center stand

Tree · 02-01-2023, 12:07 AM

Why doesn't the Zongshen RX 4 come with a center stand,it's not like a true off road bike.

Oldenslow · 02-01-2023, 08:41 AM

Center stands have become rare throughout the bike world. I have a Dongfeng 250 RTG, a Kawasaki Z650, and a Suzuki C50 -- 'nary a center stand among 'em.

Bob Kelly · 02-01-2023, 07:14 PM

Center stands or even the mounts for one have become rare indeed I don't think the RX4 even has a place for one.... (mounting points) but there is an after market center stand for the RX3 that is supposed to be able to work on the RX4 and it might be worth investigating.
worse than the missing center-stand is the good old Kick starter ! because Now you have to keep a good battery in the bike, if you don't you have no way of starting it !
I went out to start the RX4 a bit ago thinking it's been over 2.5 months sense it last ran and the battery was dead.... not a good reflection on CSC at all... it's on the charger now and hopefully I'll start it tomorrow.
the battery died the 1st month on the TT250 but who cares you can kick start it right?
not so with the RX4..... with the battery being such a vital part of the bike on a RX4 you'ed think they would give you a good battery with the bike but this one has lasted only a year..... pirty pathetic.
Bob........

pyoungbl · 02-02-2023, 11:26 AM

If you look at the RX4 frame you will see that there are no good mounting points for a center stand. On the RX3 it is possible to mount a center stand using lugs which are present from the factory...they were used during assembly of the bike. The RX4 does not have those lugs...because there are no frame rails under the engine. The bash plate mounts directly to the engine block for the same reason.

As for the battery, we all know that Zongshen cut corners to keep the price down. That's not unique to Zong, lots of other low cost bikes have the same 'feature'. The same goes for the suspension bits and the chain (although I think the chains are now much better than the early RX3 models). Since there is a constant parasitic drain on the battery it's unrealistic to think the battery will retain a charge for months at a time.

Finally, my TT250 had a kick starter and that sure was handy. It helped that the compression ratio was only 8.7:1 so I could spin it pretty easily to start even when dead cold. The RX4, on the other hand, has a CR of 11.0:1. Even with the automatic compression release I think I'd be hard pressed to spin that lump fast enough to fire. Even if I could do so, the fuel pump needs electrons to work so my efforts would be wasted.

outboardr · 02-03-2023, 02:20 AM

Math Teacher that owns bith RX4 and RX3 tipped us off that Noco makes lithium batteries that fit our Rx4
I got mine off Amazon for both of my RX’s, instant starts now
https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-NLP14-Po.../dp/B091P9QXX7

o0oSYKALo0o · 02-12-2023, 03:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pyoungbl

Since there is a constant parasitic drain on the battery it's unrealistic to think the battery will retain a charge for months at a time.

From what/where is this parasitic drain being generated?
I guess I was lucky, never had a problem with its battery, yet (still using stock battery: RX4 2019-20). I will be getting a NOCO soon though.

pyoungbl · 02-13-2023, 11:13 AM

The clock is constantly draining a tiny amount of current from the battery. The ECU is probably sucking a few electrons too, just to maintain settings. My '21 RX4 is still running the OEM battery and I intend to replace it soon, not sure i want to go the Lithium route. A good friend had his whole shop (motorcycle dealership) destroyed when a Lithium battery caught fire.

outboardr · 02-15-2023, 04:57 PM

Peter,
That's a very legitimate concern, tell us more?

The Noco, like CSC, deserves a fair shake though.
The packaging is grade A+ imho, instructions too, and the battery itself exudes quality.

I have not used the smart genius charger I got from them, but I can say both my RX3 and RX4 crank/start instantly now.

Your choice of course, but thought I'd share the links.

https://no.co/products/lithium/powersport

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B091P9QXX7...roduct_details

pyoungbl · 02-15-2023, 08:10 PM

What I know is that my friend took a bike into his shop for service. The owner had installed a Lithium battery. While the shop was closed for a long weekend (Labor Day?) the shop caught on fire. Said fire was traced back to that particular bike. As an aside, the when the battery caught on fire it produced fumes which permeated the shop and cause oxidation and rust throughout the shop. All metal tools were ruined. All the bikes in the shop suffered from oxidation to the point where most were a total loss. The actual fire damage was far less than what was caused by the lithium battery fumes. Later my friend talked to some other shop owners who had experienced similar losses due to lithium batteries. Law suits followed.

Barnone · 02-21-2023, 06:24 PM

My Ural and my three Ice Bear 150 scooters all have center stands but my 2022 Dong Fang DF250RTG that is coming to me soon does not have a center stand. Wish it did!

**cheesy** · 02-22-2023, 08:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barnone

My Ural and my three Ice Bear 150 scooters all have center stands but my 2022 Dong Fang DF250RTG that is coming to me soon does not have a center stand. Wish it did!

It would be great if a jack wasn't required to get the Ural up on its' center stand.

Barnone · 03-11-2023, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cheesy

It would be great if a jack wasn't required to get the Ural up on its' center stand.

