What To Use When You Don't Have A Centerstand

[Laney]

I do have one, but I'm not always successful in getting the bike(s) up. Even though it's lighter, the Honda's worse the the KRS.

 

I'm probably a little skittish after breaking a bone this past summer, but if it doesn't work by the third try, I give up. Which means I don't check the oil, or whatever else I had on the list.

 

Are there alternatives besides a lift? And after reading Ron B's question about getting the bike on the centerstand once it's on the lift, I'm not sure a lift would solve everything...

[RoyTemple]

Would something like this help?

 

http://www.baxleycompanies.com/LAChock.html

[Heck]

or maybe this??

 

 

Linky....

[Jim VonBaden]

If you only goal is to check you oil, just check it on the sidestand.

 

Not sure if this applies to the Honda, but I always check mine on the sidestand. If the oil fills the window, I ride, simple as that!

 

Jim

[alanz]

I'm a big fan of Condor-Lift chocks, but they won't let you get a wheel off the ground for service/cleaning.

 

My bike doesn't have a centerstand, so I purchased a Wunderlich stand for service purposes. It's adjustable, and with the telescoping long lever, easy to get the bike up on the stand. I can raise either the front or rear wheel by shifting the bike's weight.

 

 

I have several detailed photos and some notes from a few years back, if you click here.

 

[stubble!]

If your objective is just getting a wheel up, as opposed to getting the bike level, I had success on my honda shadow using a carefully placed floor jack to lever one wheel up, with the sidestand as the third support point.

[Laney]

Would something like this help?

 

That would make a big difference I wonder if I can talk Marty Hill into throwing one on the back of the GS next time he's headed this way.

 

or maybe this??

 

That would work too.

 

I'm not sure about the floor jack and sidestand - I don't make mental pictures well, but if you've got any real pictures, would you post them?

 

Thanks for the suggestions - I'm sure something will work until I can trust my bones again.

[Boffin]

Laney, I suspect part of the problem is you are trying to get the bike UP onto the centre stand. Try getting the bike Back onto the centre stand. Most bikes, and all BMWs, are designed to roll backward onto the stand, the up component is the minor one in this exercise.

 

Andy

[Paul Mihalka]

Same advice David gave to Ron: Roll the bike so the rear wheel is on a 1/2" to 1" board. The bike will pop on the stand almost by itself.

 

Comment to those who recommend Laney to check the oil on the side stand: She has a K bike with the oil window on the right side of the motor

[Bill_Walker]

How about a Pit Bull or other make track stand?

[Bill_Walker]

One great advantage of the wheel chock stands is that you can just ride the bike into it and use it to hold your bike in the garage (or so they claim. I haven't used one). I do wonder a bit how hard it is to pull your bike off of them, though.

[Laney]

I do have a pair of short boards nailed together that I ride the Honda's back wheel onto in order to get it on the centerstand, but at times even that just doesn't work. I'll give it a try using the boards with the RS, but not alone the first time. With the VFR, there's a delicate balance once the bike's rear tire is up on the board and it's time for meto get off the bike and get to the centerstand Those two-color KRS fairing parts are really expensive...

 

Andy, I understand the "back" instead of "up" part, it worked great for the RT. The centerstand placement and engine make the KRS much more of a challenge, at least for me. That's one thing I miss about the RT, it would go on the centerstand so little effort, even for a lightweight.

 

Bill, I used a Pit Bull not long ago on a visitng SV650 (my old friend Jake) - it was a two-person job on that little bike, I'm not sure I'd be able to manage it all on the big K. What I'd really like is to be able to reliably get the bike upright even when no one's there to help.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

I wouldn't recommend a track type stand unless you are going to use one in conjunction with a Baxley type wheel chock. Even then, the single sided swingarm makes it problematic on a K bike or the VFR.

 

Being of the slender persuasion doesn't help much in this situation as there is some force required, albeit not very much.

 

The real trick to getting either bike up on the centerstand lies in the first move. You have to get the weight of the bike evenly distributed on both feet of the center stand. That requires a firm foot on the tang and then a push of the bike up off the side stand until it is resting squarely on both feet. You really have to lean it over away from the side stand to get it square. Don't worry, it takes a pretty good push to get it there, but a much harder push to topple it over the far side. First time you try, use a spotter on the other side of the bike.

 

Now, grasping the frame member or handle if you have one, lean all your weight to the rear. I even put a hip into my right hand which is holding the frame tube at that point. The bike will pop right up. In fact, if I'm not careful with the VFR, it slides back about 8". Mine is a 2000 and the geometry might be a little different but it can't be much. Same technique gets the Blackbird up there.

 

I can put an LT or a Gold Wing up on the center stand easy as pie using the same technique.

 

I'd be happy to ride over and demonstrate but it's a bit of a haul from Florida.

[Jim VonBaden]

 

Comment to those who recommend Laney to check the oil on the side stand: She has a K bike with the oil window on the right side of the motor

 

That might be a problem then!

