I changed mine last week before we took off to the Dragon. All that I had to remove were the right side saddlebag, the two clips that hold the pin in that retains the pads, the pin itself and of course the pads. To install the new ones the piston had to be compressed into the caliper, I inserted one of the old pads and grabbed the rear disk and caliper and applied steady even pressure on the caliper and pushed the piston back in by hand, really by thumb. Then inserted the new pads, reinstalled the pin and clips, put the saddlebag back on and rode the bike. It took longer to type this than it took to do the brakes. My step-father, an automotive mechanic, said that is the easiest brake job he has ever even heard of much less seen. He was standing there while I did it, looking on and providing moral support. One caveat, be extremely careful applying side load to a disk brake, if you encounter a lot of resistance compressing the piston you could possibly warp the disk.