Pletscher Twin Leg Kickstand

I was introduced to this twin leg kickstand after buying a very large and heavy bike with one already fitted. So this is my second. Its very simple to master the kick down (of the stand) and pull (of the bike,) up and onto the stand. For a heavy, twin pannier laden bike, there is no peer to this kickstand. It's tough and strong, rated conservatively to support 25kg. There are, I believe two models- they differ in length. I brought the long one, at 290mm- far too long as it turned out for my 700c wheel and 19" frame needs. You too may need to cut it down to your perfect hight... a simple hacksaw job - the legs are marked for easy, identical reduction. Be sensible, cut off less than you think you need to start with... You will need to get used to the 'left hand side' parking mechanism...it folds BOTH legs very neatly together and locates them to the left side. It's seriously substantial and will take a lot of knocks, being solid metal. Definitely NOT hollow- as my hacksaw work testifies! I rate it very highly for solid surface parking of my bike. Not so good for gravel or grass, which the legs tend to penetrate. I believe Pletscher make rubber end caps specially for them- useful if you are parking on , say, a soft tarmac drive or on your nice wooden hall floor. Just lift the bike up slightly again and kick the stand backaway. It folds up, snaps straight back into its stowage position and you are off. The very simple but equally tough folding mechanism seem to shrug off muck and is easily hosed clean after my off road mudbaths. IN A NUTSHELL :- Solid support!

I built a singlespeed from a CycloX for dropping my kid to school. I needed a stand to keep the bike standing while I put him in his seat and got things ready. This does its job well. Very sturdy feeling, and built like a tank (and weighs as much!). It folds away really well too. The clearance between my frame:stand:wheel is extremely tight. Worth keeping in mind. I also cut the stand to length as it was too long to begin with. But this is expected and they mark measurements on the stand for this purpose. Very quick and easy. Main gripe is that they should include some rubber feet for grip. That being said I don't find I need them, but it would make it more secure if they were there.

This is a great stand. I was wary about paying £40 for a bike stand. Now I have no regrets. I got the Large size (320mm) for 28-29 inch tyres, to fit my large frame, 28 inch tyres ( 97-622), Raleigh Explorer 3. The stand fitted perfectly, and I did not have to cut the legs down. I discarded the long M8 bolt and used a shorter M8 Hex Cap Head screw instead. You may have to play around with the bracket and adjust the bolt length to get it to fit your bike. I was lucky in that the Raleigh has a metal plate (that includes a locating ledge) that is welded between the axle stays, and the stand fitted to this plate perfectly. The ledge on the Raleigh plate prevents the stand from twisting sideways. When on the stand the bike can be rocked, fore and aft, to sit, either on the front tyre, or on the rear tyre. The front tyre is about 90mm off the ground The rear tyre is 70mm off the ground. With this stand, the bike stands solid. The bike does not have any tendency to tip over sideways, even when the front and rear racks are fully loaded with camping gear, or when the front wheel swings around back on itself. You have to make an effort and pull the bike over by about 15 degrees before it starts to topple. Everything is extremely stable. I packed a copious amount of grease into the sliding mechanism and pivot points. This makes the deployment, and stowage, very smooth and easy. I have only tried it out indoors on the kitchen carpet, without any rubber feet. I will order some feet if they are required. I can't see any need for rubber feet at the moment. The sticker on it specifies a maximum load of 35Kg. It looks like it is made from an aluminium alloy. The stand arrived in its retail packaging, and was not inside the usual Amazon envelope or box. As a consequence, someone stuck the large address label over the important information that was printed on the packet. The instructions could not be read. But hey, I ordered it mid-evening and it arrived around 10AM the next day, so why am I complaining!