• Welcome Guest! If you are already a member of the BMW MOA, please log in to the forum in the upper right hand corner of this page. Check "Remember Me?" if you wish to stay logged in.

    We hope you enjoy the excellent technical knowledge, event information and discussions that the BMWMOA forum provides. Why not take the time to join the club, so you can enjoy posting on the forum, the club magazine, and all of the discounts and benefits the BMWMOA offers?

    Want to read the MOA monthly magazine for free? Take a 3-month test ride of the magazine; check here for details.

  • NOTE. Some content will be hidden from you. If you want to view all content, you must register for the forum if you are not a member, or if a member, you must be logged in.

centerstand vs kickstand for parking

If you choose to use the side stand it's worth while to carry a piece of metal about 3 inches square and thick enough to distribute the weight of the bike without bending. The side stand has a fairly significant amount of weight on a small surface.

An electrical box cover is a cheap and good thing to put under your side stand. You can pick one up at any hardware store. The MOA gave them out several years ago a a rally we had to park in an open field for a picnic and to watch a fellow ride over trucks and trailers on his trick motorcycle. At later rallys, we got plastic discs supplied by Progressive.
 
I use the centerstand in the shed, performing maintenance, loading it up for a trip and when I wash the bike. Otherwise, the sidestand is used. Not only easier, but it is far more stable in wind and on soft surfaces. Leave it in gear when you park it though!
 
If you use the center stand and your bike falls over 2/3 times per week, use the side stand.
If you use the side stand and your bike falls over 2/3 times per week, use the center stand.

If it does not fall over on a regular basis, keep on doing what you are doing.
:doh
 
...my friend who rides a RTP like mine said the center stand should only be used for maintenance....

Your friend is silly. :scratch

The sidestand is more stable, you should use it:
  • On any incline
  • In public
  • When it's windy
  • Any other time you think it's appropriate

Use the centerstand when you want:
  • Less space in the garage
  • Easier maintenance
  • Any other time you think it's appropriate
 
I generally use the center stand because I grew up down south where the hot summer temperatures soften asphalt parking lots enough to allow a side stand to sink in and the bike to tip over. I recently put a large foot attachment on my side stand so I dont have to worry about that anymore.

The oilheads need to stay on the side stand for a few minutes after engine shut down to let the oil drain out of the oil cooler. Then I put the bike on the center stand to check the oil level in the sight glass.

My bike stays on the center stand when stored for any amount of time in my garage. It fits better up against the wall and takes up less space.

Do yourself a favor and buy some teflon sliders at the hardware store. Get the large round disks that are about 7 inches across and put one under each foot of the center stand to rotate the bike 180 degrees. It works better for me than trying to turn the bike by rolling it around the garage and it certainly is cheaper than buying a turntable.
 
I generally use the center stand because I grew up down south where the hot summer temperatures soften asphalt parking lots enough to allow a side stand to sink in and the bike to tip over.

hot asphalt will eat a c-stand as readily as a sidestand. if it does so, the likelihood of tipover is even greater- again due to the narrow footprint of the c-stand.
i have had bikes fall over under both scenarios. its far easier to employ a coaster under the sidestand than under a c-stand.
i was happy to get back to the bike before the pavement had cooled sufficiently to trap the "foot" within the now hardened blacktop, as i was not equipped with chisels or a jackhammer.
 
Our 11S and Helens K12S don't have a centerstand, so a no brainer on those:whistle
The only time my K12S or GSA goes on the center is for maintenance . Our other bikes may rest on the side or centerstand in their waiting to be ridden position in the shop, but really only on the centers if I need a bit more room. Helen prefers I leave them all on the sidestands so she can take what she wants and doesn't have to mess with it. Simple for me:hug
Out in the world, it's sidestands typically and all the bikes have some sort of fatfoot pad on them because I tend to lose untethered plates.
I do not gain enough fuel to warrant putting it on the centerstand at fuel ups. My internal tank won't typically go farther than my bikes anyways!:violin
 
I am my own rider and I like the side stand. I am also my own mechanic and I like the centerstand. You should see some of the arguments between the rider and the mechanic. Not pretty my friends.
 
I use both, but use the centerstand near exclusively for every gas fill up, maintenance and washing, storage in the winter. Centerstand ONLY for maintenance? That must come from someone who can't get their bike on the c-stand easily. I too have had my RS tip over on hot asphault on both the sidestand AND the centerstand. One time on the centerstand it sunk in until the foot tab grounded and then the bike tipped to the right side.

On my 94 RS, BMW in some brain-fart of inspiration designed the sidestand footpad to resemble a shape more suited to serving very small pieces of banana cream pie. The thing was like a knife! I welded on a footpad nearly three times larger which does not interfere with the bike at all.

I came into BMWs on a 76 R100RS, with the spring loaded sidestand. Seems riders from that era bike are more inclined to use the centerstand than the sidestand, and it simply carried over to my 94 RS.
 
