Being sick of the hastle of having to move the bike repeatedly to clean the wheels I decided to get a bike stand to make my life easier.
There are a number of different ones on the market but in the end decided to get a Becker Enterprises HD Sportster Compact Lifter. www.beckerenterprises.com/hdl.php I liked the fact that it used heavy grade steel, had a detachable handle to prevent trip hazards and is very compact and the $147 price tag was in my budget.
The 1200c has fairly low clearance so they recommend placing a piece of wood ( I used a paver) under the rear tyre.
This really made it heaps easier to lift. This is an Australian made product. The service from Becker Enterprises has been fantastic.
It was ordered Thursday evening, dispatched Friday, arrived Monday. There are detailed instructions included with it which contain some great tips and safety advice.
Bike riders need lifters for a range of reasons, This one suits my needs completely.
Thats really neat. may just have to get one for myself!
DJS,
I forgot to mention that the rear wheel can be rotated easily too without having to move the lift or the bike. You just lift the rear fender and rotate the wheel.
A couple of things I must mention is that the instructions that come with the stand recommend having a second person to assist when raising the bike. I reckon this is almost essential. I have used the lifter on three occasions with my wife holding the bike upright as I lift the bike which works nicely. I have tried it twice on my own trying to lift the bike and nearly dropped it once. Considering how much the bikes cost the advice in the instructions about having someone else hold the bike upright whilst the bike is being raised could save a lot of grief.
Another thing to be mindful of is that the photos of it on their website show it as all zinc plated. The bracket on the one I recieved is either powder coated or painted which does not bother me. but as a freind pointed out to me yesterday, a bit of rust has appeared under a small unpainted section on one of the brackets.
One stupid mistake I made lowering the bike on my own was not raising the pillion pegs which got my hand and the lifter arm caught against the pillion peg with the bike halfway lowered, then scratching the derby cover as I got the lifter arm and my hand past the peg. I am now using the lifter with a small extension bar from a socket set to make sure I don't scratch the derby cover cover again with the arm (and having a second person there to help support the bike while it is being raised and lowered).
All that being said, the company have still been very good to deal with and the lifter certainly makes life heaps easier for washing the bike.
Sprocket
A year and a half later, I took an angle grinder to the becker enterprises HD sportster compact lifter. Now it works a lot better. Here are some photos of the modified lift. There are still a few other changes I want to do to it so it works better but atleast now I can use it on my own and without having to park the rear tyre on a paver.
Parts ground off
I have now removed the clevis pin from the handle after putting a big scratch in my boots and previously scratching the derby cover with it.
