Lifting front wheel without center stand

[Yahya]

Hello. I want to lift my front wheel to inspect wobbling and front brake issues. My bike doesn't have center stand, any idea or experience on how to securely doing that?

I'm planning to buy a jack and maybe jack stands for car emergency tyre changing, but unsure which kind of jacks/stands that also works for lifting 7th gen VFR front wheel.

Thanks in advance.

[bmart]

Buy a front stand that goes in the bottom of the triple tree. PitBull is the standard. 

 

https://www.pit-bull.com/index.php?route=product%2Fcategory&path=49_132

[jefferson]

You will need a rear wheel stand also. It will keep the bike steady when you lift the front. 

[bmart]

No centerstand? 

[Captain 80s]

A front end stand that uses the steering stem might lift the front end high enough to touch the the rear tire down as it teeter-totters back on the center stand.  I would do the first try with two people.

[mello dude]

Pitbull stand looks like

 

Also I have another type that goes under the forks. Its a Lockhart.. Dont have a photo. 

[VeeEffArah]

1 hour ago, bmart said:

No centerstand? 

 

Yup, that's that he said...  ".....My bike doesn't have center stand, any idea or experience on how to securely doing that?....."   😉

 

 

[V4 Rosso]

With this Abba stand you will be able to not only lift both wheels of the ground but also remove the whole front end for instance when you need to replace head bearings.

 

[Yahya]

16 hours ago, bmart said:

Buy a front stand that goes in the bottom of the triple tree. PitBull is the standard. 

 

https://www.pit-bull.com/index.php?route=product%2Fcategory&path=49_132

 

14 hours ago, jefferson said:

You will need a rear wheel stand also. It will keep the bike steady when you lift the front. 

 

13 hours ago, Captain 80s said:

A front end stand that uses the steering stem might lift the front end high enough to touch the the rear tire down as it teeter-totters back on the center stand.  I would do the first try with two people.

 

12 hours ago, mello dude said:

Pitbull stand looks like

 

Also I have another type that goes under the forks. Its a Lockhart.. Dont have a photo. 

 

Thank you for your replies. I had experience with the official Honda service center's mechanic himself, where he was unable to lift my bike by his own without the rear wheel stand (all were in use). It required 2 people to eventually lift the front-end using front-end stand that uses steering stem but not Pitbull. Unfortunately, shipping Pitbull to Oman is also very expensive, costing more than the item itself.

 

 

5 hours ago, V4 Rosso said:

With this Abba stand you will be able to not only lift both wheels of the ground but also remove the whole front end for instance when you need to replace head bearings.

 

Thanks for suggesting this. Trying to check out and unfortunately "The Front Lift Arm is NOT compatible with a Honda VFR 1200F!!" 😞

Edited October 31, 2024 by Yahya
add more details

[Yahya]

Will it be much easier for me to just buy a center stand then use a jack/jack stands for lifting the front-end?

[vfrcapn]

9 hours ago, Yahya said:

Will it be much easier for me to just buy a center stand then use a jack/jack stands for lifting the front-end?

Yes, I would do this. I have used this approach many times to replace the forks and install new steering head bearings.

[FromMaine]

5 hours ago, vfrcapn said:

Yes, I would do this. I have used this approach many times to replace the forks and install new steering head bearings.

Definetly the way to go for someone in your situation. I have no personal knowledge of this company, I just put this here for reference.

[swimmer]

7 hours ago, FromMaine said:

Definetly the way to go for someone in your situation. I have no personal knowledge of this company, I just put this here for reference.

