Triumphrat

xactoman · 08-14-2007, 11:07 PM

Ok, here is a good story and lesson for you all. When I got my daytona, the previous owner threw in a paddock stand with the deal. I don't know where it came from or who made it, but in hind-site, I assume that it was built by some local mechanic.

So I have the bike up on the stand to lube the chain out in front of my house. I am slowly turning the wheel by hand when all of a sudden there is this horrific crack and my bike falls to the ground. Now for the worst part, it crashed into the brick siding, busting up the plastic seat cover. It then proceeding to hit the ground where it broke off the right peg and folded up the front brake lever, scraped the engine case and stopped. OUCH! Initially I thought the bike fell off the stand, but the shaft holding it on has snapped in half, dropping the bike the the ground. The brake lever and foot peg are easy fixes, but the shattered seat cover is a real bummer. Luckily it didn't damage the body except for a tiny chip where the cover meets the seat. It could have been a lot worse. My 5 year old son had wanted to come out and help lube, but I kept him in the house, and now I am really glad that I did.

OK, on with the show. Time to get some new stands that hold up. Surprisingly, I found a company in Texas called T-Rex Racing that makes an awesome single-sided stand for the 955i. Ordered up a front and rear (really good pricing) and they were here in a few day. Best part of the design is that the rear peg is a solid steel shaft with a threaded screw running to the other side of the wheel, securing it directly to the bike. No way that pig is falling off. Looks pretty indestructable also. Rear comes with two different size shafts so that you can lift it from either the left or right side of the rear wheel.

I guess I should have known better with the old stand, but not having any experience with paddock stands, how would i have known?

Now I need to fix something so I can try out the new stands

Lesson learned.

enjoy.

TechmanBD · 08-14-2007, 11:36 PM

Wow, that had to suck. I bet you can still see everything in sloooooooooooowwwww motion.

I have heard of t-rex. Look a bit like the pitbull stands. I still need to get a front though.

xactoman · 08-14-2007, 11:54 PM

yes, slow motion. I think i even invented a few new swear words. Nothing sucks worse than messing your toys up. I can't imagine how bad it would suck to actually crash a bike. This is as close as I want to get.

wow, the t-rex certainly does look a lot like the pitbull. T-rex has different bracing, but **** near the same. I've never seen a Pit Bull, so I can't comment on build quality. I don't know to much about T-Rex, I am assuming it is a pretty small shop. There front stand is pretty beefy and works super slick. Gold galvanized finish is kind of spotty, but does the job. Best part is that it is only $40.

Ricochet_Rabbit · 08-15-2007, 12:26 AM

Good thing the bike didn't fall on you...

I've got the Pit Bull stands (F & R), forget the price but I know they weren't cheap. Quality is excellent, I'd buy then again in a heartbeat.

peterk · 08-15-2007, 03:42 AM

I had my last bike topple over while it was warming up once, stone cracked the crankcase + a few other things, ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.
To look at that stand you would have thought it ok, looks strong enough doesn't it. New stands look like they will do the job and i can't believe the price, here in Oz they cost about $200, guess thats why i don't have one yet...
Man i gotta also say that that is a goooooood looking bike...

xactoman · 08-15-2007, 09:36 AM

Ya, I thought the previous stand looked strong enough also. I guess a 5/8" steel shaft isn't enough to hold a bike up.

Yes, after the fact there are all sorts of ways this could have ended badly. Kids under the bike, me under the bike, bike on car, etc. Spooky thing is, about 2 weeks ago, I had it up on the same crappy stand with the engine running. I had popped it in and out of gear with the clutch in, and don't want to think about how bad that could have ended if the stand broke while I had the clutch in with gears engaged. That thing would have ghost ridden right into the house! I just have to say, that bike is heavy when it is on it's side.

xactoman · 08-15-2007, 09:44 AM

Now that I have gotten the shock of this out of my system, the question comes up as to what to do with the seat cover. I really liked the look of it on my naked bike. The fall pretty much split it open and tore it up. I did a little shop time and fixed it quite well with some carbon fiber on the inside and Bondo on the outside. Smooth as a babies bottom. Problem is, the previous owner custom painted the bike and I have no idea what paint color it is or where it came from.

Now the big question is, is this an opportunity to repaint the whole bike or just do something fancy with the cover? I know my way around paint and an airbrush, but don't know what to do that wouldn't be totally over the top. Crazy flame paint job kind of already does that for the bike. Two options would be to paint it in black to match the fly-screen or painting it with a chrome finish and putting a carbon fiber Union Jack on it. The latter might be a little much. Suggestions?

Brooksie · 08-15-2007, 09:50 AM

I like the Triumph stand, but it leaves a lot to faith as you stand behind the bike to rock it up. By the way xactoman, great looking bike!!