part it's going to be attached to beforehand. I used to glue the washers to the nuts, but I don't anymore because there are now nuts with a washer underneath in one piece; that makes tinkering much easier. Besides, I think there are way too many washers on motorcycles anyway. It might be better for the paint, but I don't care. When tinkering is necessary, you're always in a hurry, and I don't want to be bothered by washers.

Sun protection

What else is in your toolbox? A very handy tool they call a mass amplifier at the Technical University, but known to regular people as a sledgehammer. Ideal for tent pegs, and also suitable for use as an anvil.

Duct tape, also known as racing tape, is essential. You can use it to repair everything from broken zippers on your boots (as long as the inspectors don't see it) to leaky water cans. (I wouldn't do it with gas cans...)

Duct tape also works well as sun protection. Late in the afternoon, when the sun is low in the sky, the light can be quite bothersome. A strip of tape along the top of your visor, just barely visible underneath, is helpful.

Zip ties are also very useful. In Dutch, they're officially called "trekbandjes" (tractor bands), but I've never heard anyone use that; everyone here just calls them "taierenppies," like the English. What can you do with them? Too many to mention: some people tie their entire mopeds together with them, and some police departments even use them as handcuffs.

The problem sometimes is that they're just a tad too short. But the smart ones among us have already discovered that you can connect them. That's why I always pay attention when cutting. You can cut off the tip, and then you can't do anything with it anymore, but you can also cut them off just before the tip, and then you have a usable (slightly shorter) piece of chewy stuff again. I'm not from Zeeland, but I'm frugal.

Frits Overmars