Inexpensive Bike Stand

Written by Fatbike

Friday, 11 June 2004

Reprinted by Permission from FatBike

These plans differ from the plans found on the Harley site to accommodate our larger bike. My stand is incredibly sturdy and the bike does not move at all.
The plans are as follows:

   Purchase 3 30" pieces of PT 2X8 lumber from the local lumber yard. I purchased "Culled" lumber, which is just a term for imperfect lumber.
   Purchase a 4' pipe, threaded on the ends. 3/4 gas pipe works great.
   Purchase a matching galvanized floor flange.
   Purchase 4 3" wood bolts to secure the flange.
   Purchase a hole saw that matches the outside diameter of the 4' pipe.
   Purchase a 3' wood dowel that will fit tightly inside the 4' pipe.
   Purchase a supply of 3" drywall type screws. Look for the brass type, as they are stronger and less likely to break.
   Purchase a 2"x30" piece of heavy duty padding strip.

Now the assembly. It's very straight-forward, but there are some helpful hints to make the assembly easy and help keep the stand together for the long haul. Numbers in bold (n) refer to pic's below.

Before you attach the 2x8 pieces together, drill the holes for the handle. Measure in from the edge 3". This is where the outside edge of the hole should be. Drill the hole until the pilot bit breaks through the other side of the 2x8.(1) Then turn the piece over and finish the cut. This way the wood plug doesn't wind up clogging the hole saw.(2) To keep the hole properly aligned for all pieces, use the 1st 2x8 as a guide and start the hole in the 2nd 2x8. Then finish the cut as you did with the 1st piece. Repeat the above for the final piece.

Put all the pieces together. Apply glue to 2 of the pieces and, using the 4' pipe as a guide, stack the 2 pieces on top of one another. Use the drywall screws to attach the pieces.(3) Finish by gluing and screwing the last piece of 2x8 to the 1st 2. You now have your block, complete with the handle hole.

Attach the floor flange in an inverted (upside-down) manner. The pipe will not screw into the back-side of the flange as the threads are tapered to insure a tight fit. This is why the flange must be inverted. Use the wood bolts to attach the flange.(4)

Insert the wood dowel into the pipe. It should fit so tightly that you will have to use a hammer to insert it.(5) This adds necessary strength to the pipe. Keep in mind that we are lifting a heavy bike. When you are done the dowel end should be flush with the pipe end. This end will be the end that screws into the flange.

Turn the block over so that the flange is on the floor and insert the dowel end of the pipe into the open hole of the block, working it down into the threads.
Using a pipe-wrench, finish tightening the pipe into the flange.(6)

Tape the "handle" end and tape a 12" section of the middle of the pipe so that if it makes contact with the bike, it wont scratch it.
Slide the stand under the bike. It will just clear. Stand the bike up and while steadying the bike with one hand, push the handle toward the rear of the bike. Don’t completely jack up the bike. You just want the frame to make small impressions in the wood at this point.

Remove the stand from under the bike and look for the impressions that the frame of the bike made. Use these as line-up marks for the heavy-duty pads. It's generally best to overlap the edges by 2 or 3 inches and staple far enough away from where the frame makes any contact to avoid scratches. (7)

You are done! Remember to apply firm even pressure to the handle when jacking the bike.

The big difference between this stand and the one on the Harley page is that by using 3 pieces of wood, you effectively increase the platform by 33 percent, making the bike sit much more securely.(8)

The total cost when I was done was $15.75!

Measure and drill each piece...

Dont drill all the way through... Stop 1/2 way and turn the piece over...

Glue and screw all three pieces together...

NOTE: Invert the thread plate before attaching it to the block that you just assembled as shown...

The wood dowel adds strength to the handle...

Tighten the handle into the thread plate...

Measure out the frame pads...

...And you have the strongest, easiest and quickest to use maintenance stand that less than $20.00 can buy!

Questions should be asked in our forum (Use discuss link below). The forum is very active and you stand a good chance of getting your questions answered there. If you would like to leave feedback for the author, or have additional information you think will benefit others, please use the comment section at the bottom of this page.

Discuss this article on the forums. (21 posts)

DISCLAIMER: This information and procedure is provided as a courtesy and is for informational purposes only. Neither the publishers nor the authors accept any responsibility for the accuracy, applicability, or suitability of this procedure. You assume all risks associated with the use of this information. NEITHER THE PUBLISHERs NOR THE AUTHORs SHALL IN ANY EVENT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, OF ANY NATURE ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH THE USE OR MISUSE OF THIS INFORMATION OR LACK OF INFORMATION. Any type of modification or service work on your motorcycle should always be performed by a professional mechanic. If performed incorrectly, this procedure may endanger the safety of you and others on your motorcycle and possibly invalidate your manufacturer’s warranty.

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Comments (10)

Written by fireman92, on 02-17-2012 16:13
great idea I'll putting one to use tomorrow!!

Bikes stand
Written by Fiddlekop1, on 03-25-2011 13:06
I cleaned my wheels for the 1st. time useing my stand and it was great to be able to just spin the wheel.

Bike stand
Written by Fiddlekop1, on 03-17-2011 18:54
I made one of these about 3 weeks ago. It was easy and it does the job.

Written by Fiddlekop1, on 01-16-2011 19:50
Newbie here, how high does this stand raise the wheels off the ground?

Bike Stand
Written by LBundy, on 12-27-2010 09:39
12/26/2010
I put one of these together today, and all I can say is WOW! It was just as easy as it looked,and it worked GREAT. I used deck screws and Liquid Nail to put it all together. And a solid piece of padding across the whole block.I did not use the wooden rod, but it worked just fine. I was lifting a 2004 Roadstar, and it came up easy and was rock solid. Cant wait to change the oil!!! By todays prices, it was around $38.00 for the stuff at Lowes. Still a good price by any standard. Thanks for the tip

Built and tested this today
Written by GWillH, on 10-11-2010 01:50
Many thanks for the writeup on this, I built one today using exactly the same parts as listed, unfortunately all they had was prime 2x8's, no cullings in the store at all. Total cost $30.00 US at the local big box hardware store. Used it to remove everything behind the drivers seat, change the wheel, grease the greasy bits, clean the non greasy bits and tighten everything that moved. It held the bike up very securely positioned just behind the kickstand rubber bumper. It didn't feel insecure at all even when retightening the axle bolts. Remember to drill pilot holes for ALL the screws, I broke one 3" screw on a knot that would have been avoided using a 3" pilot.

Written by Crazyron1369, on 09-01-2009 22:13
Great idea. I like the Aussie model with the removable handle. :grin

Bike Stand
Written by SaltyJack, on 03-12-2009 09:12
I was wondering what the specific use one would get from making this. Would or could you use it to support the bike during oil changes or what? Would you have enough room for the pan etc??
Jack

Inexpensive Bike Lift-Aussie Model
Written by retro_19702000, on 02-25-2009 23:08
Built a variation of this the other day. We used 2 lengths of 200mmx50mm timber and cut them to about about 800mm in length. Using a hole saw we made an opening that allowed a piece of water pipe 60mm in diameter to be inserted and welded to a length of steel that was 20mm wide, by 4 mm thick and 300mm long which was then bolted to the lengths of timber. A pry bar can then be inserted to the water pipe, used to lift the bike and then removed allowing a clean area around the bike to work in, without worrying about tripping over or hitting the handle.

No scratch padding
Written by Curt, on 05-23-2008 20:00
Most times a carpet sample can be had at a carpet dealer and for free if they are nice. This can be used to pad the surface that contacts the bike frame and keep from scratching the frame and makes it easy to use.

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