Just fitted a new kickstand

[Chris Rust]

Hi, We've had quite a few problems with kickstands and I thought I'd tell you about our latest which seems good. 

We started with the normal Hase rear twin stand, I think it's the Acor stand. The adjustable legs soon gave up because the button-operated ratchet is really too weak. At the start of our first big tour we had to dive into a branch of Staples in Glasgow for some gaffer tape which provided a temporary repair (rather more durable than the original clip as it turned out).

When it proved difficult to get a replacement and we were on our third installation of gaffer tape, John and Ruth very kindly sourced a better replacement, the Hebie Bigfoot, which doesn't have adjustable legs, so nothing to break, and has the added benefit that you can rotate the pedals with the rear wheel in the air which is brilliant for maintenance.

However we tend to have quite a weight on the bike for touring, or even supermarket shopping, and the Hebie has started to sag under the strain, originally it held the rear wheel well clear of the ground, now we have to hunt for a spot where the stand can rest on a slight rise. It's doing a lot of work for a mainly plastic construction (I'm not against plastics but this part has to work very hard). When the bike is fully loaded even that doesn't really work and in India we found it quite tricky at times.

I think the last straw was when a family asked us if they could take a photograph of themselves with the bike at a cafe. We said yes of course not realising what they had in mind and were aghast to see Mum on the front seat with two toddlers, Dad on the back and the eldest child on the carrier. Normal Indian behaviour with motorcycles but it was probably more than the Hebie could cope with. My main regret though was that I wasn't quick enough to get a photo myself as it would have been a great one for the archive. Maybe a new market for Hase?

Anyway I've been searching for a replacement and eventually found the Velo Orange Porteur, which seems to be mainly available in the USA but is sold by Practical Cycles in the UK, specialists in cargo bikes and suchlike. It's adjustable but much more robust than either of the other stands, having all metal parts and a really clever adjustment system - you twist the extending part of the leg and slide it to a new ratchet position where it is quite solid but once you have it right there are a couple of hex screws you can tighten to lock the whole thing in position. If it is a US product it's the kind of solid construction that American manufacturers are good at (think Mack Truck) and a bit heavier perhaps but worth it for the security.

If you don't intend to do loaded touring the Hebie is a very good option, especially as it is great to have the pedals turning freely (I'm missing that already) but if you want something heavy duty and don't want to splash out on the ultra solid Hase front stand, the Porteur seems a very good option. Maybe our favourite UK Tandem shop might stock it in future :o).

The other one I looked at was the Ursus Jumbo stand which seems to be particularly good for stability when parked - recommended for when strapping your child into a rear seat. But it was twice the price and I found it difficult to get an accurate idea of whether it would definitely hold the Pino rear wheel up in the air, given our recent experience that was a basic requirement.

Fitting these stands, or tightening them up if they become loose, is not completely straightforward as the fixing screw is buried deep between the two chainsets. I use a 1/4" drive socket set with a universal joint and the relevant hex bit (6mm on the first two stands). But the Porteur has the added problem of having a big 8mm socket head on the fixing screw. I had to buy a hex bit sold for a 3/8" drive, use my ingenuity to take that apart and insert the business end into a 1/4" 8mm socket before I could do the job.

Best wishes from sunny, chilly, showery Sheffield (well it is April I guess)

Chris

[Larry Black]

Thanks

We've sold several hundred ESGE twin leg stands, this one seems a winner.

What about the other one 'related' on their page?

The porteur is Asian and VO are neighbours a close hop away from our College Park location.

We're going to try a batch and try them on Pino and Circe Morpheus.

Larry Black

la...@bike123.com

www.bike123.com

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[Chris Rust]

On 28/04/2013 00:28, Larry Black wrote:

What about the other one 'related' on their page?

Their "Copenhagen" stand looks like a version of the Pletscher but with extending legs. Actually I didn't notice it had extending legs, it looks more compact in the way it folds away, it's more expensive and doesn't look as straightforwardly solid.

Incidentally the manufacturer in both cases is "Velo Orange" so I guess if it's made in Asia (no surprise there) its still a US designed product.Not sure whether Pletscher etc get their components made in Asia but it would not be surprising.

cr

[Bob Bending]

I found the stock stand that came with the Pino kept working loose, and was also worried about it not supporting a loaded bike very well, so eventually we bought the Hase stand through JD. Very expensive compared to the kick stands but it works very well and is capable of taking the weight of four loaded panniers and the stoker. We did find, though, that with front panniers fitted, the stand is stopped from reaching the full 'tuck' when riding and the feet scrape on the road on sharp corners. Eventually we lost one of the rubber feet, even though I taped them on but we sourced some more. These too have now worn through and the bottom of the legs are starting to wear down, so maybe it's time to think about a repair and new rubber feet.

Despite this, I still prefer the stand to the kick stand.

[Larry Black]

Esge are Swiss ergo $60 US

We've smd hundreds and I learned recently NOT to trim the legs for less load and bulk to carry, and a lower stance on the tandem.

On our Mini-Pini (The UK's Morpheus)

We regrettably trimmed enough to make it lower profile but alas, the legs are nearly at an attention stance and very susceptible to the breeze

Larry Black

la...@bike123.com

www.bike123.com

On Apr 28, 2013, at 10:22 AM, Bob Bending <bob.b...@btinternet.com> wrote:

I found the stock stand that came with the Pino kept working loose, and was also worried about it not supporting a loaded bike very well, so eventually we bought the Hase stand through JD. Very expensive compared to the kick stands but it works very well and is capable of taking the weight of four loaded panniers and the stoker. We did find, though, that with front panniers fitted, the stand is stopped from reaching the full 'tuck' when riding and the feet scrape on the road on sharp corners. Eventually we lost one of the rubber feet, even though I taped them on but we sourced some more. These too have now worn through and the bottom of the legs are starting to wear down, so maybe it's time to think about a repair and new rubber feet.

Despite this, I still prefer the stand to the kick stand.

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[Joe Tate]

I am looking into adding a Modified Rolling Jackass kickstand to mine.  It is activated from a lever on the handlebars and you roll back slightly to engage.  Once down, its really steady.  I have one on my Surly Big Dummy and it works great.  

Link here. 

http://rollingjackass.com

[Chris Rust]

The Velo Orange Porteur Stand so far is not working well. Set off on a 4-day ride and started by setting the stand height and trying to use the locking screws to fix the height. However the locking screws just don't seem to work, I'll strip it down when I get time and see if I can see tyhe problem but in the meantime I can't recommend the stand.

Chris

[Chris Rust]

On Saturday, 11 May 2013 13:42:34 UTC+1, Chris Rust wrote:

The Velo Orange Porteur Stand so far is not working well. Set off on a 4-day ride and started by setting the stand height and trying to use the locking screws to fix the height. However the locking screws just don't seem to work, I'll strip it down when I get time and see if I can see tyhe problem but in the meantime I can't recommend the stand.

Chris

What's happened with the stand is that the sliding feet bits that were not locking in place now seem to have seized up at the right height and are working quite well. Not quite sure why and it seems to be an accidental "feature" 

However in general I don't want to recommend this stand as it's not as reliable as I had hoped and it doesn't allow you to rotate the cranks which is really useful for on the road maintenance. If I was still looking I might consider the all-steel version of the Hebie stand

Best wishes from Rainy Sheffield

Chris