 

Jim

[Marty Hill]

 

That would make a big difference I wonder if I can talk Marty Hill into throwing one on the back of the GS next time he's headed this way.

 

Like I don't carry enough crap already.

[Paul Mihalka]

Laney, I'm sure RIDING the bike up onto the board would be a problem both for being high up to get off and the sidestand becomes useless. Pushing the bike up onto the board may be to hard but may be you can start the motor, while standing on the side put in in first gear, ride the bike up the board using the clutch, kill the motor with the kill-switch, still hold the clutch in and put it on the center stand.

[sgendler]

If you are just worried about having the bike upright, then a Baxley sport chock, which you can ride right into, is exactly what you want. You ride up, plant the wheel in the chock, then step off the bike. No sidestnd and no centerstand needed. It grabs the front wheel and it will not let your bike fall over. You can push remarkably hard on the bike before it starts to move in a threatening manner. Reasonable cost effective too (less than $300, if memory serves).

 

If you must have one wheel free to rotate, then the sprt chock is a terrible solution, since it will elevate the front end, making it harder to get the bike up on the stand. But I'm with the guys who are suggesting that there must be a technique you can use to make this easier. I've never found that it took much effort to get a KRS up on the center stand. More than an RT, yes, but still less than someone your size should be able to exert, I'd think.

 

However, if you aren't in the habit of changing your own tires, putting a sport chock at the front end of a lift is a great way to service the bike. YOu ride up on the lift right into the sport chock. This is handy, since if you are short legged like me, you can't touch the ground when parked on the lift. You can only touch the lift, so getting off the bike can be a touch tricky. With the sport chock, it is as though you drove right up onto the centerstand - you don't need to put your feet down at all. Once you've climbed off the bike, strap the front wheel into the check for security and then raise the lift. i do this all the time and have never had any trouble at all. But you won't be able to use the rear wheel to turn the motor over and you won't be able to change your own tires until you can figure out how to get it up on its own stand consistently.

 

--sam

[Bill_Walker]

YOu ride up on the lift right into the sport chock.

 

Sam, how much effort does it take to get the bike back out of the sport chock?

[Patallaire]

Laney:

Just get a garage boy/man. Have him be at your beckoned call when you arrive.

[russell_bynum]

YOu ride up on the lift right into the sport chock.

 

Sam, how much effort does it take to get the bike back out of the sport chock?

 

It's easy. Just a good tug and it comes right out. The Tuono parks in one full-time in the garage, and we use it at the track as well.

 

Laney, if you want to try before you buy, you're welcome to borrow mine for a little bit.

[K^2]

I use a Pit Bull rear stand made for a single-sided swingarm on the R1200S It's the mirror image of what you'd use on the K bike. One person operation, no problem. I use the Pit Bull fork lift for the front: again, one person, no problem. Change both tires at once. Sweet!

 

K^2

[Laney]

Laney:

Just get a garage boy/man. Have him be at your beckoned call when you arrive.

 

Hey, I'm working on that...

 

But sometimes you just need to do things yourself.

 

Russell, I'd love to try whatever it is you had holding up your Tuono - I can even bring Buddy down to see if I can handle it -

[Miriam]

Hi Laney,

 

It’s not what you asked and I seem to be far from the best person on this board to advice anyone (from the response or lack thereof I usually generate) BUT because this helped me so much I want to share this one anyway. I’m certain you know everything there is to know about getting a bike up on the CS; so did I until I bought the 05 12GS with the difficult (for some) CS.

 

If the bike is on an incline, no matter how slight, working against me, it’s a lost cause, but on level ground or a down slope I now ‘rock’ the bike on. Maybe you already do this too but it takes a bit of a devil-be-damned attitude because it’s a little, well, rocky. I rock it back and forth a bit and on the count of three put my full weight onto it and pull the bike backward. If you’ve not done this, try it with someone holding the bike, I think you’ll find it much easier once you get the hang of it because you’re using the bike's momentum and so need less pull/strength.

 

[Marty Hill]

Laney,

 

If you haven't tried it Miriam's way, give it a shot. She is almost the same size as you. The early 12GS's were difficult to get on the center stand/I could never do it with my side bags full.

 

Now you know why I just had to get the '07 with the new center stand.

[sgendler]

YOu ride up on the lift right into the sport chock.

 

Sam, how much effort does it take to get the bike back out of the sport chock?

 

Almost none. You can probably do it by just jumping backwards into the seat while holding the bars, although just stepping the bike backwards is a lot easier. It is a VERY user friendly device.

 

--sam

[USAF1]

 

Like I don't carry enough crap already.

 

I'll testify to that.........

 

Pat

[Gleno]

 

You're a chick. Pull into any M/C store and they'll climb all over themselves trying to be helpful.

 

Unlike being a guy. We pull into the dealership, and it appears we've got the service dept to ourselves.

[grbrown]

Comment to those who recommend Laney to check the oil on the side stand: She has a K bike with the oil window on the right side of the motor

 

I am reminded of the tv comedy show about the 'golden girls': "why is there never a man around when you need one"....