Here at J&P Cycles, we feel strongly in the concept that it’s important to give back what was so freely given to us. Whether that means taking part in a local highway clean-up project or holding a fund-raiser for one of our favorite charities, we do our best to do our part for this community that has served us so well over the decades.

Recently, we helped bring some additional holiday cheer to down-on-their-luck families in Jones County, Iowa, home to the J&P headquarters. We raised $1,200 for Anamosa Charities, Inc., a local nonprofit that has provided toys around the holidays to Jones County families since 1992. Before that,… Continue Reading

Allstate^® Motorcycle Insurance is up to its old tricks, giving away money in the form of  $2,500 in J&P gift cards in its Allstate J&P Cycles Sweepstakes.

If you want to enter this contest — and why on Earth wouldn’t you? — Allstate Motorcycle Insurance makes it easy. Just go their Facebook page, click on the J&P Cycles Sweepstakes tab located at the top left, then click on the orange “Enter Sweepstakes” button in the middle of the page. From there, you fill out the form and you’re good as gold. The sweepstakes contest ends at 11:59 p.m. EST on Dec. 22, so you’d best get… Continue Reading

Josh Schmit is a problem solver and he’s been resolving customer issues here at J&P Cycles for the past seven years. Heck, he’s got answers for questions posed by other J&P techs. All this equipment knowledge comes from years of working on bikes. And Josh will be the first to tell you that squatting down in front of a bike with a wrench is the best education you can get in this industry.

Meet Josh Schmit:

J&P Cycles: What got you interested in motorcycles?

JS: It started for me the first time I actually tore apart a lawnmower engine at 9 years old and my older brother helped me get… Continue Reading

So the government is trying to get  into your business again, sneaking through legislation that would force all 50 states to invoke a mandatory helmet law for all ages.

I’m writing this on Wednesday, having only caught wind of it earlier this week, so I have no idea what the outcome will be. But I can tell you this: Although I wear a helmet 99 percent of the time, I don’t believe that any other adult should have to do so. Fact is, I could care less if you want to wear a helmet or not.

For me personally, I’m a fairly aggressive rider and, combined with texting teen-agers… Continue Reading

So I sat through the finale of the Discovery Channel’s latest bike build-off last night and then started bumping around the Internet to read comments fueled by the show. Believe me when I say I’m glad this well-promoted televised event prompted a lot of buzz, because our industry needs a shot in the arm like this.

But from the beginning, I had a bad feeling that Paul Junior would win — not because he had the best bike, but because of what being a “biker” has become. I also knew Jesse James didn’t have a chance. Jessie pulled no punches and he made no excuses. He said what he thought… Continue Reading

Remember when there were “Biker Build Off’s” on TV, when you would flip on the Discovery Channel and see a build off, Motorcycle Mania documentary or Monster Garage episode?

Most of those shows became watered-down dramas, featuring posers on 300 tire, 10-foot-long, solid-chrome choppers, with every Tom, Dick and Harry claiming they were a “builder.” Then the economy took a nosedive and in doing seems to have flushed out most of that nonsense with it. A good portion of the builders that remain have relied on their innovation and skills to create parts for the common man to use on an actual motorcycle on the road — not some billet-laden… Continue Reading

Editor’s Note: If it’s advice about battery maintenance that you seek, you’ve come to the right place. James Dean works on our sales technician lines and is a graduate of WyoTech’s American Motorcycle Institute’s Harley program. To find out more about James, read his Meet The Team write-up here on the J&P blog.

For most of us in this country who actually experience winter months, preparing your motorcycle for hibernation requires some action on your part. And that holds particularly true when it comes to battery maintenance.

The first thing to always to remember is you should make or break a battery connection by using the negative… Continue Reading

This month we’re going to talk about early brake systems, but before we do that, let’s think about what a brake actually does for a living. Simply put, a brake converts mechanical energy into thermal energy by applying friction from the pad or the shoe to the disc or the drum.

Now we’ve got that out of the way, time for some history. Early in what we call the modern era of motorcycles — from 1942 to 1971 — Mother Harley used drum brakes to slow things down. From 1936 to 1957, rear brakes were of the mechanical variety. A brake pedal linked to a crossover shaft, rear linkage… Continue Reading

Whether you plan to visit one of our showrooms in person, phone in an order or shop online, it’s always nice to know when we’re open and when we’re not. So we’ve painstakingly listed our hours over the holidays in order for you to plan your post-Thanksgiving and pre-Christmas shopping.

And when all else fails, keep in mind that our toll-free sales number (800-397-4844) is available 24 hours a day throughout the holiday season. That alone should bring you much comfort.

Below is a list of the days we’ll be open over the Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years holidays. And if you figure you’re going to be doing a lot… Continue Reading

Editor’s Note: Before we even get started here, you might have noticed this blog is about our October winner, even though we’re nearly halfway through November. Never fear. We’ll have a November winner before the month is out. We’ve just been up to our eyeballs in projects and promotions. That’s our story and we’re sticking to it.

Also, we’re continuing our rewards system of giving all of our Readers’ Rides winners a year’s membership in the J&P Gold Club. And that’s quite an exclusive organization. Members get all kinds of savings and coupons, can win points good for J&P products, and get a free tire pressure… Continue Reading