SW Motech Mainstand

I bought this SW Motech mainstand for my 05 Varadero 2 winters ago. The main reason for choosing the SW Motech over the genuine Honda offering was cost (£104 versus £150).

Out the box
It all looked really smart all glossy black with clean cut edges and shiny springs. As well as the stand were a long engine bolt and a couple of mounting plates.

Installation was pretty straightforward with the only problem being having to rotate an exhaust clamp to make room for the mounting hardware. Fitting the springs was a fiddle but in all the whole job took about 30 minutes.

In use.
The vara is heavy and this stand isn't the easiest to use. On all my previous bikes my, not insubstantial, weight is usually enough to get the bike on the stand. With this one I have to put my full weight on the stand and still give a good haul up on the passenger grab rail. Having never used the Honda stand I can't say if this is poor design on SW Motech's part or the bike does not allow for a better design.

Finish
My only real gripe is the finish. Within a few weeks the springs were going rusty and after 2 winters much of the paint had all but gone to be replaced with a rusty brown coat. Nothing that a wire brush and a coat of paint didn't fix but it really shouldn't have happened. The Honda side stand is still as good as new and it has been on the bike longer.

All in all a good product considering the cost differential between it and the Honda offering but knowing then what I know now I would have gone for the genuine article.