Buddy tipped over on side stand

antares · Post by **antares** » Sat Mar 06, 2010 10:31 pm

I'm pissed off, I left my scooter running on the side stand for 2 seconds while getting my gloves to ride and it fell over and broke my left brake lever and scratched the turn signal, headlight cover, grip and bottom side. The scooter was brand new. Where can i get a new brake lever?

charlie55 · Post by **charlie55** » Sat Mar 06, 2010 10:43 pm

You could give Greg over at Island Scooters a call. He/'s got a small shop in Long Branch and his main shop is down in Manasquan.

Here's the link:

http://www.islandscooters.us/ISLAND_SCO ... /HOME.html

I see you're over in Red Bank. Don't know if you're interested in group rides, but here's a link to our club's site:

http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/jer ... ooterclub/

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 3:13 am

antares wrote:I'm pissed off, I left my scooter running on the side stand for 2 seconds while getting my gloves to ride and it fell over and broke my left brake lever and scratched the turn signal, headlight cover, grip and bottom side. The scooter was brand new. Where can i get a new brake lever?

I had pretty much the same thing happen to me. I parked the scoot on the side kickstand at the side of the road to take off my rain gear, standing on the right to stay out of traffic, when he took a dive. Snapped the left brake lever, and a little cosmetic damage. This was on a road trip, about 60 hilly miles with only one brake(!) from the nearest Genuine dealer. (Which was lucky, really, because that was the last Genuine dealer I'd be anywhere near for the next several days.) He said the snapped left brake lever was a common injury.

The hard lesson to learn from this is: Don't trust the side stand. The only thing I use it for is as a backup to the center stand when I park on soft ground.

michelle_7728 · Post by **michelle_7728** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 3:29 am

I can't remember the last time I used my side stand. I have read of so many side stand mishaps on this forum that I've always been in the practice of just using the center stand. Also, typically when you start your scooter up, it will run fast until the throttle kicks down, and your rear tire will be running to "beat the band". If you have it on your side stand I would imagine it would most likely go down.

Bummer, with your bike being new and all. Hopefully it didn't get all scratched up as well...?

rsrider · Post by **rsrider** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:13 am

Didn't know about the side stand thing being a problem. I'm thinking it's only a problem when it's running, right? If not, I need to go out to the garage!

iMoses · Post by **iMoses** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 5:11 am

yea, only when running and left on the side stand and/or any time on soft ground surfaces...

when you first start the scoot on the center stand haven't you noticed that the rear wheel spins like mad... well when a spinning wheel touches ground it's momentum will push the scoot forward, and if left on its own or on the side stand, gravity takes over and boom-fall-down

Stormswift · Post by **Stormswift** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 7:16 am

hmmmm....Am I the only one who takes her scooter off center stand BEFORE starting it? I like to sit on it when I start it. For some reason I've never felt safe having it running when I was not siting on it ready to ride. The only time I had it running on center stand was when I Seafoamed it and wanted the stuff go through the pipes. But I was still right next to it. I guess because I do not have a garage I cannot leave it unattended running for even a second. Some stupid kid trying to sit on it would be first concern and the other would be theft.

Post by **ericalm** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 7:43 am

rsrider wrote:Didn't know about the side stand thing being a problem. I'm thinking it's only a problem when it's running, right? If not, I need to go out to the garage!

It's a problem when it's running, in the wind, on uneven surfaces, if a cat or dog might bump into it…

Starting the scooter when you're sitting on the scooter is the best way to do it. I know a lot of people who like to warm up their engines a little. I'm kind of a hop on, start and go guy.

ScooterTrash · Post by **ScooterTrash** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 9:06 am

rsrider wrote:Didn't know about the side stand thing being a problem. I'm thinking it's only a problem when it's running, right? If not, I need to go out to the garage!

Side stand is terrible, mine is modified to work. I can push on my scoot and the leg will slide before simply folding. I still however don't trust it. Plus the canter stand is better for the tires if sitting for a while

iwabj · Post by **iwabj** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 12:53 pm

peabody99 · Post by **peabody99** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 12:59 pm

sorry this happened. I had something similar happen with our first Buddy when I put it on the side stand to manually open the garage. Luckily I did not even get a scratch. So everyone out there-never use the side stand when the scooter is running!

