If you are planning to do any maintenance on your bike yourself I strongly recommend purchasing a bike lift. I found that my body doesn't stretch as easily as it used to when I was younger. When I climbing under the bike I end up sore for the next couple of days, especially around my legs. Having the bike elevated a bit can work wonders. Changing tires, changing oil, and anything else that has you crawling under the bike is made much easier if you can lift the bike up a foot or two. Even cleaning and inspecting is made much easier with a lift.
I searched around for a couple of years, trying to find the perfect lift for me. Our garage for our bikes is really small without much storage area. So going with one of those ride-on lifts wasn't practical Besides, they are pretty expensive. I needed something that was compact enough to store in the corner, perhaps even under a work table I keep in the back of the garage. It also needed to be high in strength and quality. The last thing I want to see is the lift collapse while holding up $18,000+ worth of hardware. Tie-downs are a good idea for safety and security.
All of my searching led me to the
Sears Craftsman Motorcycle Jack. It often goes on sale and I was able to grab it for $79.00. Others have grabbed it for less ($69.00 is the best I've heard). Assembly took less than five minutes, even taking my time and re-reading the instructions several times. It has Craftsman quality and handles up to 1500 pounds. It has been the best tool investment I have made to date. I remember changing the front wheel on our 750 taking me close to two hours without the lift. I purchased the lift before swapping out the rear wheel on the same bike. Even though I had additional work with the rear wheel, dealing with chain tension and brake adjustments, the whole job took me less than a half hour with the lift in place.
If you are a budget mechanic like me, the
Sears Craftsman Motorcycle Jack is one of the best investments you can make.