[Richardrwg]

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Has anyone else noticed that all motorcycle manufacturers seem to be discontinuing the center stands?

A friends 2005 Yamaha, my uncles 2009 Kawasaki Vulcan, a nephews 2004 Harley, all came stock from the factory WITHOUT a center stand or place to attach one if you wanted to.

Somewhere there is a convention of design engineers that need to have their heads pounded, their butts kicked and given a wedgie that will affect their grandchildren. Have even one of these college educated idiots ever considered that bikes break down on the side of the road and need to be fixed. Do they realize they are designing a bike that will have to sit at an angle for long durations at an angle and at the same time, designing carburetors that can stick and be damaged (albeit minor) if left at an angle for long periods, ie, WINTER.

I'm curious, are there center stands on 1800's?

 

[MDKramer]

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Of course they know it. It's called "Planned Obsolescence".

If you make the bike "too" dependable, nothing ever breaks, and nobody ever buys parts from the factory.

This is just ensuring that the average schmo:

a.) Has to buy parts from the factory
b.) Has to have the dealer, who has a stand/lift available work on their bike.

 

[SETHAN12]

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Yes, 1800's have center stands.

It is the first bike I ever owned that had a center stand.:shock:

 

[DaveO430]

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I don't think any of the cruisers have center stands.

 

[AZgl1800]

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The ST's have center stands.

My '91 ST1100 has a center stand, I just used it 15 minutes ago.

 

[96aspencade]

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My old '84 Shadow 750 has a center stand, never would have expected it :shock::shock:

 

[Dirt Road Cowboy]

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Harley never had one (that I know of), but one carb on the right side, and bike leaning to the left hasn't had any problems with hydro lock.

Lay them over on their side to fix a tire!

 

[englishdave]

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In the 50's and 60's, all the bikes I owned and drove only had centre Stands. Side stands (kickstands) were a rarity.
Greetings from Germany

 

[JerryH]

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Richardrwg wrote:

Has anyone else noticed that all motorcycle manufacturers seem to be discontinuing the center stands?

A friends 2005 Yamaha, my uncles 2009 Kawasaki Vulcan, a nephews 2004 Harley, all came stock from the factory WITHOUT a center stand or place to attach one if you wanted to.

Somewhere there is a convention of design engineers that need to have their heads pounded, their butts kicked and given a wedgie that will affect their grandchildren. Have even one of these college educated idiots ever considered that bikes break down on the side of the road and need to be fixed. Do they realize they are designing a bike that will have to sit at an angle for long durations at an angle and at the same time, designing carburetors that can stick and be damaged (albeit minor) if left at an angle for long periods, ie, WINTER.

I'm curious, are there center stands on 1800's?

I feel exactly the same way. In fact I simply will not own a street bike with tube type tires and no centerstand. My '02 Vulcan 750, an '85 design, has a centerstand. Even my dual sport bike has an aftermarket centerstand. What are you supposed to do when your huge cruiser with tube type tires has a flat on the road, and you have no way to get the wheels off to fix it? And just why do bikes come with tube type tires anymore anyway? Honda designed wire spoked wheels for tubeless tires back in '86, for the lowly 450 Rebel. Thay have not used them on everything else. BMW has been making tubeless wire spoked wheels for a long time now. So just because you want the wire wheeled look doesn't mean you have to use tubes. We now have computer controlled fuel injection, antilock brakes, and a bunch of other high tech stuff on new bikes (most of which I don't care for), but we are still using tire technology from the '40s. I mean, come on, antilock brakes on a wheel with tube type tires? Not only are tube type tires very difficult or impossible to fix beside the road, they also lose air almost immediately when punctured, and I consider this a safety hazard. I have ridden tubeless tires for possibly thousands of miles with a nail or screw stuck in them. The only thing I can think of, is the manufacturers simply don't care, not only about their bikes, but their customers safety as well.

 

[WingerDave]

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dsmastern wrote:

Lay them over on their side to fix a tire!

Hey, Thats how i change the rear tire on my GL 1100 Interstate :applause:



Dave.

 

[Kevin Wilkins]

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My mint 1974 Honda CB360T has a center stand and I use it quite often.

 

[Grizly-Triker]

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My 80 Puch has a centerstand
my 80 Vispa Grande has a centerstand
My GL's all have centerstands
I need one for my 97 Plymouth Voyager
and my Trailer...

:waving::applause::ROFL::congrats::badgrin:

 

[jwhitmore44]

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I've had quite a few bikes without center stands and still have a couple. I can't think of a time where I needed a center stand to fix an issue on a bike on the road. With tubeless tires you can just plug them instead of taking the wheel off and pulling the tube to patch. I can't say I have had an issue with anything stick in the carb from them resting on the side stand. The only bikes I have had issues with setting on the side stand were ones with boxers motors (i.e. a BMW and a Wing). Resting on the side stand can cause oil to seep into the cylinders and cause you to blow smoke on the next start up. I've never had that problem on a single, V-twin, or inline 4 (actually I had a inline triple). I did get a cycle jack for working on bikes but I even use that for the bikes that have center stands. I can see how a bike with tubed tires and a chain could really benefit from a center stand, and these are usually dirt bikes or dual purpose bikes. How many bikes do you really see on the side of the road these days?

 

[CrystalPistol]

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I've only had a few bikes ... I keep stuff a long time.

70 Norton 750 Comando
74 Triumph Trident (first one, sold in '77)
73 Kawasaki Z-1
pause a few years here ... like1978-1994
74 Triumph Trident (second and present one)
85 GL1200 A
97 GL1500 SE / Lehman GTL

All originally had center stands. I removed it from my first Trident when I ran the 3-1 header on it but used it for servicing .... after awhile, the header came off and the original pipes back on with CS.

My trike doesn't have it either, but mount is still there. Some leave it on I hear? I use the mouint as a tie in point for a lower support that links back to the rear reciever hitch I made. Makes it sturdier, like using a longer handle on a shovel.




:blackstuff:

 

[Bigun]

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My Valk has a centerstand. Aftermarket of course, Rivco and it is one of the nicest I have ever seen. Getting the porker up on it can be a challenge but as long as I'm wearing boots it's no big deal.

 

[dodgedartlover]

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Remember a time you could sit on the bike and rock it up on the center stand......dang near takes two on the wing:baffled:

 

[Anim8or Earl]

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Kevin Wilkins wrote:

My mint 1974 Honda CB360T has a center stand and I use it quite often.

I would love to see some pictures of your 360 Kevin. Can you post some?

 

[DaveW]

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My 84 Aspencade has a centerstand
My 85 Magna V45 has a center stand
My Honda Helix has a center stand
My 2002 Shadow 1100 Sabre Doesn't