Since we don't store for the winter:stick no real need to leave on centerstand...and have no issue lifting full tanked LT's to GSA's onto the centerstand on the lift table when working on them:dunno

Whatever works and makes one happy is the correct answer.
 
I know this is a beemer forum but I'll ad that some bikes have crappy sidestands & vice versa, the centerstands on others so decide for yourself ... As you age the sidestand looks better every year! Especially if you have short legs!
 
My .02. Some years ago I rode my machine to work during the summer, parking it in an asphalt paved lot. I chose to park it on the center stand, empty spaces on each side.
Shortly thereafter I was summoned to the lot due to the bike falling over. The fact that one of the bosses had parked his corvette next to me and during the fall contact was made ruined my day. I sure never want something like that to happen again.
I am inclined...to use the side stand in most parking situations. Concrete surfaces are the best. On any surface I try to park my machine towards the right side of a space, keeping door flings from the right side in mind hoping that if it does fall over, collateral damage might be avoided. This also requires parking a little back from the front of the space to avoid the drip area from cars which can be slippery and also softer being slightly dissolved by the oils. The side stand auxiliary plate, if leashed with some string is not too tough to "retract" when leaving and helps inhibit the stand from penetrating the pavement.

When parked outdoors on any surface, the machine is much more vulnerable to falling over from high winds or a clumsy passerby when on the center stand.
 
When parked outdoors on any surface, the machine is much more vulnerable to falling over from high winds or a clumsy passerby when on the center stand.

:confused: Just how windy is it where you live? I've parked on pretty gusty days, and the center stand has never been a problem. Today I rode to the local produce store and I placed the bike on the center stand. When loading the top case, I nudged the bike around pretty aggressively and the bike was solidly positioned on the stand. With the top case mounted, the bike is sitting on the rear tire, in gear.
 
:confused: Just how windy is it where you live? I've parked on pretty gusty days, and the center stand has never been a problem. Today I rode to the local produce store and I placed the bike on the center stand. When loading the top case, I nudged the bike around pretty aggressively and the bike was solidly positioned on the stand. With the top case mounted, the bike is sitting on the rear tire, in gear.

Just look at the size of the triangle of two wheels and the side stand compared to two centerstand legs and one wheel and it will be clear. How windy isn't the issue. Which is more stable if it gets windy is.
 
My 2005 Rockster Owners Manual says to fuel up on the side stand. I used the center stand until one day I saw the note about the side stand in the manual. Seemed to work ok either way. Dunno???
 
An electrical box cover is a cheap and good thing to put under your side stand. You can pick one up at any hardware store. The MOA gave them out several years ago a a rally we had to park in an open field for a picnic and to watch a fellow ride over trucks and trailers on his trick motorcycle. At later rallys, we got plastic discs supplied by Progressive.

I used the electrical cover idea when I was doing a lot of camping/touring. I used an electrical cover from a double box (like big enough for four outlets) that had the smallest hole, which was for a single switch, just a tiny rectangle in the middle of it. My variation was before I got on I would hook a bungee cord into one of the screw holes in any one of the corners and after I was on and started and ready to roll: Up Switch Plate! It would fit into one of my jacket pockets. Also the metal is quite thick and galvanized! Rust resistant!
 
My 2005 Rockster Owners Manual says to fuel up on the side stand. I used the center stand until one day I saw the note about the side stand in the manual. Seemed to work ok either way. Dunno???

Fill your bike up on the side stand then put it on the center stand and see how much more you can get in there. It is surprising.

When I gas up anywhere the pumps may be a long ways in between I gas up on my center stand. Those extra miles sometimes come in handy!
 
As others have stated............I too prefer to use the centerstand primarily for parking in the garage and for maintanance. I found the centerstand on mt RT to be too long for most parking on the sidestand. It seemed that I was constantly looking for the idealic piece of property in order to use the sidestand without the bike still remaining almost upright. My solution (and it works for me) was to shorten the sidestand by 3/8 of an inch..............this and with the use of a larger footprint allows my RT to have more of a lean when parked which makes the whole footprint more stable, and that gives me piece of mind
 
I use both center and sidestand as needed. I just wish BMW had built the bikes with a 3rd stand on the bike. I know that one would have been the be all, end all to all stand use and discussion. :thumb :wave
 
oh, c'mon

one of the first things I "learned" is that you park your bike according to the terrain available, and factor in all the other...well, gee...factors. Is the wind blowing really hard? Do you want to check your oil when you come back? are you trying to fill your tank? is the ground uneven? Are you attaching one of your rain fly ties? Is the ground soft? Are there a whole bunch of other bikes parked side by side? Leaving it for five months, five hours or five minutes? are you strong enough to get it there and back to riding position? might a cager bump into it?can you load/unload your bags? do you need to see something on the right side better?does the smoke from your k bike annoy you? do you want to start it and warm it up with the sidestand up?wanna check you hair in one of the mirrors?
 
Back
Top