Park vs. Ultimate Workstand??

Joel Rose said:

Does anyone have an opinion related to either the Park Tool PCS-4
Deluxe Home workstand or the Ultimate BRS-80RT Pro repair stand?

I've got the PCS-1. It's fairly similar in concept to the PCS-4. I like it
a great deal, but have one major caveat: I wrench in the living room. I
set a drop cloth on the carpet and put the stand on the drop cloth. I will
/not/ be deprived of quality TV time just because I have bike work to do ;-)

In that environment (on a tarp, on the carpet), the 'feet' are not secure
enough (because they fold flat for storage). If you swing the bike around,
the feet will try to fold up flat and the bike will try to fall over. This
is a bad thing.

On a stable surface, offering real traction, I think the PCS-4 would be
ideal.

The adjustments make it simple to readily find the right height and angle to
fix anything.

The clamps are rock solid.

The material are first-rate and durable.

The "fold flat" feature (aforementioned caveat aside) makes it closet-ready
in a half-second.

I'd like to buy the tool tray for mine. Just that much easier to keep the
tool that your working with /at that moment/ right at hand.

Good luck!

Neil

I REALLY(!) like the clamp on the Ultimate Pro. Rather than a vice
grip, you push the clamp shut, then tweek it gently until it holds.
You're less likely to squish a frame tube with this clamp.

I've never been all that impressed with the Park, even with the "shop
models" in the shops because there is that vice grip action that can
bend things.

If you check out Excel Sports, they currently have the Ultimate Pro in
black with the tool holder ($25 list) for like $140. Makes me wish I'd
waited, but the one for which I paid $150 without the tool holder has
gotten lots of use.

Joel Rose said:

Hello all

Does anyone have an opinion related to either the Park Tool PCS-4 Deluxe
Home workstand or the Ultimate BRS-80RT Pro repair stand?

They are both in a similar price range and I am trying to choose between the
two. Any opinions that would lead me to one to the other would be great. I
am leaning towards the Park stand, mostly because I have been able to find
it at several online shops. I would like a stand at home that is high
quality and this seems to be the range of products for me.

Thanks
Joel

"richard" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:i4Und.75580$5K2.31720@attbi_s03...

Quoted message said:

You're less likely to squish a frame tube with this clamp.

You should never clamp a frame tube with your workstand. Clamp your seatpost
instead. If you use a carbon seatpost, substitute it with a steel one before
clamping.

I've got the "spin doctor" G2 Pro stand and like it. Actually I'm
liking it better than the PCS-5 it replaced. My local bike shop had it
on sale for $119. The clamp is nicer than most the other stands. The
ultimate pro was another choice, but that would've meant paying the $189
they were asking, or mail ordering.

Mark

bfd said:

"richard" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:i4Und.75580$5K2.31720@attbi_s03...

Quoted message said:

You're less likely to squish a frame tube with this clamp.

You should never clamp a frame tube with your workstand. Clamp your seatpost
instead. If you use a carbon seatpost, substitute it with a steel one before
clamping.

--
Mark Wolfe Lakeside, ca http://www.wolfenet.org
gpg fingerprint = 42B6 EFEB 5414 AA18 01B7 64AC EF46 F7E6 82F6 8C71
Bill Gates to his broker: "You idiot, I said $150 million on
**SNAPPLE**!!!"

I've had both and I MUCH prefer the Ultimate. The tripod leg
configuration of the Ultimate makes a non-issue of the post below this
one where the stand is tippy on carpet.

The clamp is excellent, though I wouldn't clamp any bike by a frame
tube... "just one more little touch tighter, to make sure..." and
you've spent a huge amount of money needlessly.

On Sat, 20 Nov 2004 12:29:33 -0500, "Joel Rose" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Hello all

Does anyone have an opinion related to either the Park Tool PCS-4 Deluxe
Home workstand or the Ultimate BRS-80RT Pro repair stand?

They are both in a similar price range and I am trying to choose between the
two. Any opinions that would lead me to one to the other would be great. I
am leaning towards the Park stand, mostly because I have been able to find
it at several online shops. I would like a stand at home that is high
quality and this seems to be the range of products for me.

Thanks
Joel

"Joel Rose" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Hello all

Does anyone have an opinion related to either the Park Tool PCS-4 Deluxe
Home workstand or the Ultimate BRS-80RT Pro repair stand?

They are both in a similar price range and I am trying to choose between the
two. Any opinions that would lead me to one to the other would be great. I
am leaning towards the Park stand, mostly because I have been able to find
it at several online shops. I would like a stand at home that is high
quality and this seems to be the range of products for me.

Thanks
Joel

I have and use the Ultimate Pro and the old Park Pro portable, very
similar to the Deluxe Home. The Park has a one hand clamp. The
Ultimate requires one to two hands. It's possible to damage a carbon
seatpost or AL tube with the Park if one isn't careful. I don't have
either so it's not a big deal. The Ultimate rquires a wider floor
space due the tripod layout and the legs can be in the way.

Quoted message said:

Does anyone have an opinion related to either the Park Tool PCS-4 Deluxe
Home workstand or the Ultimate BRS-80RT Pro repair stand?

I have the Park PRS-5 and I've used the Ultimate Pro quite a bit, too.
I think the Ultimate tripod base is more stable. I don't understand
why Park doesn't copy it. The Park stand is barely adequate for heavy
bikes, uneven surfaces, or lots o' torque repairs.
The clamp seems to be a matter of personal preference. I find the
Ultimate slide and twist clamp easier to use, but some people like the
Park.
I've never had problems clamping frames or seatposts of any material
with either type of clamp. I have seen people ruin frames this way,
but they're usually tying to do something for which a portable stand
is inadequate, anyways. I can't see why clamping a carbon seatpost
could be a problem, but I see several posters have said that it is.

-Vee

"Joel Rose" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello all

Does anyone have an opinion related to either the Park Tool PCS-4 Deluxe
Home workstand or the Ultimate BRS-80RT Pro repair stand?

They are both in a similar price range and I am trying to choose between
the two. Any opinions that would lead me to one to the other would be
great. I am leaning towards the Park stand, mostly because I have been
able to find it at several online shops. I would like a stand at home that
is high quality and this seems to be the range of products for me.

Thanks
Joel

I have the Park and agree with other posters that it's not as stable as it
should be. It's prone to tipping over backwards before you load it up. Once
the bike is clamped it's OK as long as the surface is completely level.
Sounds like a no-brainer but believe it or not I frequently work an a sloped
surface outside in my back yard.

I have no issues with the clamp, I like it quite a bit in fact. I also like
the portability, but that doesn't compensate for the tippy-ness.

- Patrick W.

I have the spin doctor pro from Performance (isn't it like the ultimate?) and have two complaints.

The ratcheting circular adjustment blows, because there's often times not an adjustment that will allow the front wheel to support part of the bikes weight when you grab the seat tube or seatpost. Being able to do away with the indexed ratcheting would be good at times, but other times it's nice if you're not lifting a lot of weight. Also you do need two hands with the ratchet because the suspended objects weight makes it too difficult to push on the ratchet lever.

Also, the tube holder doesn't really open up that big. I would like it to beable to clamp something much larger.