In fact I don't really ever see reason to use it.

jmkjr72 · Post by **jmkjr72** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 2:10 pm

this is why companies like yamaha have a kill switch on there side stands

infact the big diffrence in a motorcycle and a tng scoot is a motorcycle you can leave in gear to prevent it from rolling on a side stand and a tng scoot is always in neutral when off

so if there is any bit of incline a tng scoot will roll on the side stand and fall
if it is bumped at all it can roll and fall

and it should never be left running on the side stand or started on the side stand

last summer i saw some one do this and it looked like a kid was ghost riding a bike when the scoot took off on the lady

iwabj · Post by **iwabj** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 2:20 pm

Sailboat13 · Post by **Sailboat13** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 2:29 pm

I have the same scooter as you and I flopped mine when it was 23 hours old,,,,,,,I'm still pissed.

TVB · Post by **TVB** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 3:43 pm

ericalm wrote:
rsrider wrote:Didn't know about the side stand thing being a problem. I'm thinking it's only a problem when it's running, right? If not, I need to go out to the garage!
It's a problem when it's running, in the wind, on uneven surfaces, if a cat or dog might bump into it…

Yeah, when Flash took a dive of the side stand, he was on solid pavement, engine off. But there was – I noticed afterward – an incline to the pavement, and that was all it took for him to tip over.

KABarash · Post by **KABarash** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:25 pm

ScooterTrash wrote: the center stand is better for the tires if sitting for a while

I think I just learned that the hard way. After sitting on the side stand in the garage my rear tire lost all it's air, I think the tire is now cracked beyond use right where the white wall meets the tread side of the black of the rest of the side wall!

iwabj · Post by **iwabj** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 4:37 pm

jasondavis48108 · Post by **jasondavis48108** » Sun Mar 07, 2010 7:24 pm

iwabj wrote:I guess you people all are to young to remember when they use to put kickstands on bicycles. Having one makes you learn to read the environment the bike is being placed in. . .

There are some places I would absolutely never use the center-stand and vice versa.

But then again, I've also used Marvel Mystery Oil.

Most of my current bicycles have kickstands, although I did have to add them after purchase

jfrost2 · Post by **jfrost2** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 12:36 am

Never use the side stand while the engine is running, even if at idle. At early start up and idle the rear tire can slowly rotate and move foward, thus forcing the bike to de-activate the side stand just enough to tip over. If the bike is ever running and you need to step aside for a minute, ALWAYS use the center stand.

SFJess · Post by **SFJess** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 1:30 am

Thanks for the info. I've been using the side stand to shut the garage door behind me. I won't risk it anymore.

jfrost2 · Post by **jfrost2** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 2:04 am

SFJess wrote:Thanks for the info. I've been using the side stand to shut the garage door behind me. I won't risk it anymore.

I did this twice, once I ran to get the garage door, but I caught the bike before I walked away. The second time I ran quickly to shut the door and half way up the drive way I heard a loud crash. The bike was still running on the ground just fine, and no damage to the bike was done, just a small scratch on the break lever. I was lucky to have really no cosmetic issues besides a small scratch already touched up.

rickko · Post by **rickko** » Mon Mar 08, 2010 2:09 am

antares wrote:I'm pissed off, I... scratched the..., grip ...

Sorry to hear about your bad luck.

Looking for a replacement grip?

viewtopic.php?p=108521&highlight=rickko#108521

KABarash · Post by **KABarash** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 4:18 pm

iwabj wrote:I guess you people all are to young to remember when they use to put kickstands on bicycles. Having one makes you learn to read the environment the bike is being placed in. . .

There are some places I would absolutely never use the center-stand and vice versa.

But then again, I've also used Marvel Mystery Oil.

Hey, I even had a bicycle that had a center stand!!!

Cheshire · Post by **Cheshire** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 4:55 pm

About the only time I use the center stand is when I'm doing maintenance or parking on unpaved ground. The big trick is to give the scooter a shake to make sure it's stable by putting my hand on the seat and giving the scoot a gentle jostle. Trick my MSF instructor showed our group. The other thing is the bike's not running unless I'm sitting on it. Part of the same tip. I've not had a problem in over a year of using the side stand. Every now and then, I'll have to rethink my parking because the shake will show I'm a little precariously parked.

Vic · Post by **Vic** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 6:05 pm

I nearly always keep the Buddy on the center stand, it is so easy to pop up there I figure why not!

