Anyone see this happen on a FZ1. Bent kickstand

Bobby Bray

Bobby Bray

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I'm just curious if anyone else has had this happen, or see it before. And before you jump to conclusions, no I did not take a left turn with the stand down :p

My bike has been sitting outside in the sun, with bankers box full of papers strapped to the back, and about 5 hours into the work day I noticed that it seemed to be leaning over way more than usual.

When I went out below is what I found. There's a picture of the kickstand, the scrap in the asphalt the kickstand left behind as the bike crept backwards and bent, and the load that was resting on the back. Best as I could tell the warm asphalt gave away to the weight of the bike, and as it got pulled backwards and it slowly crept back.

I've thought about taking the stand off and trying to hammer it back into place, but if the stand couldn't hold the weight of the bike, plus a box full of papers, then it may be better to replace it.

Anyway, anyone else have something like this happen? Stands bending for no good reason?
 
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Holy cow! I didnt' know you had that much sun up there. :poke:

Never heard of a kick stand bending, you may be able to bend it back if you heat it up with a torch but a replacement may be needed.
 
Only in the 70's at the moment. Crazy huh?

I'm guessing with the bike being an '01, it was damaged by a previous owner and the stand finally started to go now. Pretty sure a new stand will make me feel better. Hate to come out of a store and see it lying on the ground :'(
 
That scrape in the asphalt leads me to believe that someone backed into your tire and pushed the bike backwards some thus bending the stand. That did not happen in the sun with that little load on the bike. That was the force of the bike being shoved on the stand.
 
Somethin definitely pushed your bike backward. The kickstand will push into the asphalt well before it bends. My old house had a few divots in the blacktop from my Duc on really hot days.
 
Boy, I didn't consider that. The bike is directly out front of my workplace and in clear view, but its entirely possible nobody noticed a car back into it.
 
Look over the front tire very closely for scuffs and marks showing it was compressed in one spot. You were absolutely hit and shoved.. no doubt. If it was just the sun, the bike wouldn't move on it's own, leave a gouge in the tar... it would sink into the tar in that one spot. ;)
 
No mark on the tire that've I've noticed so far, but I'll check again. However there is a new mark on the front tire fender that I don't remember seeing before. I think you're right, the more I think about it the more I'm convinced that someone backed into me, either without knowing, or they hit me and ran without saying anything. Grrrrrr
 
Cobalt said:
That scrape in the asphalt leads me to believe that someone backed into your tire and pushed the bike backwards some thus bending the stand. That did not happen in the sun with that little load on the bike. That was the force of the bike being shoved on the stand.
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:+1:

I would also check the front fork tubes...

the stand is cast steel or some other alloy, it sure doesn't bend easily .

you could take it off and try to bend it back
 
yo bobby as dustin said you where run into you should make sure that nothing was bent probally not since the kickstand and asphalt took the brunt im surprised it didn't fall over that kickstand is very strong make sure your wheel and head bearings are good
 
Sorry for being ignorant, but I'm not sure exactly what to look for on the front forks. I did look them over, along with the brakes, and as far as I can tell nothing stuck out to me, but is there anything minor that I should look for specifically?

PS I rode it for about 10-15 miles yesterday after the stand got bent. I couldn't tell any difference in the ride, though I heard a subtle noise that I don't remember, but I think it was me being paranoid and just the wind coming through the vents in my helmet.
 
im no expert but if you can get the front wheel off the ground jack with a piece of wood under headers you can spin the wheel to check your wheel bearings make sure the wheel spins freely and doesn't make any grinding noises as far the forks go I don't know I think you would have felt it as long as its tracking straight I woudnt worry I got hit once by a car and bent my forks and kept riding it I noticed it though while its up in the air you can ck steering bearings good luck
 
Thanks Lonney, I'll give that a shot tonight after work. So far its been riding fine, but its better to be safe than sorry. Fingers crossed I got lucky and only acquired a new scratch and thats it.
 
Bobby Bray said:
but I'm not sure exactly what to look for on the front forks.
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they bend, it's not exactly easy to check.. you can take the wheel off and measure between the legs then loosen and twist each leg 90 degrees(out) and measure again.

there should be 0 play in the fork legs or steering stem.

check the wheel bearings with the calipers off

:tup:
 
Cobalt said:
Look over the front tire very closely for scuffs and marks showing it was compressed in one spot. You were absolutely hit and shoved.. no doubt. If it was just the sun, the bike wouldn't move on it's own, leave a gouge in the tar... it would sink into the tar in that one spot. ;)
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I bet Cobalt is right. I would also check under your bike to see if anything else is bent where the stand attaches to the bottom of your bike.
 
Bobby Bray said:
Sorry for being ignorant, but I'm not sure exactly what to look for on the front forks. I did look them over, along with the brakes, and as far as I can tell nothing stuck out to me, but is there anything minor that I should look for specifically?

PS I rode it for about 10-15 miles yesterday after the stand got bent. I couldn't tell any difference in the ride, though I heard a subtle noise that I don't remember, but I think it was me being paranoid and just the wind coming through the vents in my helmet.
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I think that the forks are pretty flexible. My last bike was salvaged when I got it and the front wheel was actually not straight. I just loosened the all the bolts (bike suspended using the frame) and tightened them back up and the bike rode perfectly straight.

I'd say if it rides straight, forks are OK. I would also hope that your brake rotors did not get hit - you'd probably know that - but that is something I would look at really closely. I would guess that your front wheel was turned to the right when the bike was parked. If so, I'd say that the parts most likely to be damaged would be your left brake caliper/disk, left side of the rim, etc.

Good luck
 
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