I've seen several different types of front wheel
stands or chocks over the years. They come in a
few different styles, but most of them seemed to me to
be either too complicated or too large or made to hold
an 800-pound cruiser rather than, say, a petite
GT1000.
Some of the stands are also rather crude looking and
I even came across one that sells for more than $300.00
USD -- a lot of money for a device like this in my book.
Front wheel stands seem to follow a couple of
different design avenues. There's the very basic
wheel chock (although it would probably be more accurate
to call it a "wheel brace"), which is usually a simple
curved tube or even a molded plastic device which is
bolted to a trailer and is designed to locate the front
wheel of a motorcycle in place. These aren't
usually meant to hold the entire motorcycle upright,
just to keep the front wheel from moving around after
the bike is strapped to the trailer.
The slightly more complex designs, like the
Bike Grab stand we
reviewed a couple of years ago, can be bolted to a
trailer or permanently secured to the floor of a garage.
They can be used to hold a motorcycle upright, but the
models that I've used aren't quite secure enough to hold a
motorcycle steady during repair or maintenance.
There are a few front wheel stands that have
locking capabilities; this is where the design can get
rather complex, heavy and expensive. Although some
of these can be bolted to a motorcycle trailer for
holding the front wheel, a simpler wheel chock can be much less expensive.
Apparently it's difficult to design a front wheel
stand or chock that combines the best features of all of
the above, but I think Acebikes has done it with this
"Steady Stand".
I wouldn't say the design is completely unique
because I've seen other stands with a similar "roll on -
roll off" concept,
but this one combines simplicity with a robust build
quality and it is a multi-tasker: it works as a floor
stand in the garage; it could be permanently mounted if
desired; and it's also a front wheel holder for a
motorcycle trailer that is nearly as simple as a front
wheel chock but it will hold the bike unattended.
The Steady Stand is surprisingly easy to use, which
is a testament to the design. As you can see in
the video below, it takes very little effort to get the
front wheel over the rotating cup and into the stand.
Although I wouldn't say that it ultimately will hold
a motorcycle as
securely as a good rear swingarm stand, it's easier and quicker
to use and, when used in conjunction with a rear
swingarm stand, it definitely holds the motorcycle very
secure and solid.
I've been using the Steady Stand recently for some maintenance on
the bikes, including the recent installation of a Cameleon chain oiler on the
Multistrada 620, and it's been working perfectly for
me.
The Steady Stand can be adjusted to fit 16", 17" or 18"
tires with tire widths from 100 mm to 130 mm, which
means that it will
fit the majority of Sportbikes, Sport Touring bikes and others
that take the common 17" wheel diameter.
Acebikes has a couple of other front wheel stands that
will fit different size
tires, including the Multistand, which is adjustable for
both width and diameter to fit anything from Sportbikes
to Cruisers.
The Steady Stand needs some assembly when it arrives,
and although it seemed slightly intimidating when I
opened the small box and found the parts, it's actually
very easy to assemble; all you'll need is two 13 mm wrenches
or a 13 mm wrench and a 13 mm socket
to tighten the bolts.
As you can see in the photo above, there
are, in effect, only 4 parts, not including the shaft that
allows the wheel cup to rotate.
The two arms on
either side are attached to the wheel stop that locates
the tire in the
front, and the rotating cup fits on the shaft that
spreads and locates
the two arms across the width of the stand.
It's easier done than said -- the only trick
that's required is getting the shaft located correctly
at the same time that
the arms are bolted to the front part of the stand.
I found that by first assembling one arm and leaving the
bolts loose that I could then place the other arm over
the shaft and get the bolts inserted. Once this is
done, simply tighten everything up and you're ready to
rock.
Here's a view from the bottom, after the
stand has been assembled:
You can see that the two arms that look
like wheelbarrow handles form the base of the stand when the shaft
and the wheel cup are placed in the center.
The
shaft has two drilled and tapped holes on either side
and bolts that come down through the top (opposite side
in this photo; also see second photo below) hold it in place. There are two plastic
bearings that slide on to the shaft and which serve to
hold the wheel cup and allow it to rock back and forth.
The four items that look like handlebar
grips are actually made from soft sticky rubber, and
they do a
great job at keeping the stand from sliding as the bike
is wheeled on and off. The Steady Stand can be
bolted to a trailer floor, but Acebikes has a similar stand that
is specifically designed for semi-permanent or permanent mounting on
a trailer or floor.
Here's a close-up of the front of the stand, showing the
bolts located in the middle holes, which fits 17"
wheels. The two holes towards the right would be
used for motorcycles with 16" wheels and the holes to
the left (front) would be used for bikes with 18"
wheels.
Front view. White arrow indicates the bolts on top
that hold the shaft.
The Steady Stand is very well made and
it's coated with a
type of semi-matte black or anthracite paint. It even comes with plastic caps to
fit over the ends of the tubes; you can just see them in
the photo above, just below the bottom bolt at the end
of the tube.
