I have seen some older threads discussing various rear wheel stands and the merits thereto. I am thinking of buying one for my 2012 Wee, and would appreciate referrals to stands that are currently available.

I have never owned a stand and don't know what should I be looking for. I see that there are some that require spools, some that use the swing arms and there are various sizes and configurations.

My goal is to find a cost-effective sturdy unit that stabilizes the bike well. I would primarily use it for chain/tire maintenance. It would be a major plus if I can use it by myself without dropping the bike.

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Regards, MillCreek
Snohomish County, Washington USA

2012 Suzuki DL650A
Three road, two mountain and one folding bicycle

How about just a center stand? I've never owned a rear stand for any bike.

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John
johnvstrom at yahoo.ca.............. V-Stromming since '03
'06 DL1000 Grey
'03 DRZ400$ sold, down to one bike

+1. It's easier to get the rear wheel off and on with a center stand than a paddock stand.

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-Tom (DL650AL2) (KA1TOX) (E-I-E-I-O)

This message and images are licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. http://creativecommons.org

A centerstand is the best way to go for doing maintenance on your motorcycle. Particularly when work needs to be done, and you are hundreds, or thousands of miles away from home.

However, if you want "cheap", you can do the following:

1 - Purchase two jackstands at Walmart.

2 - Extend the "necks" of them out an appropriate distance so that, they will lift the rear wheel of your motorcycle up off of the floor.

3 - Place both jackstands near the aft end of the swing arm.



4 - Place one jackstand underneath the right, aft end of the swing arm. The jackstand will be at an angle to the swingarm and the floor.



4a - Make sure that the jackstand is in the exact location as shown below.



5 - Push the bike up, and on to the right jackstand. Then, using your foot, slide the left jackstand underneath the left end of the swingarm.



And, there you go!



You can actually lift the whole motorcycle up off of the ground, if you want to, by adding a floor jack to the recipe.



Cheap, easy, and stable.

B.L.

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2007 DL-650 (111,000 + miles)
"A word grows to a thought; a thought to an idea; an idea to an act. All the pieces are put together, and the whole is yours."
1942, Beryl Markham: "West With the Night"
"In most men, there lurks a lesser man, and his presence smells in the the sun."
1961, Ernest K. Gann: "Fate Is The Hunter"

buy a used PitBull off Craigslist - thats what I did - worth every penny - rock solid

you can see it in my avatar photo

Black Lab, speaking as a risk manager, your method looks like it is full of potential hilarity, for when the bike falls on you or the right stand falls over when you are hauling the bike over!

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Regards, MillCreek
Snohomish County, Washington USA

2012 Suzuki DL650A
Three road, two mountain and one folding bicycle

I guess you need to try it before you can accurately assess the risk involved.

I wouldn't have shared it, if it didn't work.

B.L.

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2007 DL-650 (111,000 + miles)
"A word grows to a thought; a thought to an idea; an idea to an act. All the pieces are put together, and the whole is yours."
1942, Beryl Markham: "West With the Night"
"In most men, there lurks a lesser man, and his presence smells in the the sun."
1961, Ernest K. Gann: "Fate Is The Hunter"

I just found a Fat Jack flat plate motorcycle stand that I can use. It can lift 1100 pounds, and should suffice just fine for the few inches I need to lift the rear.

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Regards, MillCreek
Snohomish County, Washington USA

2012 Suzuki DL650A
Three road, two mountain and one folding bicycle

I did a ton of research, and I got one of these bad boys from Steel Horse Fabrications a few years ago:
URRS05-Adjustable Rear Stand

It's VERY well made and stable (it's one piece, not bolted together like most), and has the strongest and simplest setup I've seen for switching between lifting with and without swingarm spools, and for adjusting width. (Yes, better than Pit Bull, K&L, or T-Rex, IMHO.)

Get one of these and a set of swingarm spools, and you're good to go.

I also recently got a front stand from Steel Horse, and it's similarly well designed and built.


There are very good reasons to forego a centerstand. Personally, I find the reduction in the Vee's already limited cornering clearance unacceptable.

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2002 Suzuki DL1000 V-Strom, Dark Metallic Space Blue
1983 Suzuki GS850G, Cosmic Blue
2005 KLR650, Aztec Red - Turd II, the ReTurdening