Even if a person didn't want to install a center stand permanently, it seems like you could just install the stand with just the large bolt quickly and no spring and lift the bike as normal with a center stand and then just pull the bolt and remove stand when you are done. Not much more work than the pitbull stand and cheaper. There is a company that makes a center stand(ish) lift .https://www.motostorm.it/en/accessories/equipment/lv8-e640h-honda-vfr-1200f-center-pad.html?currency=USD&size=UNICA&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw1Yy5BhD-ARIsAI0RbXbDH4g3u9108hEi2zVU9H1FOTU-QX8MVi2cBANu9jVE6Z48L_nmcLQaAp9xEALw_wcB

[Yahya]

On 10/31/2024 at 6:42 PM, vfrcapn said:

Yes, I would do this. I have used this approach many times to replace the forks and install new steering head bearings.

 

21 hours ago, FromMaine said:

Definetly the way to go for someone in your situation. I have no personal knowledge of this company, I just put this here for reference.

 

17 hours ago, swimmer said:

Even if a person didn't want to install a center stand permanently, it seems like you could just install the stand with just the large bolt quickly and no spring and lift the bike as normal with a center stand and then just pull the bolt and remove stand when you are done. Not much more work than the pitbull stand and cheaper. There is a company that makes a center stand(ish) lift .https://www.motostorm.it/en/accessories/equipment/lv8-e640h-honda-vfr-1200f-center-pad.html?currency=USD&size=UNICA&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjw1Yy5BhD-ARIsAI0RbXbDH4g3u9108hEi2zVU9H1FOTU-QX8MVi2cBANu9jVE6Z48L_nmcLQaAp9xEALw_wcB

Thanks for the suggestions. Will definitely looking into these!

[fink]

Get an abba stand. Great bit of kit.

https://www.abbastands.co.uk/product-detail.asp?item=superbike-stand&pid=1

 

With a front wheel lift 

https://www.abbastands.co.uk/product-detail.asp?item=front-lift-arm&pid=42

 

Can be used on multiple bikes with the various adaptors available to purchase.

 

 

[Rhonda]

On 10/31/2024 at 1:03 PM, FromMaine said:

Definetly the way to go for someone in your situation. I have no personal knowledge of this company, I just put this here for reference.

I have the SW Motech center stand like the one above. 

Fantastic addition, most maintenance is a breeze! Highly recommended!

[JZH]

Does the 1200 have a hollow rear axle?  (Most of) the other VFRs do.

 

If you had a pair of jack stands, a small floor jack and a piece of steel rod or bar that fit through the rear axle, you could set the axle on the RH jack stand, lift the bike up enough to rest the steel rod or bar on the LH jack stand and, once the rear is stable, use the floor jack to lift the bike under the exhaust to raise the front wheel off the ground.  It shouldn't crush the front exhaust pipes if lifted that way, but the 1200 is a heavy beast...

 

Ciao,

 

JZH

[swimmer]

2 hours ago, JZH said:

Does the 1200 have a hollow rear axle?  (Most of) the other VFRs do.

 

If you had a pair of jack stands, a small floor jack and a piece of steel rod or bar that fit through the rear axle, you could set the axle on the RH jack stand, lift the bike up enough to rest the steel rod or bar on the LH jack stand and, once the rear is stable, use the floor jack to lift the bike under the exhaust to raise the front wheel off the ground.  It shouldn't crush the front exhaust pipes if lifted that way, but the 1200 is a heavy beast...

 

Ciao,

 

JZH

Vfr1200 is shaft driven 

[Stray]

I lift my front end with a pulley from the ceiling, strapped to the handlebars. 
 

It’s quick and easy and cheap. 
 

This allows me to remove the front wheel and full fork assembly for rebuilds.

 

Can you hang the front end off the ceiling? The front end is quite light and can be lifted by hand. 

[FromMaine]

As Stray points out, having a structural member in your garages ceiling has some benefits as far as options for lifting or stabilizing the bike

 

I have a 1 ton chain hoist mounted above my lift. They are about $70 at HF.

 

First pic I used my hoist to lift the bikes rear up as bit to do some work this Spring.

 

Second pic I used the hoist to stabilize  the bike at the handlebars as I was going hammers and tongs working on it this past Fall. Good tip over insurance without having to strap the bike down.