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[CrashCash]

So I will eventually need to change the front tire on my SR, and I'll need some way to lift the front.

I have one of the Woodcraft front stands, the kind where the pin goes in the hole at the triple-tree pivot. I measured the Zero to be 15.00mm but the 15mm pin I have is just a little too large. It needs about 0.25mm turned off. And no, he won't make 14.5mm pins. I asked. I can't get it machined down as there are no competent machine shops around here.

I have some of those stupid Cycle Gear front stands, but they don't adjust for the fact that one fork end is 5mm lower than the other. And the other stand is just garbage and doesn't fit anything.

I have one of those Eazy-Rizer lifts, but the owner's manual says the charger electronics are below the battery box, so the plate that lifts under the exhaust pipes would crush that. Also, the flat-table lift I have would crush that.

Is this true? Or is it safe to use this as a support point?

[Richard230]

I have lifted both the front and rear ends of my 2014 S using my Drag Specialties bike scissor lift.  It worked very well to lift my 2012 S, as it was perfectly balanced, front to back and side to side.  But with my 2014 bike (with its heavy power tank), which is not balanced as well, I used it more like a jack, which meant that I had to secure the opposite wheel to keep the bike from falling over if accidentally nudged as I am working around it. I placed the lift under the belly pan and secured the wheel that was on the ground to keep the bike from falling over to the side. The rear wheel was easy to secure, but the front wheel is more of a challenge as you need to keep the forks from turning and causing the bike to tilt to the side.

Photos attached showing how it worked on my 2012 Zero.  The bottom metal plate seems reasonably sturdy and I had no issues raising the entire 2012 S or lifting either end of the 2014 S.  The large supporting area and rubber mat on top of the lift seems to help spread the load.

[josequinones]

The bike is assembled while on a stand.



That metal plate underneath is pretty sturdy, you should be able to lift the bike as Richard shows without issue.

[josequinones]

[Burton]

My 2013 has the meanwell Chargers on the bottom but no fairings. To change a tire I loosen nuts while the bike is on the ground, then jack it up with a flat top scissor jack under the battery. I then run straps through the scissor jack over the bike to keep it more secure.

From there you can do your work and change the tire. If I need to run the bike while on the stand at higher speeds I also put a jack stand under the round tube of the rear swing arm for stability.

After you are done putting on tires with hand tightened bolts lower the bike and remove stand (you can remove the straps to at any point) hen torque the bolts down to specifications.

When I raise the bike I am on the right side so I can hold the bike up with front brake. At a point the front tire starts to come up I will wrap my left arm around the whole bike while crouching beside it and operating the lift with the right hand. This stabilizes the bike with your whole body and feels safer.

[Cortezdtv]

I cheat now

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But other than this I just use a jack or motorcycle stand

The lift makes it soooo much easier to pressure wash all the dirt of the bottom of the MX

[josequinones]

The charger is under the steel plate, sandwiched below the the battery and the steel plate on the 2014. Again that steel plate is basically a skid plate, it's pretty strong you can definitely lift the bike this way. I found no mention or warning in the 2014 user manual about lifting the bike this way.

[josequinones]

Thanks, the first pic is from Autoblog, they did a factory tour you can see here:http://www.autoblog.com/photos/zero-motorcycles-factory-tour/

The second is from Motorcyclist Magazine's facebook page.

[Richard230]

Well, the new factory is certainly an improvement over the old 2012 factory and office building.   

[Cortezdtv]

The really funny was when they were in their first building, tiny everything, times have changed now they are in one of the bigger building in Santa cruz and have expanded to those buildings next door too

Growth is good