ASHAMED TO ADMIT you're the garage mechanic who sets a cheap, plastic hand-held toolbox up next to the bike, then scatters each individual tool used around the bike while sitting on the floor? Only basic tools in your arsenal, because the garage is not exclusively mechanic shop? Pretty garage organizers with all the fancy tools are nice if space and budget allow. There has to be a better way for someone who is mechanically disorganized. The Mychanic Sidekick Stool is built tough for typical garage abuse and, more importantly, increased comfort and convenience. The heavy-duty steel frame is designed to support up to 450 pounds. Mounting the four 3-inch, rubber-wheeled, heavy- duty swivel casters into the base of the frame was the only assembly necessary—the two required tools were included. The caster bolts have preapplied thread lock, but only pass halfway through the frame when screwed into the hollow nuts. Long-term sturdiness might be improved ifthe bolts were longer. However, once installed the wheels spin and roll smoothly and there was no play in the mounting hardware—I don't anticipate any load-bearing problems.
The front of the Sidekick has two lined steel drawers of different depths, which glide smoothly on ball-bearing slides. The shallower drawer on top provides quick and convenient storage for parts and tools one might need at a moment's notice. The deeper drawer on the bottom is great for larger tools and electronic test equipment. A removable tool tray—unsure why anyone would remove it—spans the rear of the stool, with various sized holes to secure whatever tools have already been used, much better than the floor-scatter- ing method. Finally, two foldable magnetic trays snap securely against the sides of the stool when not in use. These trays are very useful for storing smaller loose parts while working—nuts, bolts, washers, allen wrenches and sockets. The magnetization isn't overly strong, just enough to keep things from rolling around, and the tray sidewalls are high enough to prevent items from rolling out. The only room for improvement might be replacing the snap and strap retaining mechanism for the side trays with rare-earth magnets, so the trays can be secured more easily with one hand.
The seat cushion is deep and very com- fortable, just the right height for mainte- nance tasks that can be performed while seated. There are gaps directly under each side of the seat, which can be used as handholds for lifting the entire stool off the ground, perfect for loading it into a vehi- cle—think track days. When combined with a lift, the seat height makes many additional maintenance jobs easier on the legs and back. And, I hate to say it, the Sidekick could be used to work on four-wheeled vehicles as well. The only color is a Kawasaki-ish green, which might clash with other brands of bike, but as long as it's kept in the garage, who's going to know?
Having the necessary tools at hand while working, and sitting on what is essentially a rolling toolbox, was exactly the solution to my home-mechanic challenges.
