'79 R65 Center Stand Replaced with New BMW Part

[Dshutt]

I have just completed successful replacement of my original 79 R65 center stand with a new one from BMW.  It was fairly painless and I thought I would share my solutions to the few problems I encountered.  I purchased a new stand from Germany through Blue Moon (nice guys) as I could not find one in the US and did not want to fool with someone else's bent used part.  It is BMW part number 46522301594 and cost $214.26 plus shipping.

As you likely know if you are reading this, the current part is not exactly the same as the original regardless of what is shown in the parts book.  The differences are:

- The "antler horn" for deploying the stand on the old part has been changed to a piece of heavy sheet steel bent in a semicircle with a tap on the end.  It is obviously meant to fit around the exhaust (which it almost does) with the tab for kicking it down.

-  The left side of the stand now has a serrated foot pedal on the end of the tube to assist you in getting the bike on the stand.  The right side of the stand is identical to the old part.

-  There are welded hoops for the spring attachments rather than the hooks on the old part.

The bushing and countersunk headed screws from my old bracket fit perfectly.  I replaced them with new ones ($3.75 a set for each side) with parts from Motobins I had purchased in case there was a problem.  Mounting (as opposed to fitting the springs and stop) was no problem at all.  Old stand off, new stand on, tighten up nuts and you are done.  Mine fit perfectly with no side play whatever.

The semicircular foot tab on the new stand is not exactly at the same angle as the exhaust.  Further, as many have noted, there is now no stop for the stand it's upward motion ceasing when the foot tab touches the exhaust.  After some scrounging around the shop I came up with an inelegant but perfectly serviceable solution.  I used a one inch wide piece of 1 1/4" aluminum channel 1/8" thick and a stainless hose clamp.  Clamp the channel to the frame tube near the left side riders foot rest.  You can slide it up and down the frame tube to adjust exactly where the stand will stop.  The flat of the channel touches the serrated part of the stand as if it were made just for that purpose.  The channel is inside the frame and all that shows is the hose clamp on the frame.  You could paint it black to disguise it but I did not.

I happened to have the channel laying around from another project.  It is available on line by the foot from Aircraft Spruce and Specialty (they are nice folks too), p/n 03-39150. It runs about $4 a foot plus shipping.  It is very stiff and will certainly not deform from being hit by the stand.  I glued a small piece of self adhesive rubber to the surface that contacts the stand though I do not think it is really necessary.

Finally, the old springs will not fit as they are too long.  You can easily replace them from the hardware store parts section.  Just be sure and measure the required length with the stand in the stowed position.  You will discover that you need extension springs that are 2 1/2" to 2 3/4" in length depending on their stiffness.

The new stand is SO nice.  I could not get the bike off the old one without a crane.  Upon removal I discovered it had been repaired (poorly) and was out of square.  The bike goes on the new stand with a relatively gentle tug.  It sits on the stand and the rear tire with the front tire about 1/2" off the ground.  I have no idea if this is "correct" or not but it certainly works well.  I can now easily get the bike off the stand while mounted by just tipping it forward and pushing off with my toes.  You can have the stand stop further over center (and hence have the front tire touch down) if you wish by grinding the edge of the stand at the pivot where it hits the frame stop.  I did not see any reason to do this as I am happy with how the stand fits as it is.

I hope the above info is of help to someone else in completing this job.  Note that deformation of the stand is not easy to detect while it is mounted on the bike.  It only takes a small amount of distortion to make it totally unusable.  I do not know how you could be sure a used part you could not compare to a new stand was going to work properly on your machine.

[Bob_Roller]

Have you seen a picture of the center stand stop on the '82 and newer bikes ?

It's a piece of angle iron welded to the frame, with a rubber bumper stop that contacts the center stand when it's retracted .

I installed the newer style on my '81 R65 about 2 years ago, which had a center stand similar to your old one, the new stand is so much easier to use !!!!!

[wildknits]

Interesting topic. Just came to the site to see if anyone else was having as much trouble getting their bike off the center stand as I am having. Details:
bike: 1984 R65
me: 120 lbs, 5'1.5"

So far this year I have dropped the bike once (to the right) when attempting to get it off the stand (and yes, I picked it up by myself - full tank of gas and all - then went on to run in a 5 mile trail race ;->).

Today I was unable to get it off the stand at all. Tried to ride it off, which has worked in the past, and due to having parked with back tire in soft gravel (not by intention), was unable to do so. Bike was too close to my car to pivot it and try to ride off in another direction.

My husband (who owns a R75/6) says my bike is much harder to get off the center stand then his. He often gets it off the stand for me in the morning (taller + more body mass = better leverage and an easier time then I have) so it has been awhile since I have tried it solo.

Should we get this thing up on the lift and take a look at the center stand to see if there is some deformation or is this standard for this bike?  Any tips for making it easier to move it off the stand?

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

Have you seen a picture of the center stand stop on the '82 and newer bikes ?

Like this, Bob?


click for larger

That bumper, BTW, looks a lot like the pads that are fit to the seat pan for the seat to rest against the subframe rails.  
There are three different thicknesses - 5, 10 & 15mm height (thickness).  I'm sure a 10 or 15 would work.  If you want one of each, I have them in front of me (new).  Give me your address in a PM and I will send you a couple, gratis.

Even if you don't want them, you owe the forum a picture or two!

[Bob_Roller]

That be it !!!!!

