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Alternative to Pit-Bull moto stands

Sportbiker

Sportbiker

Slow
Joined
Mar 29, 2002
Location
Bay Area
Moto(s)
Dirt, Street
Pit-Bull is incredibly strong, high quality, made in the USA and will last for ever. However personally, I feel they are heavy and the handle design takes up too much space in the truck while going to trackdays.

Is there any other brand that is as good a quality with differnt design? I see the MotoGP paddock uses some light weight stand. Are they made of unobtainium?

Quality is the key.. not too worried about the price since stands are mostly a lifetime purchase.
any recommendations?
 
Sportbiker said:
the handle design takes up too much space in the truck while going to trackdays.
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Those new Pit Bulls with the removable handle - those are tempting for sure.

I've tried several makes of stand, and nothing beats Pit Bull. Especially the front triple tree stands.
 
Roadstergal said:
Those new Pit Bulls with the removable handle - those are tempting for sure.

I've tried several makes of stand, and nothing beats Pit Bull. Especially the front triple tree stands.
Click to expand...

I have the front/back with removable handles. They are very nice. Solid.
...no more tripping/stepping on the handles when I'm wandering aimlessly looking for something.
 
$40 at Harbor Freight. :thumbup

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I use these, work awesome.

I tried the "trackside" one from cyclegear, but the part of the wheel that the bolt runs through sheared away from the rest of the wheel. Luckily the bike didnt fall over.

I also have a woodcraft stand. Also american made and will most likely last forever. Works well and has no handle.

woodcraft_rear_pad_stand_zoom.jpg
 
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Are the woodcraft ones lighter than pit-bull? Would you say they are both of the same build quality?


I don't really understand when people cheap out on a stand for $100 or so while risking then $1000s worth of bike?
 
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in my opinion my woodcraft is a little lighter than the pitbull. They are both the same great quality. The woodcraft spool stand is a little simpler than the pitbull. No bolts or moving parts. Just adjust it when you first get it and thats it. I've had mine for close to 10 years and its still in great shape.
 
I had the Trackside stand. My KTM was up on it (a bit over 400 lbs), along with a front triple tree type stand, and both wheels were off. One of the ears on the rear stand bent over, then the other bent, and the bike fell off the stand. Luckily, I have carpets in my garage, and the bike suffered no damage. I took the stand back, they didn't seem especially surpirsed, and gave me full credit, even though I had a receipt that I paid the sale price for it ($19, or $29, something like that). They gave me full credit ($79 maybe), and I bought some Alpinestar gloves, which were marked down, and the guy gave me another discount, I forget exactly what, but I think I had to give them about $15 more dollars to get a pretty deluxe set of gloves.

And that is why my license plate is bent, trying to catch the bike as it slow rolled.
 
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Black Widow aluminum stands. Unbelievably fantastic!! Better than Pit Bull, easier, and no handle sticking out!
 

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ive been tempted to buy a Graves stand to replace my Pitbull when traveling. But i cant find them for sale anymore. damn!

graves-bikestand-rear.jpg


i absolutely hate the ears and pads on anything but Pitbull and that one. they look so cheap/flimsy and seem to have so much extra hardware for adjustment. im only going to touch it once, y do i need a huge knob. ugh.

of course, i could always buy a welder
 
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I got a woodcraft rear stand with a recent bike purchase. It's as heavy as the pitbull. But the front part off the stand comes apart quickly bu pulling 2 pins. Super convenient for storage and transport. I will post a pic later

The stand feels almost as sturdy as the pitbull too.
 
Robert.. that graves looks nice. I would like to get one too. Maybe I'll give Chuck a call.

Ricky chetta please do post em
 
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Actually I am not sure if these are woodcraft. Some might have simply put couple woodcraft stickers on it.
I only use pitbull stands when working on the bikes. 1pc design is much more stable. But this is convenient for packing up in the limited truck bed space , especially when hauling 2 bikes.
 
I have a Pit-Bull for my FJR and the one thing I don't like is enough adjustability in height. I have it at it's lowest setting and the rear tire hits the ground and cannot be rotated. Also, the features that capture the fork bottoms are too close to the ABS sensor for my comfort. I remove those before lifting.

This works fine if I remove the rear wheel first but not if I just want the front lifted.

I see those that are shown here don't have any adjustability at all, not good (in my case).

Dan
 
http://steelhorsefab.com/

I have the spooled rear stand (again got free with one of my bike purchases) and I like it better than my pitbull.

The handle is way shorter, yet it's easier to lift the bike than with a pitbull. I think due to the geometry, you get more leverage even with the shorter handle.

It's definitely lighter than the pitbull also. And doesn't feel ridiculously overengineered in the context of a 450lb track bike.

I like the design of the front stand too compared to the finicky prongs used by pitbull. But I've never tried it.

For the front, the solution I've converged on is fork sliders with a spool-like grove + a spooled rear stand for use with warmers (way easier to use between sessions). And a triple tree stand only when I need to remove the wheel/forks.
 
I've only ever used Pitbull stands (both the rear standard one and the headlift front) I've seen maybe 3 or four others and though they were much lighter, they were also far flimsier. One in particular that definitely needed a 45 degree brace for the rear and another where the capture system for the front forks looked extremely sketchy concerning the bike actually falling off the stand, It was basically just the fork bottoms resting on a small flat surface on each side. One nudge while the front wheel is off and your day is ruined.

I'm sure there are some excellent alternatives out there but its hard to beat simple and strong. The pitbull headlift system for the front in particular is extremely stable and makes working on the forks a snap compared to stands that capture the bottom of the forks.

I think it may work with other stands too, but the Pitbull tire wedge for removing and installing the rear is a nifty piece of kit as well and saves you from a lot of swearing, especially with putting the rear back on :laughing
 

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bergmen said:
I have a Pit-Bull for my FJR and the one thing I don't like is enough adjustability in height. I have it at it's lowest setting and the rear tire hits the ground and cannot be rotated. Also, the features that capture the fork bottoms are too close to the ABS sensor for my comfort. I remove those before lifting.

This works fine if I remove the rear wheel first but not if I just want the front lifted.

I see those that are shown here don't have any adjustability at all, not good (in my case).

Dan
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This must be an extremely rare situation (rear hitting the ground after raising it up on the stand) The ratio of lift/settle (the stand's ultimate resting height which is slightly less than it's max height while lifting) is approximately 10:1 So your lifting spools must be up very very close to the max height the stand lifts the bike. I have the SS rear stand and it has no adjustability for height, but lifts the rear a good 6 inches of the ground at rest.

If your model Pitbull has adjustable height, and you have it at the lowest setting and the tire is hitting the ground, why aren't you adjusting it up to a higher setting?
 
The rear tire hits the ground when I lift the front (motorcycle on center stand). Fork supports are at their lowest setting.

I re-read my post and I didn't make it clear that I was using the Pit-Bull on the front.

Dan
 
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