ENALRGEMENT, of the sidestand pad, that is

[Eckhard Grohe]

I took my side stand off yesterday with the intention of welding on a plate to have a larger footprint. Any suggestions as to the thickness and the shape of this new addition?

 

TIA

[powerman]

Watch the ground clearence when it is up. I have a after market bolt on type and I was scraping it on a track day, i plan to cut it off on that side. you will need to clear the exhuast, I dont think actual pattern matters as long it is larger and clears everything.

I would actualy rate the larger side stand foot as the best option i have added to my RT.

[dunkles bier ron]

I used a .250" thick aluminum plate. 2" wide by 4.125" long shaped like a football and bolted it to the side stand plate with three, 10-32 button head cap screws. I had to grind one end of the plate to clear the center stand when both "stands" are in the up position. After clearance problem was resolved I loctited bolts in place and used black paint to repaint entire side stand. Gives me piece of mind when using sidestand on gravel or hot asphalt. Also reduces lean angle of RT when using side stand. Good luck.

[Jerry_75_Guy]

Ditto what Eric said. I have a triangular foot pad

(I think it was from Wunderlich). It is the first thing

that grinds in a left turn; I found out the hard way at

Deal's Gap last year.

 

However, it has saved my bacon at east three times; twice

on what looked and felt like perfectly hard/solid/stabile

asphalt, only to return to find the side stand 2 to 3 inches

deep in said asphalt. Without the larger footpad, it would have gone deeper, and the bike would have fallen.

 

Execllent cheap insurance. It ain't the shape, it's the area.

[No_Twilight]

I've noticed that there is quite a bit of difference in the angle of bikes with the standard sidestand. Unfortunately, the way I would do it requires the stand to be on. I tried differend thicknesses under the stand in the garage until I determined that 3/4" gave me the angle I wanted. Be careful not to stand it up too high as I believe this is the cause of most of the wind blow-overs. But if it leans too much you can't park on a slight sidehill with the stand downhill.

 

On my K12RS, I have just the opposite problem--it stands too straight. I think I'll have to take the stand off and bend it in a press.

 

--Jerry

[AviP]

On a trip to Newfoundland last summer, I had a lot of problems with my stock side stand. Where my friend's FJR1300 would park without a problem, mine would sink in almost immediately. I worked around it picking up every flat rock I found on my hikes.

 

But what I noticed was that the straight shaft on the RT seemed to be the culprit. The FJR's shaft was bent downwards part of the way down. So even though the foot seemed bigger on the RT, it dug into the ground because the straight shaft acted like a pile driver with the weight of the bike behind it. See the photo attachments.

 

IMHO, that slight bend should solve the RT sidestand problem. I don't know how to do that or whether it will fold back up properly. But it is something to consider for the engineering minds out here.

[Eckhard Grohe]

The fact that it sticks out further from the center line of the bike means it carries less load at the ground. It is essentially a longer lever than the one on the RT. I still like the one on the 69 Triumph Bonneville a lot more than the RT one.

 

I've been carrying an aluminum plate for years and putting it under the stand. I am hoping to avoid having to do this on pavement.

[Jay B]

Wow, 3/4" seems like quite a bit. I tried different thicknesses of steel under mine, and settled at 3/8". I cut it sort of kidney/triangular shape. It doesnt stick out from the stand at all on the road side, when retracted, so it doesnt decrease cornering clearance, and curves around the stock pipe on the inner side. I suppose it increased the area on the ground by close to 100%. A good mod to be sure.

[No_Twilight]

Wow, 3/4" seems like quite a bit.

 

Yep, it is quite a bit. I think the previous owner filed down the stops so that my kickstand goes farther forward, essentially lowering it. He probably had it roll forward off the stand once... --Jerry

[3rdbike]

Leave the stand on the bike, heat it with a torch where you want to bend it until it's cherry red, and have a helper put weight on it until appropriate bend and lean angle is acheived. Did this on my girlfriend's W650 to accomodate lowering by 2".

[Eckhard Grohe]

I would be very worried about doing this to a tubular stand like the one on my RT. The stand is almost in compression because of the angle it has. By bending it, it will have to carry more load in bending and less in compression. Putting a bend in a pipe can change the cross section and if a tube is pinched it will get really weak along the short axis of the oval. A solid stand can readily accept to be bent.

[MCDenny]

 

I glued on (epoxy or PU "gorilla glue") a 1/4" piece of plywood. Painted black, it looks like metal and seems plenty strong.

 

I learned the hard way that the new pad clearance must be checked with the center stand up.

[Softtail]

I bought a bolt on unit from a BMW dealer in Portland OR. Apparently I don't ride aggressive enough for it to drag. I also carry a hard rubber stand support that I got from an HD shop. It is about 20cm in diameter with a neat little grove for the stand. If you have to park your bike on a less than favorable surface and you don't want to hunt around for a stick or rock, these things are great. <<<Softtail>>>>