Whether bike stand, bike support or parking support, the term always refers to the same thing: a joint permanently attached to the frame with a swivelling leg (or legs) to support the bike when parked. Many sporty cyclists do without a kickstand because they want to save weight. However, anyone who frequently rides their bike to the nearest shop and then wants to store their belongings safely on the bike will appreciate the benefits of a good bike stand. And anyone who can call a real cargo bike their own will never, and I speak from experience, want to voluntarily do without a well-functioning and sturdy two-legged kickstand.
There are basically two types of kickstand: Centre stands and rear stands. Centre stands are the classic type of stand - they are bolted to the centre of the frame, behind the bottom bracket shell. Some touring and trekking bikes have a specially welded or soldered kickstand plate under the chainstays onto which a kickstand can be mounted with a short bolt. If the plate is missing, a centre stand requires a counter plate and a considerably longer bolt.
Two-legged stands are a variant of the centre stand - their wide-legged design gives the bike a secure stand even with heavy luggage. They are always mounted with a counter plate due to their higher load. Care should be taken to ensure that the chain stays are not crushed by over-tightening the fixing bolt.
Today, however, most trekking bikes are fitted with a rear stand. Its advantage is that it is further away from the wobbly front wheel, making it generally more stable than a one-legged centre stand. Rear stands are available in three versions: normal rear stands are positioned and bolted to the rear left chain stay and usually also to the left seat stay.
The second variant is a kickstand that is held directly by the rear wheel axle. Many trekking bikes in the middle and upper price segments are now equipped with the third variant: Direct mount kickstands. There are two standards here, the KSA 18 and the newer KSA 40. In both cases, the stand is attached directly to the strut with two 6 mm bolts, the type of mount and the centre distance varies, which is either 18 or 40 mm.
The complete article was published in Trekkingbike issue 1/2016. You can download the individual article as a PDF here.
