Standing Room

Not having a centre stand is a right pain, and the paddock stand isn't always the ideal thing to use - 'specially on the Norton which is too narrow for the arms to grip safely. So I used to have a bit of old redgum stump with uprights nailed to each end that I would use to hold the bike upright when I needed it to be stable and horizontal. The wood in the upright split as the grain was vertical so I switched to 1cm thick MDF. Well that eventually became like a sheaf of paper and no damn use at all. There had to be a better way.
:idea: Axle stands!
$65 a pair at Supercheap Auto (for Aussies, substitute appropriate el-cheapo auto shop here). Get the screw type ones not the pin types, then you can use a pipe wrench to raise the bike up if you need to. If I had welding equipment, I'd bung some short levers onto the knurled height adjuster instead, but any way you look at it, it's money well spent!

Why didn't I think of that before????

The only downside of your set-up is you can't access the trans or primary, as you need to take of the foot perches to do so.

Good for basic maintenance, though.

In the US we have a chain of stores that sells Chinese tools, called Harbor Freight. I bought a pair of roll-in bike stands there - about $48 each after the coupon they've been putting in all the magazines. These are similar to the display stands many dealerships (agents, in other countries) use to display their bikes, only much cruder construction.

This stand can be mounted on a trailer or in the back of a pickup, or just placed on the floor. Roll the bike in, and it locks the wheel.

I'll try to post a pic


Harbor Freight stand #97841 (http://www.harborfreight.com)

BillT, you are now officially on probation for posting a photo of an HD in the Commando section!

hee hee

Oh c'mon, this forum is for motorcyclists, not bikers. :wink:

Ya know, I didn't even realize they put a Harley in there - I thought it was a Star (Yamaha).

I'll try not to make the same mistake.

Here's a pic of something unique, in penance:



Noriel

I wonder how that handles? Thanks for the tip on the HF stands, I should take some of my bikes off blocks of wood.