No paddock stand? This clever shed hack will get your back wheel up

• No centrestand or paddock stand? A simple sash clamp could be the answer
• The clever trick lifts the rear tyre just enough to spin the wheel for chain maintenance
• We also look at the proper paddock stand setup that’ll make garage jobs even easier

No centrestand and no paddock stand? Pass Masters’ Chris Smith demonstrates a brilliantly simple sash-clamp trick that makes chain maintenance a whole lot easier.

Chris from Pass Masters Rider Training is great at offering pearls of wisdom when it comes to motorcycling. As one of the premier motorcycle instructors in the country, that’s what he does for a day job. But this one is a real goodie.

Anyone who owns a motorcycle without a centrestand will know the particular joy of trying to lube the chain.

Spray a bit. Move the bike forward. Spray a bit more. Move it forward again. Discover you’ve gone too far. Move it backwards. Wonder whether you’ve already lubed that bit. Repeat until you’ve covered the chain, the wheel, the garage floor and quite possibly yourself in chain lube.

And then there’s checking the rear tyre pressure. Because the valve will, of course, have stopped in the least accessible position possible.

A rear paddock stand solves all of this, but what if you don’t have one?

Chris Smith from Passmasters has come up with an ingenious solution using something plenty of people will already have gathering dust in the shed: a sash clamp.

The sash clamp motorcycle hack

The idea is brilliantly simple.

Remove the adjustable end of the sash clamp and refit it at the opposite end so the clamp can effectively work in reverse.

With the motorcycle sitting on its sidestand, Chris positions the flat end of the clamp beneath a suitable solid point on the rear of the swingarm.

A couple of presses of the clamp’s lever and the rear of the bike rises just enough for the tyre to clear the ground.

That’s it.

The motorcycle remains supported by its sidestand and front wheel, while the sash clamp provides the third point of support at the rear. With the rear tyre just off the deck, you can spin the wheel freely and lube the entire chain without performing the traditional push-bike-around-the-garage routine.

It also means you can rotate the wheel to get the tyre valve somewhere sensible when checking your pressures.

Watch Chris’s Demo Below

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Sometimes the simplest ideas are the best

It’s one of those wonderfully simple hacks where the tool you’re using was designed for something completely different, yet happens to be remarkably useful for the job.

Obviously, a bit of common sense is required.

Use the trick on firm, level ground, make sure the clamp is positioned against a strong, flat part of the swingarm where it can’t slip, and don’t lift the bike any higher than necessary. You’re only looking for a few millimetres of daylight beneath the tyre.

And we certainly wouldn’t be crawling underneath the bike or removing wheels while it’s supported like this.

But for spinning the rear wheel to lube a chain, clean the rim or find that annoyingly elusive tyre valve?

Brilliant.

BUT, if you are looking for a way to really make lubing the chain easier this season, then you really either need a bike with a centrestand or invest in a paddock stand. Being able to lift the rear wheel off the floor and spin it independently while giving the chain a bit of TLC, which could be cleaning, adjusting or lubing, is certainly the best way to do it. Not only are you able to keep the bike vertical making access easier, it’s also secure. And, there’s the added bonus of your bike actually taking up less room in the shed if you can store it vertically rather than leant over on the sidestand.

So, if you don’t have a paddock stand, either head down to your local bike shop to see what they’ve got in stock. Or take a look at these two that we’ve picked out below.