R nine T Center Stand

I just wanted to post some feedback on a center stand for any niner riders out there. I have a 18 R 9 Urban GS that I recently added a Wunderlich center stand to. Easy install, good instruction and so forth, but when finished I found I couldn’t get the bike to pop up on the stand as the angle to the ground was not sufficient to get past the apex in the swing curve. I added 22mm of shim under the rear wheel with some plywood and found that it was sufficient to enable a better angle resulting with the bike popping up on the stand. It should be noted that my ‘teacup’ has The standard suspension on her, so the Wunderlich stand should have worked with no issues. Honz at Gateway BMW suggested adjusting the rear shock tighter to decrease sag, and that did work to lift the bike just enough to actually pop her on the center stand but it isn’t very easy but at least it works. So at some point I will disassemble to take to weld shop to ax off 20 mm or so to make using the stand easier. The stand pops the rear tire a full three inches or so off the ground which is overkill in my opinion as I have taken the rear wheel off with about a inch of lift even with getting it out of the wheel well without popping the muffler off. So for what it’s worth, if considering a center stand, understand that some adjustment to the bikes suspension may be required, unless I guess you weigh a whole lot more than my 178 lb frame and upper body strength is much stronger than my puny 68 year old body is

What does Wunderlich have to say about this?

Anyname said:

What does Wunderlich have to say about this?

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Work in progress. My information along with photos have been forwarded to Wunderlich and I am waiting for a response. Since looking into this, I have come across similar experience with some members of the R nine T riders group and others who don’t seem to have as hard of a time, although everyone agrees that it is a handful to wrestle up. I’ve come to the opinion that the folks who can actually leverage the bike up on the stand probably hand their sag set to the minimum as adjusting the spring did manage to raise my height by about a half inch. I can now get her to pop up but it requires a bit of wrestling and a different technique than what I learned at the performance center in South Carolina a couple of years ago. I must say, the heavier 1200 GS is a peach to place on the stand even at a 50 lb. weight differential to the 478 lb niner. My Panniers add probably 20 lbs so not really all that significant. Reducing sag by tightening the rear spring helped but not by much. Noe I only need to use a 3/8 inch piece of plywood under the rear wheel to engage the stand.....

So, to follow up, I didn't receive a reply from Wunderlich, but have conversed with several R Nine T owners through forums and have found a solution that does not require me to saw off 20 mm of the stand shafts. Honz at Gateway BMW suggested adjusting the rear suspension by tightening up the current sag of the rear suspension, which I did and raised the bike about a half inch. Not only did it provide me with just enough lift to allow me to pop the bike on the stand, but also helped big time in bottoming out issues while spirited riding. Its still really hard to pop up, but can be done with a bit of rocking before popping up. In addition, someone suggested placing a shim under the front wheel, (which I was skeptical about but proven wrong) instead of the rear wheel, and sure enough, it solves all issues. A shim under the rear wheel worked OK, but under the front wheel makes it easy peazy. So I purchased a curved RV leveling block that picks up the front and then traps it in the curve of the block and up she goes with no issues. So, final answer is, if not loaded with camping gear and tour gear, I can pick her up with a little effort that I am sure will get easier as I develop technique, and if loaded and heavy I'll shim the front wheel a bit to make it happen....probably only need it if I have a wheel or tire issue, but nice to know that I have the capability to pick her up without breaking my back. I hope my information helps anyone else out there with a R Nine T that is planning to use your bike as a real motorcycle and not just a look-at-me eye candy ornament.....

Nice job
Always good to have completed threads.
OM