I recently got another bike, Harley Davidson Road King. I have had a few frights when I've thought it was on the side stand and secure, gone to get off and it has rolled forward - even on fairly even ground. I have now started leaving it in 1st gear. Can anyone confirm if they have encountered this problem and if you have been able to rectify it? Many thanks in advance
As Ian says hd's are notorious for this due to bad design .... i'm not sure if theres an easy fix tbh ..... most hd riders i know try just try to make sure the stand is fully down & pull the bike back a little against the stand to be sure !
Scoobs & Ian thank you, my Street Bob wasn't as bad as the Road King and believe me I kick it, pull the bike back the lot - it's just pants (that's the technical term) Your right about Tony Ian he is my Harley Guru
Jp if you r going to quote me please make sure i said the quote as i quote what you said ..........
or as Ian said trade it in for a plastic jap cruser that will be worth about £200 in 10 years
i never said trade it in for a plastic jap cruiser
and weighing in at 293kgs, i am sure my bike is not all plastic
Bobkat was asking re side stands on harleys, i have owned a harley myself with only 700 miles on it year before last and i didnt like the side stand much, they are known for having bad side stands, and if we can help bobkat with info so not ot hurt herself thats useful ie asking my friend and hers greasy tony who is a harley specialist.
As my 6 year old's teacher says, if you haven't got anything nice or useful to say, then keep quiet!
Yes Harleys are notorious for this with the side stands, but it is a locked position once it's down so it won't roll forwards and off stand etc. as I understand it. Just takes a bit of getting used to, you'll soon forget about it Bobkat, the difference is probably the size and weight of this one over your last one that's all.
As for GT being anyone's personal Harley guru, I bagsied him first honest!!!
Morning !!! Katie PM sent
... Ian .. Tone .. you are both very wrong with the comment Harley’s have notoriously bad side stands.
They do have notorious side stands yes .. but they are notoriously GOOD, different but good.
JP .. Normal on harleys dont worry. .. .. Spot on !!
AS Mom has said, once it is down the stand goes into a locked position.
The HD stand has a built in section that firmly locates into a ‘forked’ section on the frame or stand bracket.
Once this is located, the bike will not come of the stand until you physically lift the bike to the upright position, you can park your bike facing downhill if you wish and the stand will stay engaged,
I have shown people how secure these stands are by grasping me bars and violently shaking the bike back an forth .. .. .. Side stand stays engaged.
Tone, you’re right that most HD riders give the bike a little shake as the stand goes down, I do also, this ensures the stand is engaged. Yeah, if you just kicked it down an hoped for the best, it may not have locked and could be sitting on one of the ‘forks’, in which case its gonna fall over, but you could say that about any stand .. .. if it aint down properly its gonna hit the deck..
Oh yeah, .. now now ladies no fighting, I'll let ya's share me
i am still offended with the plastic jap cruiser comment lol, thanks for the insight and life and times of the harley stand brother i knew you would come up trumps
I am thinking of getting another jap bike myself instead of the Harley, though it's a retro one and not a cruiser. As regards sorting JP out, I don't think I'm up to that lol. Like Anneka says, it's all personal choice.
i totally agree, thats what makes us bikers unique, i just dont like being misquoted, thats all...... i had a harley too, just didnt like the suspension on it , now even tony agreed it was poor on the sportsters, i have rear air suspension on mine....lush !!!
I hated my Sportster too Ian, awful bikes as far as I am concerned, but each to their own, there's lots on here who have the newer ones and love them.
Give me a Kawasaki Eliminator any day - but then I need someone to help me move it around because it is too bloody heavy and weight is higher than the Harley :(