Centre stand

Hi,
I have an N reg ST70 which has a bent centre stand, the wheels are on the ground when on it. I have added nuts onto the front 2 bolts and this allows the bike to stand safer, is there a better fix for this problem? I have another S reg that has the same problem.
Chris

HI
the simple answer is that it is bowed from somebody sitting on the bike with the stand down or in modern speak posing like the scooter boys your only option is to straighten them but dont put in spacers as this could cause damage to the threads in the motor
p.s where are you based
p.p.s nice wheels
Tufty

Hi Tufty,
Thanks, I guess previous owner spent a long time doing that as it has not covered many miles!
Any idea how to straighten them? heat in a vice? lump hammer?
I am in Somerset
Bike is all original - though I have resprayed the guards and replaced petrol lines, coated inside of petrol tank, fitted gel battery - oops maybe not so original now!
Cheers
Chris

As is the problem with many bikes of a similar age, the stand wears away in the down position which is made worse if regularly sat on in this position. The feet can also wear away just by being in contact with the ground and the action of being raised/lowered.
Had my stand & mounting bracket made ship-shape by a local specialist welder who then ground everything back to the original shape. When it has been powder coated it will look like a brand-new set-up and even if the new metal turned out to be softer than the original, I hardly think that it will cause a problem in my lifetime added to the fact that I don't sit on the bike while on the stand.
I thought that mine was bowed but when I looked carefully it wasn't the case and just adding the new metal has sorted it out. I also use 4.00 knobbly tyres yet clearance isn't a problem.

I've a similar problem with a centre stand thats "overcentre" when it's down so the wheels are still touching.Admittedly mine's a little bit bent but doesn't look as if that is the main cause of the problem so I'm having a go at solving it another way.
When the stand is down the 2 triangular lugs on the hinged part of the stand butt up against the 2 hexagonal bolt heads that secure the stand to the front end of the crankcase but there's too much of a gap between the bolt heads and the lugs.I agree that by putting spacers under the bolt heads could arguably put extra stress on the 8mm bolts and could risk damage to the crankcase so I've cut a small piece of 1/2" wide x 1/4" thick mild steel bar to act as a corrbar and intend fitting it across the stand and screwing it to the two lugs tapped 4BA with a couple of 4BA CSK slotted screws.
It's not complete yet as I haven't fitted it up and if the 1/4" thick bar is too small it can be increased up to whatever thickness is required - maybe 1/2"?
This method should ensure that instead of the two lugs, the bar rests on the bolt heads and hopefully this should close the gap sufficiently and alter the angle at which the stand rests.
If anyone wants some pics I'll be glad to oblige by a PM and hope this may help someone.
Also have had a proplem attachning a 6v coil inside on the plate inside the frame - see seperate post
Best wishes to all ST'eers
Brian

Heres a couple of pics of the centre stand mod.I'm attempting.You'll see it was very badly distorted in the first pic when it was down before I attempted the modifcation as both wheels touched the ground.The second pic shows the support bar I screwed to the lugs on the drop-down legs that butt up against the heads of the retaining bolts on the underside of the crankcase.It's now all assembled and pleased to say it now sits nicely on the stand and I'll post another pic later on.The thickness of the bar I fixed was purely determined by "calculated guesswork" and was dependent on just how much wear there was on the stand lugs.It seems amazing to me that anyone could wear away 1/4" of mild steel just by sitting on it!
When I've got the front end reassembled I'll check the stand and send another pic, but that wont happen until the weather warms up!