If I was going to be working on the bike
at a project that involved a lot of heavy wrenching or
pulling, I'd probably use a rear swingarm stand in
combination with the Steady Stand, but for the majority
of maintenance work and for simply parking the bike in
the garage, the Steady Stand is the device of choice.
The stand is also
very easy to pick it up and move to wherever it's needed in the
garage or driveway.
I haven't mounted it on our
Rocket folding trailer
because I've found too many uses for the Steady Stand in the garage. It isn't
designed to hold a motorcycle on a trailer without also
strapping down the bike, but few stands are and those that do are usually
much more complex and much more expensive.
But the Steady Stand does such a good
job of holding the front wheel that the motorcycle
would be much more secure on the trailer than when using a simple wheel
chock. The other big advantage is that the
motorcycle will stand by itself in the Steady Stand,
allowing the owner to strap down the bike without
needing someone to hold it steady, and this could make a
two person job (like it is with our Rocket trailer) into
a one-person job (like it used to be with our
flatbed
trailer).
wBW
Video:
Steady Stand Front Wheel Stand - Wheel Chock
Conclusion I think the beauty of the Steady Stand
is its simplicity combined with its sturdy feel.
It's so easy to wheel the motorcycle on and off the
stand, yet it does a good job of holding the bike for light maintenance and
repairs. It has become one of the most useful
items in the garage and I highly recommend it.
Product
Review: Acebikes Steady Stand Motorcycle
Front Wheel Stand
Comments? Send them to
Comments are ordered from most recent to oldest.
From Jerome Baxley, Baxley Trailers: "I received an
e-mail directing me to your web site about the Acebikes Steady Stand
We manufacture the Baxley L A Chock and the Baxley Sport Chock here in the
USA. The L A Chock is adjustable for the cruisers with the many
different tire sizes and the Sport Chock is mainly for the Sport Bikes with
the 110/120 16, 17, 18 and 19 inch front tires.
We were the first company to build a motorcycle chock that
would actually hold a bike upright and stable. Since then many other
people have copied our design and we are not at all mad about that.
When someone thinks enough of something you have made to copy it, that means
they think yours is better than the one they have, so it is actually a
compliment for them to copy our design.
We do have a patent here in the USA only. The Steady
Stand would not infringe on our patient even here in the USA as the device
that cups the wheel doesn’t squeeze the tire like ours does. That is
why our Chocks holds a bike steady for maintenance without fear of falling.
It simply can’t happen.
We have a dealer in the UK who will have our Chocks in stock
hopefully within the month. He is awaiting for the shipment to arrive.
Our Chocks will be a bit more expensive than the one you have listed, but
when you get an opportunity to see how it is made and how well it holds a
bike, you will understand.
Thank you for the opportunity to set the record straight."
Editor's Response: Thank you Mr. Baxley
for taking the time to write and clear up this issue.
From "H.T.": "In my opinion, the "Steady Stand" is an
infringement of Baxley's "LA Chock" design. Perhaps you should contact
Mr. Baxley ... to get his opinion. They are a top-notch company where
I have bought their LA Chock and the SB001 Trailer."
Editor's Reply: To be frank, I
have no interest or reason to become involved in any potential legal dispute
between Baxley and Acebikes, so there's no reason for us to address this
issue. Any potential issue is solely between Baxley and Acebikes and completely unrelated to
anything we do. We just buy the products and do the reviews.
I
have no idea if the Acebikes Steady Stand violates a patent or not or if
Baxley actually has a patent or not, or if they do have patents, which part
or parts or assembly is covered by a patent. There
are several similar-looking front stands for sale that I'm familiar with
that seem to operate the same way, so
who knows... Condor also makes a similar-looking stand, and they claim
they have a patent also (and list a patent number; see below), and perhaps
Baxley has licensed the patent from Condor? Who knows...
This is a little-known fact, but U.S. patents are only valid
in the U.S. See
this
page on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website, that states "U.S.
patent grants are effective only within the United States, U.S. territories,
and U.S. possessions."
A company must also file a patent in any other country where
they plan to sell the product or where they desire protection. Since the Acebikes stand is not sold in the U.S.; there could be no U.S. patent
violation, unless Baxley also has filed for patents in the Netherlands or
the E.U. and if Baxley's patent has indeed been violated. That's a lot of
ifs...
Speaking of patents and patent numbers, I'm not a patent
attorney, but I know that it is very important for patent owners to display
their patent number prominently on the product. This helps prevent
patent violations and serves as notice to others that the product is indeed
patented.
Based on my knowledge of patents, copyright and trademarks
(I've attended workshops at the U.S. PTO on this subject), if I had a patent
on a product, you better believe it would be printed all over the product,
packaging and website...like it is for
this Condor front wheel stand, which also has a mode of operation that
is similar to both the Baxley and Acebikes stands.
By the way, we have just as many visitors from the rest of
the world (over 160 countries) each month as we do from the U.S.; thus we
feature products from many different countries, some of which are not sold in the
U.S.
Comments are ordered from most recent to oldest.