Okay, I'm almost embarrassed to ask this, but how the freak do you get the bike onto the center stand?! I've had my bike a little over a month, and today I wanted to check the oil level (which I just found out needs to be on the centerstand to do--thank you Clymer manual), so I tried to put it on the centerstand and I almost dumped the bike trying. I know there has got to be some trick to this process. Granted, I'm a skinny sucker (only 130 lb!) and probably not the strongest person in the world, but it can't be that hard, can it?
Also, relating to this, my oil level is on the "F" on the dipstick when I check it with the bike flat--like literally, ON the letter F. (in other words, it's a little over filled) I've gone a couple hundred miles with it at this level, do you think I've done any damage or anything? It doesn't seem THAT overfilled to me, but I'm warry of damaging something. Thanks everyone!!
Right Foot on the stand lever thing and pull the left passenger footpeg with your right hand ...and gently yank the bars as well ...
Cool.
Srinath.
For the short people like me, put your hand under the passenger's peg with a glove on and do the lifting there, and just use the bars to stabilize the bike and keep the wheel pointing straight.
I am now awaiting the "How do I get the bike off of the center stand?" post. ;) Neither of which are ridiculous. *eep*
I'm 160 lbs, and eventually figured out the center stand thing. I don't have to "lift" with my arms at all. I usually put my left hand on the handlebar, and my right hand underneath the tail section, grabbing the metal bar underneath the plastic. I only do this to keep the bike stable. Push the centerstand down with your foot, while grabbing the areas I mentioned. As you push down, you will feel the bike become stable on the stand itself, then basically "stand" on the centerstand, putting all your weight on it (still grabbing the bar and the tail). The bike should magically lift up. If not, pull up a bit on the tail section too. It's scary the first few times, but it's quite easy once you get the hang of it.
To get the bike off the stand, just sit on it and push forward.
Hope that helps.
For what it's worth, a while back I checked my oil with the bike in 3 different positions:
centerstand2.
Vertical on both wheels3. On the
sidestand[/list]
For pictures of the results see THIS POST (http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=11547.msg96564#msg96564).
No question is rididiculous first of all. Secondly i have no idea as i had the same problem. Now i have a bike with no center stand. Problem solved. Yay..!!! :cheers: :cheers:
use the strongest muscle, your leg. push down on the centerstand with your leg and life up by the frame (under the seat) at the same time.
remember the bike moves up and back before going up on the centerstand. so if you have someone stand behind the bike and pull the bike, it becomes much easier.
you can also try rocking the bike like a rocking chair to create some backward momentum (this takes some balancing act).
I like to think of myself as being in pretty good shape, but I also had trouble getting it onto the centerstand for a long time. The first few times I lubed my chain I had to do part of it, then walk the bike forward a few feet, do some more, walk it forward, etc.
With a bike that weighs about 400 lbs wet, knowing a good technique is going to be much more important than being strong. So here's the technique that I discovered:
Balance the bike from the back, with both hands on the handle on the tail (is that called a sissy bar? Or does that mean an actual backrest?). Left foot on the centerstand step thingy. Then just lift up and a little toward the rear oof the bike (lifting with your legs, not your back). As the rear wheel leaves the ground it should pop right onto the stand.
This is a bit more rpecarious than the way described above, but for the life of me I couldn't figure out how to pull it up from the handlebars. If you experiment a bit you will figure it out.
People always seem to have trouble with this. I'm only 130 lbs yet I can put my maxim 700 on the center stand no issues :dunno:
Well.. just thought I'd give my advice since i'm a small guy too.. I hold the center stand down with my right foot, put my left hand on the frame under the tank/about the cylinders, and put my right hand on the grab bar. A good heave-ho and it's up there. I'll have to try some of the other suggestions, but that's how I do it so that it feels the most balanced to me. The last thing you want to do is to get it leaning AWAY from you... I just about dropped it the first time.
trey
my way of doing it:
Get on the bike, slap ur left foot on the lever, which holds the bike up (I'm 130 lbs :o .). THen in one motion :guns: , I jump down, pull back, and have my friend push from the front of the bike :kiss: .... So far, this is the only way I can do it=X go figure :?
Hey that's not embarrassing at all. I had my bike for 2 mo before taking the MSF course where they taught us to do it properly. Before that, I had no bloody clue. Not even my buddy riding a VFR for 4 years knew how to do this.
As said previously - use you leg to do the lifting. Stand on your left leg close to the bike. Put your right foot on the center stand lever "thingy". Keep your back straight and hold the tie-down rail under the seat with your right hand. Your left hand will grab the handle bar - but only minor lifting comes from this. Keeping your back straight, stand up on the center stand 'thingy' - push your leg out straight while continuing to hold under the seat.
