Jim: I think that you're going to have to spend a pretty penny to get that look (which I think is pretty cool). You'll need to get air for the front as well as the back and will most likely have to have a swingarm made. Please start a thread of this project if you decide on it, I'd be real interested in what it would take to make this happen. Good luck!
Dropping the front as well...thanks for bringing that to the table...yeah, definitely something to consider.
I'm hoping that a retractable center stand will do the trick as long as it's somewhat hidden. I don't want this project to get out of hand and expensive with a custom swingarm and a bunch of fabrication.
And absolutely...I will make a thread if I decide to start this project.
UT-rckr, this is the basic concept that I came up with (drawn very simplistic with MSPaint). The plates on the bottom would have to be wide enough for stability...I was also thinking that the bottom plates would be killer if they were black powder coated black diamond-plate.
You are way ahead of me in the process. I basically just thinking some sort of center stand like you have drawn, but I am not going to mess with anything else in the suspension, front or rear. With a typical center stand the bike still relies on the tires (or at least the rear) to be touching to keep it standing. Same thing I was thinking. If you have ever placed a 4" (or so) block of wood under the bike and then dumped the air so it is sitting on the wood and upright, the retractable center stand would essentially function like that. In my garage I have done that cause it's easier space wise to park it upright. Now if I could ditch the block of wood and be able to park like that anywhere would accomplish what I was thinking. I will definitely be watching what you come up with and prob steal some of your ideas.
One other quick thought. You prob won't be able to have the bottom plates as pictures or when the stand folds up they will hit the frame. The plates will have to be flush with the back side of the stand legs so that the stand can fold up against the frame completely.
I looked into him over a year ago and they said they were working on one for a softail. Still nothing at this point. The other issue there is even if they get one for a Softail, I doubt it will fit the wider tires of the Breakout and Rocker, and from looking at the design, I don't think you could mount it with a SS. The idea though is exactly what got me heading down this path.
You are way ahead of me in the process. I basically just thinking some sort of center stand like you have drawn, but I am not going to mess with anything else in the suspension, front or rear. With a typical center stand the bike still relies on the tires (or at least the rear) to be touching to keep it standing. Same thing I was thinking. If you have ever placed a 4" (or so) block of wood under the bike and then dumped the air so it is sitting on the wood and upright, the retractable center stand would essentially function like that. In my garage I have done that cause it's easier space wise to park it upright. Now if I could ditch the block of wood and be able to park like that anywhere would accomplish what I was thinking. I will definitely be watching what you come up with and prob steal some of your ideas.
I've mocked up a two 2x4's as a block to test the stability as well. And yeah man, if I figure something out, I'll be happy to have you steal the design if you like it.
Originally Posted by UT-rckr
One other quick thought. You prob won't be able to have the bottom plates as pictures or when the stand folds up they will hit the frame. The plates will have to be flush with the back side of the stand legs so that the stand can fold up against the frame completely.
Agreed...it was a thought and I was thinking that there may be some way to weld them on towards the inside so that they don't hit the frame. They would have to be somewhat small, unlike the drawing.
Originally Posted by UT-rckr
I looked into him over a year ago and they said they were working on one for a softail. Still nothing at this point. The other issue there is even if they get one for a Softail, I doubt it will fit the wider tires of the Breakout and Rocker, and from looking at the design, I don't think you could mount it with a SS. The idea though is exactly what got me heading down this path.
Well it's no loss really, I wouldn't fork over $730 for such a simple electric stand hehe.
Another thought is to utilize the two holes near the front of the frame. I was thinking about running a bar through it that could rotate and be spring loaded. It would be more visible but I think I may toy with that idea and see what I come up with.
All these ideas/thoughts of yours are great, thanks.
they make a center stand for soft tails, you can get one that is not auto, then just flip that down as you air down... i am doing the same on my dyna this winter... I was going to use an actuator on mine but the more i thought about it the more i worried about something going wrong and dropping it while i am cutting turns, i want one i can do manual, easy and reliable. this will also let you keep your travel, I did a modded version of the DIY bagger air ride on my dyna, so i got 8-14" travel change, slammed low it is so close the center stand would work great... i could only assume it would be the same for you
i like the idea of being able to lay frame, well stand in this case, but bobbed and coated it would vanish when the bike is slammed and parked... i am going to start with a bagger center stand as that is the closest to my frame i can get, then just mod and weld new mount plates. I know i ride a dyna not a softy but still the same basic concept
I would be concerned how narrow it is. It could be too easy to tip the bike over. Normal centre stands give a wide footprint. Also the stock stand locks into place to prevent it rolling off the stand. You need to incorporate this feature.
09-25-2014, 10:24 AM