[Bob_Roller]

Interesting topic. Just came to the site to see if anyone else was having as much trouble getting their bike off the center stand as I am having. Details:
bike: 1984 R65
me: 120 lbs, 5'1.5"

So far this year I have dropped the bike once (to the right) when attempting to get it off the stand (and yes, I picked it up by myself - full tank of gas and all - then went on to run in a 5 mile trail race ;->).

Today I was unable to get it off the stand at all. Tried to ride it off, which has worked in the past, and due to having parked with back tire in soft gravel (not by intention), was unable to do so. Bike was too close to my car to pivot it and try to ride off in another direction.

My husband (who owns a R75/6) says my bike is much harder to get off the center stand then his. He often gets it off the stand for me in the morning (taller + more body mass = better leverage and an easier time then I have) so it has been awhile since I have tried it solo.

Should we get this thing up on the lift and take a look at the center stand to see if there is some deformation or is this standard for this bike?  Any tips for making it easier to move it off the stand?

The surface of the center stand that contacts the frame gets worn down making an already bad design even worse .

A common fix it to apply a welding bead to the worn surface of he center stand, then file it smooth .

But personally, if you can do it, get the later center stand, I've had my '81 R65 31 years now, if I knew what a difference it made, I would have put on on back in '82 !!!!!!

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

I have a later - type stand for sale.  It is used, but it should be an improvement over what you have, wildknits.
I need to get it off of my bike for pictures.  

[wildknits]

Thanks All!!

We were just discussing getting the bike up in the air to take a look at the center stand. Have friends that are welders, so that may be a "quick" fix.

Rob, I would be interested in pictures.

I suppose another option would be to work on my upper body strength so I can muscle the bike around better  

[bruce_launceston]

Wildknits says her bike is an '84 so it already has a 'later' type stand so I would guess that it has worn as Bob said and the fix is easy, just get the stops built up again as Bob said.
When these get worn the bike goes too far back on the stand meaning that it has to come forward and UP to get it off the stand.
When repaired you should find the whole process much less painfull (in fact almost easy).

[Barry]

The new stand is SO nice.I could not get the bike off the old one without a crane.

Wonderful description !

I suspect with typical German caution new bikes would have sat on the back wheel. After being repaired though mine also sits gently on the front wheel. It's a fine balance and on an upward facing slope it might sit on the back. It's obviously less stable on the stand than when it used to go way too far over centre so I tend to avoid facing the bike down hill if possible. I deliberately erred on the side of less stable just in case there was some initial settling in. After several years that hasn't happened to any great extent so the stand should now have a long life. Once they go too far over centre they become more highly stressed and wear rapidly.  I'm happy with it as it is and find it so much easier to use not just taking it off but also putting it on the stand when you don't have that stress inducing drop when it goes over centre.  Another plus is when washing the bike it's nice and easy to lift one end to rotate the wheels.

Wildknits - If the stand is badly worn repairing it will make a huge difference. Probably the best thing I've ever done to my bike and only wish I'd done it earlier.

[wildknits]

Hearing much more incentive to get this bike back to the airport ("hanger" it in my husbands shop as no garage at home) and on the lift for a look.

Thanks for all the help! I am looking forward to a fix and being able to move this bike a bit easier on my own!

[Bob_Roller]

When you build up the stand with a welding bead, how much material should be there, 3-4 mm ?

[tvrla]

Adding more material to the stop is a guessing game. When I've done it, I've often had to grind down quite a bit. And it depends how much has worn away. Also, I've heard that it's the frame and not that stand that wears, but I had always added metal to the stand.

I left the welds on my 84 R100 a bit too proud and it barely wanted to stay on the stand. At first I even ran a strap to the stand to prevent it retracting on its own - not taking any chances! But I knew after using a while it would pound down a bit, which it has done and is about right now.

I'm pretty careful when using the center stand - putting it up gently (slowly) so it doesn't pound against the stops. That can be a little difficult, since it's easier to get it rolling quickly to have some inertia to carry it up onto it.

Also, I'd caution against riding the bike off the stand! The screws (or bolts) retaining the stand can come loose and the mounts in the frame become damaged. It's not a simple task to repair. The extra weight of a rider when deploying the stand can be enough to work them loose, or grind into them making them sloppy. Go as gently as you can on these things!

And you DO want the wheels off the ground when on the stand! That's necessary to removing a wheel.

One other thing - I've had my larger bikes try to get away from me when getting them off the stand, so any more I leave the bike in gear when parked. That way when it comes down off the stand, it can't possibly roll away. It stops right now! Usually it's a problem on uneven surfaces and the bike wants to fall away from me. Since doing this I no longer have close calls.

[Barry]

Unless they are very worn and mine weren't I would not add weld to the frame stops as it will not be very easy to clean up and paint afterwards.

For building up the stand tips 3-4mm sounds about right depending how neat the welding is. I added at least 6mm (not very neatly) to the stand and spent more time than I should have with the angle grinder. Looking at how the stand tips mate up with the frame stops it will be obvious that the weld should be added in a tapered fashion with 3 - 4mm at the top edge tapering down to nothing at the bottom edge which doesn't even contact the stops. That will also save time on the clean up. Depending on how well the stand aligns with the frame stops it may be beneficial to thicken up the stand tips to increase the contact area. Mine is thickened up on both sides but probably only really needed on the inside.

[wildknits]

Barry, thanks for the photos.

Much to ponder from all of the posts.....