The bike will move backwards a little and lift up. It works pretty easily compared to the contorsions I was performing before I knew how to do it correctly. I actually used a ramp under the front tire the first couple of time I put it on the center stand. That was before the MSF course -
See it IS beneficial!! :thumb:
Hope that helps.
Merry Christmas (fr Florida -on vacation with family from Edmonton)
:cheers:
Ride Safe
Dandy
Yea all these techniques will work on the GS ... try hauling that 600 lb rhino kawasaki made and called the vulcan 750, or Honda's hippo called a nighthawk ... foot peg ... only the passenger footpeg will do ... Grab bar ... vullcan got one you cannot grab, seat rail ... the Honda got one that cannot be grabbed and will break if you look at it funny ... Foot peg ...
Cool.
Srinath.
There is definately a "knack" to it. I press down on the stand pedal with my foot till it just touches the ground then lift the tail and press down on the stand at the same time. You do have to lift the tail with some effort though. I had dirt bikes with only side-stands for years and the center stand was witchcraft to me until I got the hang of it
This one don't work:
I tried rolling my bike downhill backwards, then slamming the centerstand.. all I got was a scraped centerstand, and a tilt to the side. Thank goodness I had one strong friend on my right side. THANKS KAT ! ! ! (BTW, Kat is a 5'1" 95lbs asian girl.. and if she could pull my bike back up, I don't think this bike could be heavy for ANYONE ! ! !)
I think most people have difficulty because they are trying to either actually pull on the bars, which will result in massive leans to either side and no actual progress getting it up on the stand OR...they are trying to jerk it into position. It should be a smooth motion even if you have to use the bike's own momentum to lever it up there.
Of course, I'm 6'5 and 185, so I just stand on the lever and it pops right up nice and smooth...so it might be different if you are "petite." No offense intended.
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Replying almost 2 years after the fact, but here are a couple of things that work for me:
1) Adjust rear shock (wihtin limits of rideability) so that the bike sits slightly higher: if the rear wheel is thereby lower in realation to the frame, one has less lifting to do to get the center stand down (I've not measured the difference, and there may be none...)
2) I use two pieces of plywood as an ersatz ramp. I ride the rear wheel up onto it before shutdown, thus getting the rr wheel about 3/4" higher, and allowing the center stand to be more "down" before lifting. This works great - my weight alone gets it on the stand.
Be careful, my fellow and sister riders - I heard/read some story about a guy to used brute force getting his bike on the stand and promptly wound up with emergency back surgery!
Galen
Not a dumb question at all, and quite timely, for me. I just spent an hour last night getting "centerstand lessons" from hubby out in our driveway. He's been butlering it in and out of the shed for me, but I need to know how to wrestle it when I'm not riding it so I can deal with it when he's not home (and not knock over the other 2 bikes in the shed!). MSF didn't cover the centerstand at all.
It's definitely technique, not brute force (which is what I was using at first). At first I was yanking on it with it wobbling off center, beet red in the face and swearing like a longshoreman (or longshorewoman :lol: ). It didn't go anywhere with brute force, and I'm big for a woman - 5'10
and weigh more than I should. But with DH showing me proper technique it did get easier.
A few tips I picked up last night:
- practice it in an open flat area on a hard surface with a friend who can help you catch it if it gets away from you.
- do it with the sidestand down in case it gets away from you. It won't help if it falls to the right but will catch it if it goes to the left.
- don't yank on the bars. Just hold onto the left hand grip with your left hand and try to keep the bars straight, not turned in either direction.
- don't tilt the bike towards you when you're stomping on the centerstand footrest If you do this you will be trying to pivot it up only on one leg of the centerstand and it will be harder.
- get the centerstand mostly down and rock the bike gently from side to side. You can feel when both of the centerstand legs are touching the ground. When you feel this then transfer your weight onto the foot that is stepping on the centerstand footrest and pull the tail of the bike up and back with your right hand that is gripping the metal frame under the plastic of the tail. Don't pull it toward you. This was the hardest part for me, my upper body strength isn't great.
Good luck and don't feel bad about having trouble with it, a lot of us do or did.
Liz
Someone here mentioned using a board. Its what I use now at home. I have a true 1X6 (its rough cut) and I roll the back wheel on it. Then do just as everyone says. I am a mear 5'4" weighing in at 100 lbs.
Works like a champ!
I stand all of my 165 lbs on the center-stand, while pulling up a little on the frame under the seat, and pulling back on the handlebars...
Kinda works... It's always a little freaky when it goes on the center-stand, 'cause it's pretty fast.
lol, holy old post... He's probably figured it out by now
:x
Probably huh? :lol:
Geez, I never noticed the date......
Argh.
Liz