My Sym, on the other hand, I almost always use the side stand, it is so much bigger and I have gotten it stuck up there on the center stand on a slight incline (the scoot was pointing uphill). It is

embarrassing

to be standing there on the side of the road all geared up and ready to go yanking and tugging on your scooter trying, in vain, to get it off of the center stand

until some blessed soul finally takes pity on you and gives you a push forward so you can be on your way

...

I do, however, put both scooters on the side stand in two situations:
#1 is on soft ground-I slip a cookie under the side stand and make sure it is stable, I have had the center stand sink into fresh blacktop and into slightly soft dirt, the wheels provide a bigger contact point and then the cookie under the side stand helps to disburse the weight so it is not all on about 2 square inches. I am not coordinated enough to get 2 cookies lined up perfectly to be under the center stand.
#2 is in high winds-My Buddy got blown over last fall from the center stand

, I make sure that the scoot is on a very sturdy surface (i.e. concrete) and preferably the front is pointing uphill at least a little bit, and use the side stand. At my house I know which direction any wind is going to be heading because of the buildings around my parking area, so I put the scoot so that the side stand is on the side that the wind is coming from and make certain there is NOT a cover on the scooter (acts like a sail on a boat and pushes it right on over).

-v

iMoses · Post by **iMoses** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 8:19 pm

I use my center stand about 99 percent of the time. The only time I don't is if I am at home and need to run back in the house (when I forget X).

When I do use the side stand I make sure to cut the engine so it's not running and I make sure to sit on the scoot when I restart.

Post by **Lostmycage** » Tue Mar 09, 2010 8:38 pm

Vic wrote:...I am not coordinated enough to get 2 cookies lined up perfectly to be under the center stand....

Why not use a cookie sheet instead of just a cookie or two?

Vic · Post by **Vic** » Wed Mar 10, 2010 3:57 pm

Lostmycage wrote:
Vic wrote:...I am not coordinated enough to get 2 cookies lined up perfectly to be under the center stand....
Why not use a cookie sheet instead of just a cookie or two?

Too much junk in the, er, umm pet carrier.

-v

Post by **Lostmycage** » Wed Mar 10, 2010 4:01 pm

Vic wrote:
Lostmycage wrote:
Vic wrote:...I am not coordinated enough to get 2 cookies lined up perfectly to be under the center stand....
Why not use a cookie sheet instead of just a cookie or two?
Too much junk in the, er, umm pet carrier.

-v

Well played Vic, well played!

thalluga · Post by **thalluga** » Thu Mar 11, 2010 1:27 am

I'm so used to riding a bicycle that last year, while at a friends house chatting, I was sitting on my Buddy 50, I stood up thinking I could straddle the top tube like it was my bike and it fell over between my legs while I stood there looking like a moron...

Scratches and bent brake handle, I have not done that again. Sometime....the best lessons are the painful ones...

Anachronism · Post by **Anachronism** » Thu Mar 11, 2010 4:40 am

They could solve a lot of these problems by not selling the scoot with a side stand.

I remember when I first bought my Buddy. The salesperson told me "This is the side stand, and now that I have shown it to you, DON'T EVER USE IT."

Post by **Lostmycage** » Thu Mar 11, 2010 5:43 am

As a side note, if the carb is tuned within specs (no excessive revs or lulls) and the clutch shoe springs are changed out to 1500 or stiffer springs, the side stand can be used without issue.

Just throwing that out there. Nature of the CVT and all.

The CVT is always "in-gear" though, so precautions should be taken.

Vic · Post by **Vic** » Fri Mar 12, 2010 5:45 pm

Lostmycage wrote:
Vic wrote:
Lostmycage wrote: Why not use a cookie sheet instead of just a cookie or two?
Too much junk in the, er, umm pet carrier.

-v

Well played Vic, well played!

LuvMyScoot · Post by **LuvMyScoot** » Sat Mar 13, 2010 2:15 am

I'm sorry to hear about your first spill. Lucky you weren't on it.

You can get new levers at scooterworks. Best of all they have ones for the Buddy that fold in case the bike tips over (you know, in case lightening strikes twice). Here's a link:

http://www.scooterworks.com/NCY_Folding ... 07C441.cfm

As for my kickstand experiences, ignorance really is bliss. I haven't had any problems yet but now that I know I could I probably will.

Modern Buddy

Buddy tipped over on side stand

Buddy tipped over on side stand

Re: Buddy tipped over on side stand

Buddy tipped over on side stand.

gravel road

Re: Buddy tipped over on side stand