Secure Your Front Wheel While in the Work Stand

Today’s QT comes from RBR’s Tech guru Jim Langley, who offers a couple of nice tips about the best use of a work stand:

First, be sure never to put anything that can be damaged in the clamp, like a nice decal, the brake cable, or the cable stops. Clamping by the seatpost is the safest, but when you can’t the clamp is safe for most frames, too.

The other tip that is probably less well-known is that when you rotate the bike so the front wheel is higher than the rear wheel, the front wheel will flop to the side if you let go – and it can slam into your frame. Not good.

They sell handlebar holders to prevent this. But don’t waste your money. Just get some thick rubber bands and keep them with the stand.

When you’re done working on the front end of your bike or if you only need to work on the back, secure the front wheel so it can’t swing over by wrapping a rubber band around the valve stem on the front wheel, around the down tube and then back around the valve stem. Now you can rotate the bike any which way and the front end will stay put.

If you have an idea for a QT, fire away. We’re always looking for good info we can share with fellow roadies. We would love to hear from you with any suggestions you have. Contact us by clicking Quick Tips Ideas.

—John Marsh & The RBR Team

John Marsh

John Marsh is the former editor and publisher of RBR Newsletter and RoadBikeRider.com. A rider of "less than podium" talent, he brought our readers consistently useful, informative, entertaining info that helps make them better road cyclists. That's what we're all about here—always have been, always will be. Click to read John's full bio.