The front wheel of the Sporty crested the top edge of the ramp, and with each push of its pistons, slowly rolled forward onto the platform. There was nobody around to help should I lose my balance now. Nor was there anyone to hear my cry for assistance if the new wheel vise failed to hold my wife’s bike upright long enough to allow me to secure it to the table with tie-downs. Yet I undertook this first test of Pingel’s Cycle Jaws with confidence, somehow knowing it would all work as advertised. Last year I bought a motorcycle table lift from Princess Auto, and was quite happy that I did - that is except for the included wheel vise. Other than keeping the wheel fixed in a straight ahead position, I considered it almost useless. So for Christmas (I make such a great Santa), I ordered myself the Cycle Jaws as a replacement and impatiently waited for spring and some warm weather before finally attaching the new vise to the table. Here at last are the pictures.
Drilling four new holes and tightening four bolts is all it took to install the Cycle Jaws. Luckily, the mounting bolts all cleared the underlying frame of the table. In this photo you can see the huge difference between the Cycle Jaws on the left, and the stock yellow vise with the black wheel stop on the right. I think the Cycle Jaws also stiffened the table somewhat with its structure.
This photo shows the Cycle Jaws a bit more clearly attached to the table. I was going to use the bolts from the old vise, but ultimately the eye bolts supplied by Pingel seemed to be a better way to go. I now have another spot to tie the bike down to.
As you can see here, I successfully rode the Sporty up the ramp and into the Cycle Jaws. Before doing that however, I made sure the jaws were open to the same width as the tire. The front wheel slid right in snugly, and the bike felt secure. I was able to get off the bike and leave it standing while I calmly walked to the front to tighten the jaws, and then for insurance attach the tie-downs. This would have been an extremely risky manoeuver using the original vise (if at all possible).
Taken from above, this picture shows the adjustable wheel stop which is used to ensure that the jaws clamp down on rubber, not rim. The pin securing the stop is easily removed and replaced. The original Princess Auto wheel stop was also adjustable, but it required the unbolting of the plate to move it to a new position. It was also quite low making me wonder how much of a difference moving it would make.
The above two pictures show another Princess Auto product I picked up - the scissor jack. Since the table lift has a removable panel to help with rear wheel servicing, I figured I should have one. It cost me $79.99 Cdn. plus tax. I saw professional models at the Toronto Bike Show that looked the same but cost three times as much. No doubt they were of superior quality, but I’m sure this jack will do me just fine. Gail’s Blast is going to need a new rear tire soon, so it will soon be put to good use. |
