Instructional video:
Manual (PDF)
The Story
Trail jacks have been around for a long time. Rolling Mavericks' UltraLight Enduro Trail Jack Stand is my idea of a trail jack 2.0 as I wanted to design an improved version. I've been using a homemade one for years, and I never hit the trail without it. It is such a simple but handy emergency tool whenever you get a flat on the trail. It beats looking for rocks or sticks to raise your bike, and it is a must-have if you're riding terrain without a tree or rock in sight.
Use
Trail jacks are straightforward to use. To raise the rear wheel off the ground, you first lock the front brake by wrapping a Velcro strap around the front brake lever and throttle and for a front-wheel lift, just put the bike in first gear preventing the rear wheel from rolling. Next, slide the tubes out to the proper height needed to raise one of the wheels off the ground and secure it with a spring clip.
To get one of the wheels off the ground, all you have to do is push the bike with one hand farther over onto the side stand on the opposite side. The motorcycle then lifts one wheel in the air, and you position the trail jack under the swingarm or bash plate, depending on which wheel you need to jack off the ground.
The good, the bad, and the ugly
A trail Jack is a great tool. And I always bring one when moto camping. Nonetheless, I've always had two gripes with my regular trail jacks. Firstly, they are heavy. Most trail stands weigh anywhere from 250 to 450 grams, and when you're riding Enduro or traveling the world on your adventure bike with luggage, every gram counts.
Secondly, a trail jack foot or Y support is bulky. If they are permanently attached to the jack, they are often too long and thick, and wide to fit in most tool rolls.
The Rolling Mavericks' UltraLight Enduro Trail Jack Stand is designed to be ultralight and compact when packed. The kit, including the spring clip and front brake velcro strap lock, weighs only 140 grams, and you can take it apart for easy flat packing in your tool roll.
The use of o-rings makes it easy and quick to assemble or disassemble the Trail Jack, yet when assembled, they hold the different parts together with just enough friction to prevent them from falling out.
Disassembled, the foot is only 6 mm high and packed flat. The outer tube is the thickest part at 18 mm. The Rolling Mavericks' UltraLight Enduro Trail Jack Stand fits right next to my Motion Pro T6 tire levers inside my tool roll. It takes up minimal space without adding much weight.
It's all in the details!
Usually, the Velcro strap used for locking up the front brake when jacking the rear wheel is wide and thick, making it bulky to pack. Also, often it is one-sided Velcro making it very fiddly to install. The UltraLight Enduro Trail Jack Stand uses a thin and narrow, 12 mm double-sided Velcro strap. So no more fiddling to lock the brake.
The UltraLight Enduro Trail Jack Stand comes with everything you need to use this tool, including a stainless steel spring clip and spare o-rings.
Other uses
I recently discovered another emergency use for the trail stand when I tripped over my tent while packing the bike. One of the tent poles broke, and the thinnest trail stand tube turned out to be the perfect temporary fix. I love to hear other world uses of the trail stand.
Let us know how this tool/any tools saved your day. Send your story to info@rollingmavericks.com.
Sounds nice, right? But still not convinced? Do you doubt it can hold your bike safely off the ground?
That's a question I'm asked most often, but I'm not going to tell you that it can. After all, seeing is believing :-)