This is what I use to make it easy to get my Ural on the center stand. Roll the bike up on the block using the tapered end of 1x4 2x4 sandwich and then it is easy to get the rig on the center stand.
I carry the block in the trunk of my Ural.

02-01-2023, 12:07 AM	#1
Tree Join Date: Dec 2020 Posts: 1	center stand Why doesn't the Zongshen RX 4 come with a center stand,it's not like a true off road bike.
	1

02-01-2023, 07:14 PM	#3
Bob Kelly Join Date: Jan 2022 Location: Weed, California. Posts: 271	Center stands or even the mounts for one have become rare indeed I don't think the RX4 even has a place for one.... (mounting points) but there is an after market center stand for the RX3 that is supposed to be able to work on the RX4 and it might be worth investigating. worse than the missing center-stand is the good old Kick starter ! because Now you have to keep a good battery in the bike, if you don't you have no way of starting it ! I went out to start the RX4 a bit ago thinking it's been over 2.5 months sense it last ran and the battery was dead.... not a good reflection on CSC at all... it's on the charger now and hopefully I'll start it tomorrow. the battery died the 1st month on the TT250 but who cares you can kick start it right? not so with the RX4..... with the battery being such a vital part of the bike on a RX4 you'ed think they would give you a good battery with the bike but this one has lasted only a year..... pirty pathetic. Bob........ __________________ It's too late when you've gone too far !
	1

02-01-2023, 08:41 AM	#2
Oldenslow Join Date: Mar 2020 Posts: 153	Center stands have become rare throughout the bike world. I have a Dongfeng 250 RTG, a Kawasaki Z650, and a Suzuki C50 -- 'nary a center stand among 'em.
	0

02-02-2023, 11:26 AM	#4
pyoungbl Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Portsmouth, Virginia, USA Posts: 632	If you look at the RX4 frame you will see that there are no good mounting points for a center stand. On the RX3 it is possible to mount a center stand using lugs which are present from the factory...they were used during assembly of the bike. The RX4 does not have those lugs...because there are no frame rails under the engine. The bash plate mounts directly to the engine block for the same reason. As for the battery, we all know that Zongshen cut corners to keep the price down. That's not unique to Zong, lots of other low cost bikes have the same 'feature'. The same goes for the suspension bits and the chain (although I think the chains are now much better than the early RX3 models). Since there is a constant parasitic drain on the battery it's unrealistic to think the battery will retain a charge for months at a time. Finally, my TT250 had a kick starter and that sure was handy. It helped that the compression ratio was only 8.7:1 so I could spin it pretty easily to start even when dead cold. The RX4, on the other hand, has a CR of 11.0:1. Even with the automatic compression release I think I'd be hard pressed to spin that lump fast enough to fire. Even if I could do so, the fuel pump needs electrons to work so my efforts would be wasted.
	0

02-03-2023, 02:20 AM	#5
outboardr Join Date: Jan 2022 Posts: 42	Math Teacher that owns bith RX4 and RX3 tipped us off that Noco makes lithium batteries that fit our Rx4 I got mine off Amazon for both of my RX’s, instant starts now https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-NLP14-Po.../dp/B091P9QXX7
	0

02-13-2023, 11:13 AM	#7
pyoungbl Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Portsmouth, Virginia, USA Posts: 632	The clock is constantly draining a tiny amount of current from the battery. The ECU is probably sucking a few electrons too, just to maintain settings. My '21 RX4 is still running the OEM battery and I intend to replace it soon, not sure i want to go the Lithium route. A good friend had his whole shop (motorcycle dealership) destroyed when a Lithium battery caught fire.
	0

02-15-2023, 04:57 PM	#8
outboardr Join Date: Jan 2022 Posts: 42	Peter, That's a very legitimate concern, tell us more? The Noco, like CSC, deserves a fair shake though. The packaging is grade A+ imho, instructions too, and the battery itself exudes quality. I have not used the smart genius charger I got from them, but I can say both my RX3 and RX4 crank/start instantly now. Your choice of course, but thought I'd share the links. https://no.co/products/lithium/powersport https://www.amazon.com/dp/B091P9QXX7...roduct_details
	0

02-15-2023, 08:10 PM	#9
pyoungbl Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Portsmouth, Virginia, USA Posts: 632	What I know is that my friend took a bike into his shop for service. The owner had installed a Lithium battery. While the shop was closed for a long weekend (Labor Day?) the shop caught on fire. Said fire was traced back to that particular bike. As an aside, the when the battery caught on fire it produced fumes which permeated the shop and cause oxidation and rust throughout the shop. All metal tools were ruined. All the bikes in the shop suffered from oxidation to the point where most were a total loss. The actual fire damage was far less than what was caused by the lithium battery fumes. Later my friend talked to some other shop owners who had experienced similar losses due to lithium batteries. Law suits followed.
	1

02-21-2023, 06:24 PM	#10
Barnone Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 1,348	My Ural and my three Ice Bear 150 scooters all have center stands but my 2022 Dong Fang DF250RTG that is coming to me soon does not have a center stand. Wish it did!
	0