I would spring for the weldable tabs although I have heard of some people drilling and tapping the swingarm without issue. Still for peace of mind welding the tabs is the way to go.

 

Another +1 for Pitbull. One race shop I know installs these & they work great.

 

I don't get it. Using the universal pads that come with the pitbull stand is 100% easier then modifying the swingarm so you can buy spools and spool adapters for the stand. The pads work just as fast and easy as spools. The only bike I've come across that requires spools to work with a stand is our daytona 675 where the swingarm curves in at the bottem and doesn't work with the standerd pads.

 

Have seen the universal pads/swingarm supports get bumped and fall or slide off. Never seen it happen with spools.

 

Yes I've seen in-correctly adjusted pads let a bike fall. If adjusted correctly then the swingarm sides are againts the verticle part of the stands pad and theres nowhere for the swingarm to slide and fall off.

 

The rear Bike-tek stand I have has U shaped pads to actually hold the swingarm in place on the inside and out of the swingarm, making it impossible to just slide off the pad.

I keep my bike in my kitchen during the cold months and never had a issue even with a bunch of drunken hotties and stupid friends jumping on the big bad f4i and making "vroom vroom" noises.

 

Universals will slide forward on the swing-arm, changing the center of gravity. If you bump the bike side-ways a bit they can shift off-center (don't deny it, stuff happens, especially in my tiny garage!). Rear-stands are just more stable working off a fixed pivot-point, if you have the option.

Ern

 

I noticed w/ my PitBull stand, my bike does slide down if you turn the front wheel left/right. So before I use my stand I clean off the bottom of my swingarm w/ some brake cleaner and zip-tie my front brake on if I'm going to be working on it. If you do decide to ge the spools welded on, make sure the guy welding it is above agverage. Aluminum welding takes a guy that knows his trade.


Moses