'78 R100/7 Side stand factory bends

[Snakeoil]

I realize that this is a ridiculously simple question. But without another bike or some good photos to use as a guide, I'm kinda stuck.

My bike went down on the left side before I owned it. The side stand has two distinct bends or kinks in it along the shaft.

Looking at the fiche for my year, the dwg of the stand appears to be the same as my stand. Yet my friend, who was a long time BMW tech tell me that it is bent where the lower bend resides. He said it sould be straight there. I don't think he is correct and since it has been over 10 years since he worked regularly with Beemers, he might be confusing details between models. I can certainly understand that happening.

The stand foot goes under and behind the exhaust, which looks correct to me. It does hit the exhaust, so it could be tweaked in one direction and I need to correct that bend. The spring clip that is meant to hold the stand up and in place, it really not necessary do to the engagement with the exhaust.

Would truly appreciate it if someone could post a photo of a known good side stand on the bike so I could see the relationship between the stand and the exhaust as well as the clip.

Thanks,
Rob

[Snakeoil]

In the words of Rosanne Rosannadana... "Never mind".

I found a pic of my stand on Max's fiche site and armed with that, I knew that the bend my friend said was incorrect was actually correct for this bike. Turns out mine was ever so slightly bent between the top bend and the bottom bend. It was so slight that cold straightening was sufficient. A couple of tweaks and it was straight as an arrow. And when installed on the bike, hit the rubber bumper on the side as it should, cleared the exhaust and snapped into the clip.

I also found that if I let the spring bracket on the engine bolt pivot CW the amount allowed by the tolerance in the part, the side stand will stay down when fully extended, instead of snapping back by itself when weight is taken off the bike. Since you cannot see the stand when it is extended, I have to think about whether I want to leave it this way. I tend to use the center stand all the time as I feel it is much more secure. But for something like stopping in my driveway so I can open the garage door, it's handy. We'll see.

regards,
Rob

[Duane Ausherman]

Rob, just in case you don't know the very simple trick to changing the side stand it is at http://w6rec.com/duane/bmw/sidestand.htm

[Snakeoil]

Thanks. Guess I found that procedure by accident today.

Regards,
Rob

[Snakeoil]

I'm resurrecting this thread to ask a relate question.

The sidestand on my bike does not put the bike at much of a left hand lean angle. It actually will not lean at all with the wheel turned all the way to the right. Wheel much be straight or to the left.

I did have to straighten the stand a bit to clear the exhaust. Bike had gone down on the left side when with the PO and I suspect that was when it got bent.

But now I'm wondering if there were various length stands for different models and my stand might be a used replacement and the original was ruined in the crash.

My shocks are new 340mm from Tom Cutter. Front forks have spacers I made to provide about a 45mm sag in the vertical direction (versus axial along the fork length).

My stand had the same bends that the replacement stand on Max's site shows. I will go check other models from that period to see if the part number changes. But was wondering if anyone here knew if the side stand came in various lengths? Or, is it simply normal for the bike to barely lean when on the side stand?

Thanks,
Rob

[Kurt in S.A.]

What brand tires are you running? Metric or inch-sized? My /7 would stand nearly vertical when shod with metric tires. Now that I've switched to inch-sized tires, the lean angle is back. I measured a set of metric tires I was taking off as compare to the inch-size I was putting on and the metric was 0.5 inches or so less in radius. Now that included some of the wear/tear on the metric versus the new tire. But it was still dramatic.

Kurt in S.A.

[Snakeoil]

You know Kurt, after posting I had a lucid moment and was wondering about metric versus in tires since the diameters are definitely different. I know that Triumph had different length side stands depending on either the tire size or wheel size that was shipped with a given bike/model. I know it does not take much to change the relationship between the stand and the attitude of the bike.

This is probably what is going on. Metric tires and wear combined to lowered the entire bike. I think the new shocks simply amplified the issue as I had one old shock that was jamming and probably holding the chassis higher than it wanted to be held.

Maybe I'll buy a used stand and shorten it so if I continue to use metric tires, I'll be all set.

regards,
Rob

[Duane Ausherman]

When the bike leans over a bit, the tire profile affects the lean angle too.

Many bikes had fork stiction and one had to pull the bike up to get full extension. That is the wrong solution.

You will find that the stock sidestand is made of some good steel. It really doesn't want to bend easily.

[She'llbe]

I like the Brown aftermarket stand compared to the stock BMW stand. It kicks down like a Harley and is very visible, not hidden by the left cylinder like the stocker.

[Duane Ausherman]

Yep, the Brown is superior in nearly all aspects.