There have been several threads about people having a hard time and spending hours removing spark plugs. I decided to make a picture guide to hopefully aid people who decide to do it themselves, and show you that it's really not that hard. In fact, it can easily be done on the side of the road with nothing but your factory tool kit and without removing anything. So, pop a cold one and read on.
Step one: Tools you'll need.
A) This one here is CRITICAL, and you won't be able to do the job properly without it. This beauty happens to be a hinged spark plug removal tool. "Where can I get one?" I hear you asking. Luckily for you, those smart guys that engineered the bike also engineered this tool for removing the plugs and gave it to you for free! It's in your tool kit.
B+C) 14mm hex socket and ratchet. Not necessary, you can use the 14mm open end wrench. It's all you need, and in fact might be better than the ratchet if your ratchet requires a great deal of travel before engaging. All you're going to use it for is to break the initial torque of the plug and snug it back in. The rest you do with your fingers.
D) 14mm combo wrench. Tool of choice. The one in your tool kit works well too.
E) Cooler full of cold ones, not pictured.
Step two: Take a look.
Take a look at the picture below. This is your work area. You'll need to be able to slide your arm down pretty much the whole way through. If your arm is too thick, you're probably a huge dude and should be able to strong arm a neighborhood kid or other person weaker than you into doing the job for you. You could possibly use a few cold ones as incentive.
Step three: Plug removal
Here's the easy way. Start with plug #4 and work your way towards the left of the bike. First you pull the boot off. For plug 4, just pull it up and towards the front of the bike.
Move the wire out of the way and slide the sparkplug socket in, pushing it down firm over the plug (the rubber grommit will grab the plug so you can pull it out). Only a bit will stick out over the top.
