Not entirely tech related, but all my regular readers know that I have a love of both photography and biking. I have previously reviewed a few bits of bike related kit, including the Trek 6700 which I currently own.
Working on and storing bikes is easy if you have tonnes of space. If like me, you have a more modest shed or workshop then the dream of fitting more than one bike in would be a dream come true. The Topeak TwoUp TuneUp bike stand came to my attention and at first I was unsure if it would deliver on its promises as the price seemed a little low. Upon arrival though, what I was presented with was a very solid and well constructed piece of kit. It is made of aluminium tubing (grade 6061 T6 tubes) and due to the material used is quite light at 5.5 kilos. It extends to almost seven feet tall and is finished in a nice black powder coating.
At the base of the stand are three tripod type legs, which has non-slip rubber feet on them. They extend enough to make the stand very stable. Also included are two bike hangers and one handlebar stabiliser, so out of the box you can put two bikes on the TwoUp TuneUp, as the name suggests. You can also get additional hangers and put another two bikes onto the stand. Now I do not have enough bikes to test this, but I would be dubious about trying this, as you would need to get the balance of load right for it to perform OK. However, the manufacturer states the stand can handle 18 kilos per hook and a total of 72 kilos per stand, so it sounds capable of managing four bikes.
In my use I have just two bikes and once on the stand the ease of access and space saving was superb. It made me feel very happy that my bikes were properly stored and I was also able to padlock both bikes to the stand for added security. The second test was to use this product as a work stand. It can save you a few pennies if you perform preventative maintenance on your bike and this stand helps so so much. Once you have a single bike mounted, you can work at a decent height without bending down all the time. It made lubricating and adjusting various things a lot easier. This is not meant as a full time heavy duty work stand, but for a family to use it is more than adequate.
What I disliked was the space taken up by the extended legs at the base, but I suppose this is required to make the whole thing stable. That said, it does take up a lot less room than having two bikes at ground level, side-by-side. What really stands out is the build quality, which far exceeded my expectations. OK, so around £150 is not an impulse purchase, but for such a great product this is superb value for money. In closing, this is not an essential piece of kit, but for anyone remotely interested in cycling, it'll certainly make your experience a lot more enjoyable.
Product: Topeak TwoUp TuneUp Bike Stand
Supplied by: Topeak
Price: Expect to pay around £155