1954 Center Stand question (new member)

[coater87]

Which ever route you choose finding a good centre stand remains a significant issue.

Be prepared to pay a good price for a quality item.

Recenly a new old stock 1954 type went for  £246 plus £15 postage on E bay.
 
I recently bought a new old stock ( having already tried a new pattrn one and found it poor quality) late type from USA which cost £130 plus post plus customs duty.

 Julian,

 I think I may have gotten the sister to your stand. The guy had 2 NOS center stands and I snagged the other one. The other stand I had was a poor reproduction and I could imagine one of the legs snapping or bending.

Lee

[gpo746]

Thanks to everyone for their replies. It seems from what everyone is saying that which ever way I go (earlier mount or later one ) that I should go for an original stand. I am always VERY careful lifting bikes on and off stands but I just could not take a chance on a cheaper import. I will hold off modifying the frame until I can either get an earlier correct stand or a later one . Price is somewhat prohibitive but I would rather have the peace of mind

[gpo746]

Hi Dom,

Would this one be ok to use? I could possibly cut slug and weld the "New" section into the frame... Thoughts?

Well if it was me I would not go down that route 
John

Thanks for the reply John, could you tell me why you would not go down that route? . Is it because the welds might give? or because it's a later fitment on an earlier bike? I am fairly competent at welding and have never had a weld break on me.

[chaterlea25]

Hi Dom,
Reasons???
Its probably harder to find a decent stand of the later type than the early one
The later stand lugs are thinner than the early ones and wear even more, the pin and split pin method of pivoting the stand is *** poor
I had to spend a considerable amount of time sorting my later type Super Rocket frame, I welded in a tube between the mounts and made a "bolt" that locks in the stand so the pivot is now 4 inches wide rather than 2 x 3/16ths lugs
The RGS frames have the same design but the lugs are made from thicker section metal
(Another difference on RGS frames) In spite of that my RGS project frame lugs are FKD 

As I mentioned earlier Autocycle Engineering in Dudley have decent quality "Gold Star" stands
Same as A10 but without the toe hook
I think they would also be cheaper than MB transits £156 one on ebay    

John

[gpo746]

Hi Dom,
Reasons???
Its probably harder to find a decent stand of the later type than the early one
The later stand lugs are thinner than the early ones and wear even more, the pin and split pin method of pivoting the stand is *** poor
I had to spend a considerable amount of time sorting my later type Super Rocket frame, I welded in a tube between the mounts and made a "bolt" that locks in the stand so the pivot is now 4 inches wide rather than 2 x 3/16ths lugs
The RGS frames have the same design but the lugs are made from thicker section metal
(Another difference on RGS frames) In spite of that my RGS project frame lugs are FKD 

As I mentioned earlier Autocycle Engineering in Dudley have decent quality "Gold Star" stands
Same as A10 but without the toe hook
I think they would also be cheaper than MB transits £156 one on ebay    

John

Thanks John !
That makes sense..... I think the lugs on the frame just need repositioning . I will go down the proper route and find a "Correct" stand (I hope !) . I will have a look at Autocycle in a min.

[jachenbach]

Having spent time and money more than once trying to put together a bike from a pile of parts (and the A10 is not yet complete) I highly recommend staying on the lookout for a more or less complete chassis/parts bike. Though it may seem like a large outlay initially, the cost of many small bits will quickly add up, probably to a lot more. Last one I got ('61 Super Rocket) was $500 and included fenders, stays, headlight, horn, stands, side covers, gas tank, tail light and 2 boxes of bits and pieces. Basically it was everything but engine and transmission. That was less than 2 years ago.

[gpo746]

Having spent time and money more than once trying to put together a bike from a pile of parts (and the A10 is not yet complete) I highly recommend staying on the lookout for a more or less complete chassis/parts bike. Though it may seem like a large outlay initially, the cost of many small bits will quickly add up, probably to a lot more. Last one I got ('61 Super Rocket) was $500 and included fenders, stays, headlight, horn, stands, side covers, gas tank, tail light and 2 boxes of bits and pieces. Basically it was everything but engine and transmission. That was less than 2 years ago.

$500 was a good price ! Here in the U.K you would expect to pay at LEAST 3-4 times the price for such a bike . I know I am doing it the absolute hard way. Literally from the ground up but I think it would be worth it in the end.

[bikerboy]

Why not stick with a side stand there are some good after market ones from some well known dealers that you can trust

[gpo746]

Why not stick with a side stand there are some good after market ones from some well known dealers that you can trust

Hello bikerboy, could you recommend a good known product/dealer..problem is that there are so many dealers and so many stands out there..

[JulianS]

The link takes you to burton Bike Bits


https://burtonbikebits.net/stands/



Scroll down to items 70013, 70014 and 70015. You will se that they say they no longer stock these because they break so you know what to avoid.

Some very early CA7 frames do not have the half lug welded to the frame which, if you have one, can complicate the fixing of a prop stand.

[gpo746]

The link takes you to burton Bike Bits


https://burtonbikebits.net/stands/



Scroll down to items 70013, 70014 and 70015. You will se that they say they no longer stock these because they break so you know what to avoid.

Some very early CA7 frames do not have the half lug welded to the frame which, if you have one, can complicate the fixing of a prop stand.

Hello JulianS,
                    Yes, I don't blame them for removing them. My frame DOES have the half lug welded to the frame. So , I think I will need a "prop"-er one  haha

[dave55]

Hi gpo, if you cant find one and want to make one you can call and take measurements etc from mine if your ever near Wakefield.
Regards Dave

[gpo746]

Hi gpo, if you cant find one and want to make one you can call and take measurements etc from mine if your ever near Wakefield.
Regards Dave

Thanks Dave !,
                       It would be good to get an original BUT it might be worth making my own as the originals seem to be very scarce.  I don't know if the bike would twist mild steel drawn pipe ...

[Angus]

IF you go the make you own route and dont mind the slightly different look, then do what I did. Suzuki Bandit leg (correct length) fitted to a piece of scaffold pole cut in calf to fit against the half lug on the frame.
See this link for mine and other solutions https://www.a7a10.net/forum/index.php?topic=9519.msg72657#msg72657

[gpo746]

IF you go the make you own route and dont mind the slightly different look, then do what I did. Suzuki Bandit leg (correct length) fitted to a piece of scaffold pole cut in calf to fit against the half lug on the frame.
See this link for mine and other solutions https://www.a7a10.net/forum/index.php?topic=9519.msg72657#msg72657

Hello Angus,
                   VERY good idea, I can fabricate as this looks like an option given that the genuine ones are unobtainable. Thanks for sharing the idea and photos..