[jeg9642]

I am new to the forums. I migrated from ninja250.org so...Hello all! I have an 2008 250R and laid it down once already into my friends from yard. Was going 45 only put a little crack on it on the left side. I mark the other side up when I was learning to do circles for my drivers test. Marked up the handle bar cap, exhaust, mirror, and signal. No biggie. Only little scratches. I have had it since like april. paid about 3800 OTD. This is my first bike. I am up to about 1400 miles.

So thats the history of my and my beast. I am looking to get a stand and am not sure what to choose. I was told to get a pitbull. But I found the vortex and they both look nice. But I wanted to see more options. Cost doesn't really matter to me. I would like something with out a straigh handle on the back, I don't like the look as much. Understand what I mean?

I was looking at the black 10mm vortex spools. They seem to have a nice concave on them compared to most others I have seen. Opinions?

Thanks for the help!
John

 

[Countingthedays]

I ordered a Steel Horse swingarm stand(UR-SO1-4 I think) last week... I'll let you know how it is if UPS ever gets it here! I will say that the service from Steel horse is good. Within an hour of placing my order I was contacted by them to clarify the color of the stand, and model of my bike. The order shipped a day later.
All told it cost me $85 for the stand, and 35 for shipping.
It should show up today or tomorrow, and I'll be sure to post more then.

 

[lifthard1]

TZex makes so good stands as well thats what I have very resonable

 

[rbray]

lifthard... do you mean T-Rex?

I bought a set of T-Rex for my 6 and I was happy for the price I paid. But about two years later they are starting to fall apart. I'm ordering a set of Pit Bull stands for this winter (rear stand at least if I can't afford both). They are expensive, but you're getting what you pay for, IMHO.

 

[lifthard1]

lifthard... do you mean T-Rex?

I bought a set of T-Rex for my 6 and I was happy for the price I paid. But about two years later they are starting to fall apart. I'm ordering a set of Pit Bull stands for this winter (rear stand at least if I can't afford both). They are expensive, but you're getting what you pay for, IMHO.

Opps yeah sorry bout that

 

[jeg9642]

Functionality wise it seems the pitbull and vortex are hand in hand. I just haven't heard anything about durability/strength of either of them. I have heard a few people say they use them on the track. So they must get abused there.

What do you guys think about the brands of spools?

-John

 

[muloh]

I ordered Vortex spools and a Heindl rear stand from newenough.com:

Vortex Swingarm Spools ~ 57-5556 or SP402S; Silver 10mm Bolt, Kaw ZX6R/RR 1998-08 (05)

Heindl Sport Bike Rear Spool Stand ~ R-SPOOL; Black, One Size (BK)

I got a front head lift stand from kneedraggers.com:

DMP S-Spec Head Lift Stand

You'll want some blue loctite for the spools to keep them from vibrating out too. You can get some at pretty much any auto store (Napa, AutoZone, etc.).

I can easily get the bike up and down with the rear stand on my own. I haven't had the need to put the front lift in yet, but it almost looks like I might have to take the fender off when I do. kkim has a guide for lifting your bike on this forum - you should check it out.

 

[rbray]

You'll want some blue loctite for the spools to keep them from vibrating out too. You can get some at pretty much any auto store (Napa, AutoZone, etc.).

negative ghostrider. Maybe it's just me (and I could be wrong with this idea), but you should take your spools out when you're riding. I've heard people say that they help protect the rear of the bike if you go down... but I've seen so many spool mounts get torn off the swingarm in a crash. So yeah, I take mine off when I ride.

 

[HKr1]

What do you guys think about the brands of spools?

I went with the Vortex spools, also got a Redline rear stand for 250r.

DMP front stand works well on all our bikes

 

[jeg9642]

I ordered Vortex spools and a Heindl rear stand from newenough.com:

Vortex Swingarm Spools ~ 57-5556 or SP402S; Silver 10mm Bolt, Kaw ZX6R/RR 1998-08 (05)

Heindl Sport Bike Rear Spool Stand ~ R-SPOOL; Black, One Size (BK)

I got a front head lift stand from kneedraggers.com:

DMP S-Spec Head Lift Stand

You'll want some blue loctite for the spools to keep them from vibrating out too. You can get some at pretty much any auto store (Napa, AutoZone, etc.).

I can easily get the bike up and down with the rear stand on my own. I haven't had the need to put the front lift in yet, but it almost looks like I might have to take the fender off when I do. kkim has a guide for lifting your bike on this forum - you should check it out.

Does that front stand work well? Does the angle of the lift pin interfere with anything? Someone on the sight said they needed to take their front fender off to avoid scraping it. You don't have any problems like this do you?

-John

 

[muloh]

negative ghostrider. Maybe it's just me (and I could be wrong with this idea), but you should take your spools out when you're riding. I've heard people say that they help protect the rear of the bike if you go down... but I've seen so many spool mounts get torn off the swingarm in a crash. So yeah, I take mine off when I ride.

You're right, I don't quite buy that they'll protect the rear in a crash. I guess I don't see any issue with leaving them on though. If you crash hard enough to rip the mount off, I think you'll have bigger things to worry about.

Does that front stand work well? Does the angle of the lift pin interfere with anything? Someone on the sight said they needed to take their front fender off to avoid scraping it. You don't have any problems like this do you?

Like I said in my first post, I haven't actually used it yet. When I was lining things up, it looks like the fender might have to come off. If you look at Kelly's post that I linked to above, however, it looks like he has the same stand as I do and got it on without taking anything off - although I'm not sure how.

If you're reading this, Kelly, would you mind chiming in?

 

[CaliGirl]

Shogun 10mm spools and Pitbull Rear Stand...

 

[kkim]

Like I said in my first post, I haven't actually used it yet. When I was lining things up, it looks like the fender might have to come off. If you look at Kelly's post that I linked to above, however, it looks like he has the same stand as I do and got it on without taking anything off - although I'm not sure how.

If you're reading this, Kelly, would you mind chiming in?

With the bike at stock height, it is a tight fit to get the arm in there to lift the bike, but it is doable w/o scratching the fender. Put a rag on the fender when you work with the stand just in case. You never know when you might drop the arm trying to get it positioned correctly. Other than that, front stand works like a charm. You need to play with the different height settings allowed at the pivot point area of the stand when doing the initial setup to get the setting that works for the particular bike being lifted.

I have had some difficulty, though, once I lowered the front forks on my bike. I will need to cut the pin that slides into the triple tree stem to gain the clearance needed to lift it w/o issue. Have not cut the pin yet, so I can't say if that will solve the clearance issue on a lowered bike.

Other than that, the stand is easy to use and sturdy. I highly recommend it.