Front & Rear Stands

[GotK]

Hey guys. Was looking to change a few things up on my new bike.. I don't know much about bikes, let alone cars when it comes to maintenance/modification.. I was looking to purchase front and rear stands. Do you guys have any recommendations of which ones are the best bang for the buck? I don't want to get crazy ripped off for something that I don't know much about. Thanks in advance.

[cbinker]

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=motorcycle+stands

[GotK]

I totally didn't google or look at anything... *insert sarcasm here* I honestly see a lot of different type of bike stands. I'm more or less looking for recommendations from the community.

[cbinker]

I still have my original T-Rex stands, affordable stands and get the job done, but not manufactured very well.

[cbinker]

if i were getting new stands, I would give these a try, cheap price:

Motorcycle Stand

[GotK]

Looking at reviews of the product.. I don't believe those fit the ninja300

[csmith12]

Get some pit bull stands, they are pricey yes... but will last longer than your bike. lol The resale value is high as well. That is the best bang for the buck.

I have some trex stands, they get the job done. Harbor freight also makes a rear spool stand for $25 with coupon. I have used mine for 4yrs, VERY heavy useage. Holds up my 250's as well as my 600's. Best $25 stand out there. lol

[InvisiBill]

I have a set similar to the Amazon link above. They're sturdy enough that I don't worry when using them, but I also only use them on occasion when I need to lift the bike up to work on it. If I were using it frequently (like in the pits for a race bike), I'd invest in something better. Pit Bull seems to be about the best from what I've seen.

My front is a fork stand rather a triple stand. It gets the front wheel off the ground, but that's about it. Since it lifts by the forks, you can't actually work on much other than the wheel when using it. A triple stand will allow you to work on the forks as well.

The rear came with hooks for spools and pads for lifting the swingarm directly. The pads work, but spools are much easier. Spend a few bucks and get a pair. I suggest verifying the thread pitch on your swingarm's spool mounts before ordering them, rather than relying on what the seller says will work with your model. https://www.ninjette.org/forums/showthread.php?t=82240

I've heard complaints about the aluminum HF stands actually collapsing with bikes on them. They also have another one that lifts by the swingarm directly.

[cadd]

Pit Bull are very popular and extremely durable. A bit pricey though. I don't regret buying Pit Bull front & rear. They will probably last longer than my bike (and all my future bikes combined).

With that being said, if you're more budget orientated, give these Venom stands a shot. I used these for 2 seasons. Pretty durable as well. Able to sit on bike with it being lifted. Used it for winter storage. No issues. http://www.amazon.com/Venom-Motorcyc.../dp/B0036QZ8VQ

Here are some discussions on stands on this board
https://www.ninjette.org/forums/sear...archid=2039302

[Proteus]

I have the Venom rear stand as well and it's done the job just fine.

[csmith12]

Originally Posted by InvisiBill

I've heard complaints about the aluminum HF stands actually collapsing with bikes on them. They also have another one that lifts by the swingarm directly.

A while back I did some digging on these stands. I will be honest here, even though my above comment was brief, I always stand behind my word. I say again, I have beat the ever lovin' crap outta my HF stand and it has never failed me even though I havn't done one second of maintenance on it. There are plenty of ninjette members have have seen this stand in action at the track while putting my own bike(s) on it.

Alas... problems with these stands.
1. User Error: Keep the hex bolts at the top for adjustment tight. Maybe even a bit of loctite is in order. They vibrate loose from time to time. If you don't check, your bike may fall if the adjuster caps pop off due to loose bolts. This is not a stand problem (design problem maybe), every stand can suffer this fate if the bolts are loose... even pit bull (although, they have next to no bolts lol).

2. Welds: Some batches of these stands have crappy welds. If you get one like this.. take it back and exchange it or get your $$$ back.

Bottom line... Inspect the welds + keep the bolts tight. You should be doing this for ANYTHING designed to hold you bike up. If you do these 2 things, your $25 stand will function just as well as a pit bull and give you years of service without a second thought. If you have 10 mins inspect some welds and put a stand together well, then you can save yourself plenty of money on a rear stand.

While anyone can debate this with only me, the debate is gunna go downhill really quick when 10+ other ninjette members say the same thing. "Yea, I was there with Chris at the track. I put his bike up on a HF stand without a second thought. It never entered our mind that the bike might fall." Track day, after track day, after track day, after track day, after track day, after track day, after track day....

[InvisiBill]

Originally Posted by csmith12

A while back I did some digging on these stands. I will be honest here, even though my above comment was brief, I always stand behind my word. I say again, I have beat the ever lovin' crap outta my HF stand and it has never failed me even though I havn't done one second of maintenance on it. There are plenty of ninjette members have have seen this stand in action at the track while putting my own bike(s) on it.

