December 16th, 2009 | 
Author: Ok, so I’ve had my bike for a year. Up till now, I have taken it in, had all the schedule maint done at Hinshaws and the bike has run great.
It’s at 11,000 miles and not only is it time for the next scheduled tune, it has developed a knocking/tapping in the foot pegs if I coast with the clutch in.
Lo and behold, while hiking around the International Motorcycle Show I ran into a guy I play soccer with, who I found out works for Puget Sound Safety teaching maintenance courses. I had no idea they did maintenance as I just went there for the safety course. After talking with him for a bit, I decided that is was time to get dirty and start learning about this stuff myself.
So, first things first, I needed a way to hold the bike so I could do some stuff. This meant some kind of motorcycle stand. I starting googling and quickly found PitBull and Trackside along with some others. I posted in a couple of forums that I am a part of (http://robsnet.proboards.com & http://www.gsx650f.org) to ask for others opinions and got some good feedback.
I read some reviews online as well and even did some looking on eBay (lots of cheap ones that just look scary).
Finally, I decided to go in, take a look and see what they could tell me (Cycle Gear off 38th Street Tacoma, WA). The guy told me he’d used them all and predictably liked the Pit Bulls. Everyone likes the Pit Bulls (just look online), but is it worth paying $50 more per?
He outlined the larger wheels and the Spool connection as proof that it would be more stable than the cheaper options out there and can even be used for longer term storage if needed.
Figuring I could return it and using the logic that it’s cheaper to buy it once, I picked up a rear Pit Bull ($150) and spool ($16).
I got home, took the 2 mins to install the spools and adjust the width. I propped up the bike as best I could with something under the side stand and engaged the rear stand. With a loud whack it dropped and locked into place.
The bike is completely stable, with no flex at all in the stand. I would not doubt I could even jump up on the bike (if I could think of a reason as to why I would need to do that).
For just being a first test, it is clear that this is one great motorcycle stand. Being built in the US is just a big bonus.
Now if I could magically just be an expert in motorcycle repair I’d be all set.
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Oh, and just to follow up, after cleaning and lubing the chain the knock seemed to go away. It is for sure gone now, but I also tightened the chain, so I can’t be 100% sure which it was, but cleaning was needed for sure.