Puck-UP

When we finally got our new BMW F800GS, the first thing we noticed was the design of the sidestand. The puck at the end of the tubular stand was pathetically small, which meant it would instantly dig into soft ground or warm asphalt, resulting in a tip-over. When we measured the lean angle of the bike it was an alarming 20 degrees. A fresh breeze (or a sparrow landing on the handlebar) could easily push the bike onto its side. Something needed to be done. The puck needed to be much larger, and the sidestand needed to be much longer.

Here's the stock BMW sidestand. An accident waiting to happen, in our opinion. Kinda like the photo on the right.

            

Of course there's the old trick of carrying around a block of wood, a crushed soda can, or some other gadget that will spread the footprint and reduce the lean angle. They'll all work after a fashion, but you've gotta carry them everywhere, deploy them at each stop, then you've gotta stow them away when you're ready to ride.  We wanted a more elegant remedy.

Our solution was the Puck-UP. It's an oversized sidestand puck and it's adjustable in height. Hence the unusual name. Here it is attached to the end of the sidestand.

The Puck-UP comes with a series of nylon spacers that can be inserted between the 3rd and 4th aluminum pucks. You can mix-and-match the bushings to achieve different lean angles, or to accommodate different preload settings or heavy cargo loadings. The nylon spacers can be used if desired, but they're not required. Some riders want the benefits of a larger puck, but don't feel the need to change the length of their sidestand. No problem, just fit the system without any spacers, and you'll still get about 5/16" added height from the pucks. If you choose to use all the spacers in the kit you can add over 1" to the effective length of the sidestand. (** see note below)

In this next photo we're showing the spacers offset for illustration purposes. The flat nuts holding the ends of the screws were used for the photographer's convenience - you'll get nylon insert locknuts in your kit.

Here you can see the bushings on the screws, along with the sidestand and upper clamping plate. There's also 2 other aluminum pucks that were not shown in the photo.

Installation is quick and easy. Unlike some sidestand extensions, you don't need to cut or modify your sidestand. Simply slip the top clamping plate over the BMW sidestand foot, insert two aluminum spacing pucks, select the number of nylon spacers you need, and fit the bottom puck in place. Four screws and locknuts hold everything in place. Trim the ends of the screws with a hacksaw, file, or screw cutters. Easy peasy.

These photos show the stock sidestand configuration, and a Puck-UP with 3/4" spacers. If you compare the two photos, the Puck-UP reduced the lean angle from nearly 20 degrees, to a much more comfortable 10 degrees. Disaster diverted.

With the PuckUp10 degrees Stock Sidestand

For more photos of the Puck-UP, visit our SmugMug site: Click here

To view the installation PDF files, click here: Puck-UP Installation

** Use care when deploying the stock BMW sidestand. It rotates and swings in an unusual fashion; several times we've nearly dropped the bike due to the odd BMW design. Because of the unusual range of movement you'll often need to lean the bike to the right before you deploy the stock BMW sidestand, and once it's extended you'll need to lean the bike back over to the left. When you add a Puck-UP, you'll need to exaggerate those movements accordingly.

When extra spacers are added to the Puck-UP, you'll need to deploy the sidestand before you put the bike on the centerstand. Similarly, when you take the bike off the centerstand, you should deploy the sidestand first, otherwise the centerstand may not retract completely. It's a drill you'll quickly learn.

Compatibility Note: The F800GS Puck-UP will also fit the standard height version of the F650GS (it will not fit the lowered version). Although the metal plate at the end of the sidestand is welded onto the stalk differently than it is on the F800GS, the profiles of the pads are the same. All you'll need to do is flip the parts over, and rotate the aluminum plates until they match the 650's sidestand profile.

If you have a centerstand on your F650GS, you may need to modify the rod that you use to extend the centerstand. Using a hacksaw, cut the rod shorter. The rubber bumper is from a BMW K1200LT centerstand.

F650GS photos courtesy of: Tom Austin.

Models for other bikes coming soon.

"Puck-UP" is a trademark of BestRest Products, LLC.