V7II sidestand question.

[alanp]

The sidestand on my V7II has periodically gotten hard to deploy.  I have up until today resolved this by spraying a bit of WD40 on it.  Well, recently it had started to get tight/stiff again, but I went on a ride without lubing it first.  Stopped for gas then at a store, it was a bit hard to get it down.  Stopped by a friends house, and I had to get him to come out and hold the bike so I could pull it down by hand.  Before he came out to help, I completely bent the deployment tab with my foot trying to get the stand to move. 
I got It bent back and relubed so it is OK for now, but?  Anybody else notice this issue?  It went from slightly stiff to almost unmovable in a single day.  I live in Colorado and it almost never gets wet. Not a big deal but really seems strange. 

[sib]

The sidestand on my V7II has periodically gotten hard to deploy.  I have up until today resolved this by spraying a bit of WD40 on it.  Well, recently it had started to get tight/stiff again, but I went on a ride without lubing it first.  Stopped for gas then at a store, it was a bit hard to get it down.  Stopped by a friends house, and I had to get him to come out and hold the bike so I could pull it down by hand.  Before he came out to help, I completely bent the deployment tab with my foot trying to get the stand to move. 
I got It bent back and relubed so it is OK for now, but?  Anybody else notice this issue?  It went from slightly stiff to almost unmovable in a single day.  I live in Colorado and it almost never gets wet. Not a big deal but really seems strange.

I've had occasional stiffness of the side stand on my V7II, I think it's a known issue.  For me, the cure is to occasionally (~every 3 months) oil the pivot.  Instead of heavy grease, I use light machine oil (~10 weight), I apply plenty of it to the sliding surfaces of the pivot to flush out debris, and then wipe off the excess.  Works every time.

[sign216]

Alanp,
Yep, happens to others too.  And it can bad, as you found out.  I know of two remedies, 1 - periodic lube as Sib suggested, or 2 - adding a copper collar to reduce friction.

A copper collar on the pivot lessens friction. It's Jim Long's idea, and he used a "Repair Coupling
Copper" 1/2 inch internal dia from Lowes.  He said:  Cut off a small segment, forcing it over the shoulder of the
shoulder bolt. This made the shoulder bolt fit much better in the hole that it rides in on the side stand bracket and kept the side stand from binding up."
 
Myself, I use the lube technique, spraying it w Teflon lube once a month.  When touring I take a small can of spray lube and use it often.

Joe

[alanp]

Thanks guys, that explains it then.  I will just be more religious with the lubing and cleaning.

[malik]

I'm now using chain lube on the pivot. Every time it starts to get stiff. Works well.  Note that the Breva 750 Owners Manual specifically recommends that the pivot be greased regularly (not mentioned in V7 manuals). When my UK cousin was riding the Special around Oz, his foot broke the wire tang near the base - a piece of plate, bent appropriately and welded there has reduced the tendency to bend.

[jpv7]

The sidestand on my V7II has periodically gotten hard to deploy.  I have up until today resolved this by spraying a bit of WD40 on it.  Well, recently it had started to get tight/stiff again, but I went on a ride without lubing it first.  Stopped for gas then at a store, it was a bit hard to get it down.  Stopped by a friends house, and I had to get him to come out and hold the bike so I could pull it down by hand.  Before he came out to help, I completely bent the deployment tab with my foot trying to get the stand to move. 
I got It bent back and relubed so it is OK for now, but?  Anybody else notice this issue?  It went from slightly stiff to almost unmovable in a single day.  I live in Colorado and it almost never gets wet. Not a big deal but really seems strange.

Sorry for the off-topic question, but did you get your oil leak fixed already?

[alanp]

Sorry for the off-topic question, but did you get your oil leak fixed already?

Well, I didn't get it fixed but it stopped!?  I suspect I overreacted to what seemed to be an increasing leak, but I am definitely puzzled about why it got worse and then stopped.
One theory is that if the transmission loses enough oil an input shaft leak will stop.  I can't check the fluid level without draining it, but I don't hear anything or feel anything in the shifting so I assume there is enough fluid.  The leak was not bad enough for it to have all leaked!  So I am riding and not worrying about it.