Does the centerstand on your mono shock airhead completely retract on its own?

Mine doesn't. when I bump the bike off of the stand, it stays on the ground and a nudge with my foot is required to make it retract. After owning the bike for about 10 years, it occurred to me that I could as the forum for its collective wisdom on this momentous question.

RealOEM shows two springs but there are two different lengths. One set is 111mm and the other is 143mm. Maybe shorter springs would help.

20774 said:

RealOEM shows two springs but there are two different lengths. One set is 111mm and the other is 143mm. Maybe shorter springs would help.

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Grease. Cleaning and lubrication always helps.

On my R90S, you have to move the stand with your foot to the final resting position. Been like that since new.

My R100RS needs a nudge to full retract it into position.

Guess I'm just used to it.

Yeah, I'm used to it too, but since I actually managed to remember this long enough to walk from the shed to my house, I thought I'd ask.

PGlaves said:

Grease. Cleaning and lubrication always helps.

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this.

take it off and apart, clean all the parts, grease/oil properly, reinstall. make sure the springs are there and not stretched.

They did when the bike was new.

When this happened I replaced the bushings in the center stand and added a good amount of Staburags. Made the center stand behave like knew. That was for my 1989 R100GS.

/Guenther

Depends on the model..you didn't say in your question.

All the center stands mount with a bolt and bushing..early '70s had the bolt go straight into the frame and sometimes the bolt was cross threaded making the bushing kink to one side. Later models had the bolt mount from under the engine and a 17mm nut on the outside and the bushing had a flange edge..different design for the bushings but all suffer from the same problem IF you don't take the bolts and bushing out every 4-5 years and clean and grease them.

Anothe reason is the bushing has been dry for a long time and the center stand rubs a groove in the bushing...again, making it hard to extend or retract. You can physically see and definitely see where the bushing is worn out.

And the springs will wear out over time as stated above.

Or the bike was in an accident and the center stand was slightly bent and is now off centered. Have the bike supported on a lift or with tie downs..or someone strong holding it up... and take the springs off. Then see how easily the center stand goes up and down..and if hard, you know to start taking it apart.

Mine was originally an 86 RT. The fairing was gone when I bought it. It was dropped on the left side at some point but other than a scuffed valve cover it seems fine. I'll have to dismantle the stand and see what's up.