Alas... problems with these stands.
1. User Error: Keep the hex bolts at the top for adjustment tight. Maybe even a bit of loctite is in order. They vibrate loose from time to time. If you don't check, your bike may fall if the adjuster caps pop off due to loose bolts. This is not a stand problem (design problem maybe), every stand can suffer this fate if the bolts are loose... even pit bull (although, they have next to no bolts lol).

2. Welds: Some batches of these stands have crappy welds. If you get one like this.. take it back and exchange it or get your $$$ back.

Bottom line... Inspect the welds + keep the bolts tight. You should be doing this for ANYTHING designed to hold you bike up. If you do these 2 things, your $25 stand will function just as well as a pit bull and give you years of service without a second thought. If you have 10 mins inspect some welds and put a stand together well, then you can save yourself plenty of money on a rear stand.

While anyone can debate this with only me, the debate is gunna go downhill really quick when 10+ other ninjette members say the same thing. "Yea, I was there with Chris at the track. I put his bike up on a HF stand without a second thought. It never entered our mind that the bike might fall." Track day, after track day, after track day, after track day, after track day, after track day, after track day....

I wonder if it's simply a QC issue, and the ones that get made properly work great, while the ones that aren't quite perfect tend to run into issues fairly quickly. Along with your recommendation, there are a number of reviewers who were completely happy with the item.

But there are also quite a few comments about problems with them (keep in mind that people are more likely to talk about something when there's a problem than when everything works as expected). Missing parts, bad welds, stripped out holes, etc.

Overall, it is a very nice stand and very light weight and still gets the job done. the brackets that hold the lug nut brackets firm are my only concern. On both of them, the screw holes were rounded out. i tried tightening the alan wrench screws and there were two of them on the left side that just kept turning and didn't get tight. There is one on the right side. Stand still serves its purpose. I just have to retighten the screws every time I let my bike down. Very easy to assemble and really a nice product for the price except for the brackets.

I thought for the price I was getting a steal. This item was light weight and super easy to install. Measured the spools up against my Ninja 650 without help was a snap. My issue is with just 3 uses I've noticed that the side near the kickstand is starting to bow. I'm not sure why since my bike is less than 500 lbs with a full tank of gas.

Like you said, it's probably a good idea to inspect it upon purchase, and I think I'd have to at least keep an eye on it at first.

It seems like the design might be less-than-stellar. With the Venom-style stands, the pieces slip together and the bolts just keep them from coming apart, and there are set screws for the width of the hooks/pads but they can't just fall out of the stand while it's in use. On the HF one, if those caps come off (from lack of maintenance or whatever, like you said), the whole hook/pad is no longer held there. The support arms are also bolted to the handle. Just based on the pics, it looks like it rests at least partially on the handle while it's got the bike lifted, so the bolts between the arms and handle seem to be supporting at least some of the load. Having it sit flat on the bottom edge of the support arms (by adjusting the position of the wheels and handle) seems like it would remove the handle from the equation and basically just turn it into a pair of jackstands that happened to be connected.

Especially with your endorsement, I have no doubt that these can be good stands. However, it also seems like they can be pretty poor too, if you're unlucky in picking one and/or don't assemble/check it properly.

FYI, there are separate paddles that can be used for swingarms without spools (pic - and at least we know it works on an EX500). However, the comments indicate that they're no longer available for purchase. If you don't have spools, you probably don't want to get this one.

[csmith12]

I bet you're right. As with many things in life that are cheap, QC is most likely slim to nonexistent. I haven't seen those paddles for non spool swingarms in quite some time.

[choneofakind]

I used to use a hf stand wih paddles for a couple years. Worked fine. A little flimsy but got the job done.

Now I have new TRex stands. Either their old stuff really sucked and they've upped their game or I just don't know what I'm looking at because these bad boys are heavy and sturdy. No concerns. Definitely nicer using a stand for spools than a stand for swingarm paddles.

[Alex]

Originally Posted by GotK

I totally didn't google or look at anything... *insert sarcasm here* I honestly see a lot of different type of bike stands. I'm more or less looking for recommendations from the community.

Right - but there are 67 threads in this very community already, all with "stands" in the title, and over half of them are asking the same question you are. You'll get less sarcasm if you post up a little about what you've found already and asking questions about what you've read. We're pretty easy-going here, but that's internet forum 101.

P.S. - Pit Bull are the highest quality. After 2 years, they won't depreciate anymore for 10 years, and you can still easily sell them for over half what you paid. Searching craigslist for anyone selling locally wouldn't be a bad idea. You can find cheaper that may also serve you well, but going too cheap on these has led to bikes falling over in the garage.

[ForceofWill]

I've had my pitbull stands since 2011 and they're still like new. I have the ones with removable handles and they're awesome. Besides not tripping over the handles they double as breaker bars, hammers and bearing presses lol.

[GregS]

Definitely PitBull, if you can't afford new then look for some used ones.

[Jasonm163]

Yup I just bought a used rear pit bull stand from a buddy who sold his bike. Only charged me $50 and that thing was nearly $250 brand new! They seem really really well made