Centre stand helper?

[Greybeard]

Has anyone considered adding a centre stand helper to their bikes as this Vincent has?

Looks like you could do yourself a mischief if you fell off the saddle and met that knob on the way to the floor

[redmelons]

I was beginning to think I was the only person who thought the A10 was a nightmare to get on the centre stand. I dreaded it so much that I paid £180 for a side stand so that I could fill up at a petrol station without looking like I was having a heart attack.

Then I found this advice on Putting A Motorcycle Onto The Centre Stand and saw in one of the comments:

"I think there was a point around 1965 when British bike manufacturers finally understood that getting the bike on the stand shouldn't be a trial of strength. The worst I've had were a Matchless G80 500cc and a BSA A10 650. Both were nightmares."

So it's not just me  . I've had a lot of Japanese motorbikes, including three ZZR1100's which are a heavy bike, but never had any bother getting any of them onto the stand.

[RDfella]

Some swear by using a block of wood to assist, but I've never been convinced. I've posted elsewhere on this forum my remedy: shorten the centre stand so when the bike is on the stand the rear wheel is only just clear of the ground. Was about 3/4 inch I took off mine (cut that out and welded the feet back on). There's no need to have the rear 3 inches off the deck, that merely makes getting onto the stand much harder. Then I added a side bar for my foot to a) find the stand and b) help lift the bike up. Overall result is I'm further back when 'lifting' and it only needs slight assistance hand-wise. Without that side bar one has to stand beside the bike in order to hold the stand down with a foot - meaning one is in a totally wrong position to pull back / lift onto the stand.

PS - GB, I wouldn't worry too much about inadvertently checking one's prostrate with that lifting handle - as I see it the bike is on its stand, so presumably when the rider is seated that lever lies along the top of the primary cover.

[JulianS]

Similar fitted by Rudge in the 1930s

[Greybeard]

PS - GB, I wouldn't worry too much about inadvertently checking one's prostrate with that lifting handle - as I see it the bike is on its stand, so presumably when the rider is seated that lever lies along the top of the primary cover.

No fun at all then 😜

I did wonder, especially given the bright red colour, if it was a rampant male Vincent getting the hots for all those lovely lady bikes around him.