I'm not particularly mechanically inclined and to be honest most of it is "scary" for lack of a better word. Although it's not very impressive I have so far done my own spark plug changes, oil changes, and changed the pulley spacer on the rear tire (with help from a friend). All three items were very gratifying knowing I did it myself.

 

Actually it is a little impressive. I have a couple of friends who would never attempt to loosen an axle nut. They think a lift is for cleaning the bike only.
I began teaching my sons early and they are teaching their sons and daughters. More important in this day and time when stranger may not have good intentions. We also teach them all to shoot.

 

Not to be the double standard guy here but you're a woman, that's pretty impressive.

I think the idea is more about the guy who wears his $70 Harley button up to the cigar lounge and will sit there and rattle off engine specs and paint codes, basically reciting the brochure but has never turned a wrench on his own bike and doesn't like getting grease on his hands.

 

You are correct.In looking more closely at picture.I can clearly see the rear driveshaft and hub assembly in the picture.

 

Good first steps, Sarah. Willing to try leads to ability. Yes, some people do seem to be mechanically inclined, and take to it easily, but it can also be learned by most people if they just try. A knowledgeable friend really helps, too.

My daughter's Mom insisted on getting her a car in high school against my wishes, but I did get my way on maintenance. Daughter had to do it all, except new tires. She didn't like it at first, but today she doesn't hesitate to crawl under one, and has changed brakes on a variety of cars. The most complicated thing she's done was change a water pump, which on that car required removing an engine mount and the alternator. Just nuts and bolts, but still easy to screw up if you aren't careful. When it's something she's not sure about, she calls Dad, sometimes brings the car over, but she always wants to do the work herself so she'll know how next time; I'm just the maintenance manual.

Women can do anything they're strong enough for, just like men, and I encourage them to do so. Builds competence and confidence, and I really think parents should have their kids participate in all things mechanical and household, can really pay off for them in adult life. Even if it's just knowing when a repairman knows what he's talking about, or trying to rip them off.

My daughter is 33 now, has two kids. A couple years ago she bought an older house needing a lot of repairs, and told me she didn't need woman things for Christmas, she needed more tools. When I visit, there are often tools on kitchen countertops for some project. Her husband complained, said now he can't buy her cheap stuff after I got her Dewalt...

So far my Granddaughter doesn't want to get her dainty little fingers dirty. That will change...

 

I grew up poor AF on my grandparent's farm, with a dad who was a wrench by trade & also a biker. If you couldn't fix yer own stuff, it didn't get fixed. Need to bring the sileage in? Better get that '37 Plymouth dump truck going again. Need to get to work or school? Better get that POS used car fixed or you ain't getting there. Couldn't afford to pay someone to do it, so had no choice but to do it ourselves.

With the old man being scooter trash back then, you can bet I watched & participated in the building & repairing of many a Shovelhead, Panhead, Ironhead XL & the odd 650 Yamaha twin. Bikes built in basements, kitchens & sheds & occasionally fixed on the side of the road. Just how things were back then.

I'm not any kind of super wrench (wood working is my forte), but I'm good with my hands, can follow directions & always buy the correct tools for the job at hand. Add in the fact that I still ain't swimming in $$$ & if I can't do it myself, I certainly can't afford to have it done.

For example, I'm putting cams (& new cam bearings, lifters, etc.) in my bike this winter, but have never been this far into an engine before & am a bit nervous about it, but I've done a boatload of research, bought or borrowed the correct tools & am going for it. When your budget barely covers the cost of parts & you want to get it done, it's either do it myself or do without.

 

Righty-tighty is not 100% for all bolts/nuts. The clutch hub mainshaft nut comes to mind.

I had forward controls put on my LRS when I bought it, but hated them so I did the removal and back to stock job myself. Wasn't bad at all. Not sure I'd try to rebuild the bottom end though. I may try new cams or something along that line if needed.

 

I started wrenching my own cars and bikes in my youth, mainly out necessity. Just too poor to afford paying someone to fix it. Granted, they were a lot simpler to work on for the diy guys back then. Not all diy jobs are that simple these days. Best to leave certain things to the pros when you find a good one.

 

Started doing work on my car when I bought my first piece of ****. Points and plugs, water pump, stuff like that. Had a Pinto that wouldn't start. Had a carb rebuild kit that I'd bought earlier on another's advice. Told my old man that I was gonna rebuild it. He said, "What if you screw it up?" I said, "It ain't workin' now, how much worse will it be when I'm done?" Had a bad float. Put it back together and worked fine. Since then, on bikes, I've done the usual bolt on stuff, chains and sprockets, carbs, fork seals, a couple of clutches, stator on my '86 Sporty, tires, pushrods and new lifters, and whatnot. Built my garage except for finishing the slab, including framing, sheathing, stucco, electrical and plumbing for a bath. Did a concrete block bedroom and bath add-on to my last house, too. Had never done any of that before. A shovel, a hammer, a level, a plumb-bob, some string and scrap lumber for batter-boards and away you go. Shingled a couple of roofs, too. Too poor to pay someone to do it, but enough money to buy good materials for the job because the labor was so cheap ;-). Drives my old lady nuts, even today, but she got an inkling of it when we were first married and I fixed her busted hand mixer. She figured anything that broke got tossed.
Sometimes I go out in the garage, grab a beer, and "fix" something just to see if I can.

 

I've been working on my cars since my first in 1984. I've only had the HD for 2-1/2 years, but I've done a lot on it so far. The more ambitious things I've done were the clutch spring plate, lubing the front stem bearings, and the fuel filter (remove fuel tank). I don't go inside engines. Replacing a rocker box gasket is as far in as I've gone/will go. Ditto for transmissions.

It's been harder to work on the newer cars. They definitely aren't built to be easy for the average guy in his garage. But as others said, thousands of dollars saved over the years, not counting a modest collection of tools that has grown.

If I couldn't do all the routine maintenance on my bike, (and some of the more challenging stuff), I probably couldn't afford to own it, at least not with putting 10K a year on it.