AJS & Matchless Owners Club

hi all;
i wondered what my 56 AJS model 30 is supposed to sit like when up on its stand .

i have jampot rear shock absorbers and avon tyres on std 19" rims .

when putting the bike on its stand it will sit with both wheels touching the ground , is this normal for this model/year .

i was wondering if they are supposed sit like this or not because some of the later 650s i have seen seem to have the rear wheel off the ground a little when bike on the main stand .

im trying to determine whether i should look into doing something or if everything is as it would have been originally for a 1956 model 30 .
thanks
ian

When new the bike would had rocked on the stand, probably with one wheel touching the ground the other about 1 1/2 " off the ground. Consider, larger tyre section than the old type tyres, front and rear suspension dropped, stand bent, stand stud bent, worn oval stand stud holes, stand bent, stand worn at the bottom. Perhaps most of all, stand stop allowing the stand to go to far forward. It only needs 1/16" on all those points and both wheels will touch down. I find to get the rock now, if I need a wheel out, I just need a 1 1/2" block of wood under the stand.

Yep a plank of wood restores all clearences.

ok thanks for all the replies.
looks like no problem for concern then and i will take a look at the various parts and make any changes necessary if i find any worn out areas especially the stand stop and stud holes .

There are so many parts than can wear that all add up. I recall years ago on an old car that had a lot of brake rods joined with clevis pins. With new shoes I wondered why I had little adjustment. Clevis pins and holes were so worn, when re-drilled and fitted with slightly larger dia pins, I had to let off the fulcrums and all the adjustment before I could get the drums back on.

As well as all those point Rob H mentions the stand legs sometimes are splayed apart. If people make a habit of sitting on the bike while it's on the stand that can do it. The last bike I did with this problem was still not lifting the wheel clear of the ground even after all the previous mentioned points had been checked. It eventually dawned on us that the rear shocks were 1" longer than standard, OK with Jampots that isn't likely to be the fault with yours, so one less thing to expect.