Service stand - a piece of equipment that every cyclist dreams about. His wife dreams for this stand to be found anywhere outside the apartment. Buying a stand is the first step to look for a larger living space, a useful basement, garage or garden.

Three weeks after I wrote a review of the equipment for several thousand (Sram Red eTAP), I sit and look at two stands from well-known cycling stores: Jula and Lidl. One got a mail, the other I borrowed to have a reference point.

Lidl has repeatedly offered products of more well-known brands under its brand, thanks to which really cool items were often found at discount prices (eg Crivit helmets were produced by the more well-known Cratoni). It is still rather typical for a cyclist rather than a cyclist, but the price / quality is comparable with Decathlon (which shifts some price and quality up, but the ratio is the same).

Jula is in turn such a store with various small details and inventions. Inventions, but - I must say this - great inventions. In addition to garden gloves for PLN 3 and a large bucket for PLN 5 there are a hundred thousand other things you did not need before you entered the store. I never needed it ear muffs for PLN 5in which, as it turned out later, I was running almost all winter. But that Jula sells cycling things under his Kayoba brand (bicycles, handles, simulators called by them training machines, washcloth or service tent (?)) - it could not go unnoticed, it will be hit or putty!

How much toto and why so ... little?

A good stand of a well-known company costs a minimum of several hundred zlotys, and usually more than a thousand. Are substitutes several times cheaper, from supermarkets, have any chance?
I speak as a man for whom the statement I am going to service a bicycle means I pump my wheels, I clean and tarnish the chain in such a way that it is dirtier than it was when I started and tighten the screws so lightly that the seatpost will slide down, but so much that their threads will twist.

Lidl service stand it costs PLN 139 (it used to be PLN 129 - I do not link, because I do not think their headlines are indexed in googles)
Service stand Jula it costs PLN 199
Decathlon service rack, with a beautiful name ONE EASYWORK BIKE ORIGINAL, it costs PLN 200 (although at the moment there is a promotion for PLN 150, only that it has been 1 in a stationary store)

In the stands with Lidl, it's ridiculous that, as on the lidl promotions - people buy massively and sell more on Allegro. Here a quote from the current auction (PLN 170)
In lidel, it cost 139 zlotys, I add allegro commission and it's time to find a lidle where it still existed (oh, it was hard) after people threw it on them.
For the competition for 179 PLN + 20 PLN delivery, so the price is probably around

There were three of them - everyone else, and yet the same.

Note, this is the most important sentence of this text and it would probably be enough to read them instead of the whole text. Even the space for advertising would leave me on the site, so I do not know why I do not do it: These three stands are practically the same - the differences are cosmetic. Each of them is also good at this price it will be hard to find something better. Well, we will not find a better one, but after a light internet review, it turns out that variations on this stand can be found in many other stores at similar prices, for example ELECTRO or AVANS (I do not know if it's not the same store with a different name ). Worst of all, even browsing the Internet, it's hard to find any sensible, critical opinions - well, I will look for myself.

The main advantage of the Juli stand is the fact that we can buy it ;-) What about the fact that Lidlowy is cheaper, if we have to wait for the beginning of the season, when it will go to the store as a seasonal offer.

[pullquote] If something is good and cheap, then the bank will be the queue [/ pullquote] Jula weighs 6.5 kilograms, Lidl around 7kg (I do not know where the difference is), Decathlon is somewhere in between. Both marketers have a shelf for tools and screws and a small magnet, which should minimize the risk of losing them - Decathlon is missing, a big mistake. It has a different, essential advantage - instead of 4 legs arranged in X, has two arranged in V. This is a huge saving of space (eg when we want to set up on the balcony), not at the same time particularly affecting stability. The legs should be equipped with some pads, just like furniture. They have holes that allow them to be screwed to the floor, but placing a stand on the dance floor I see a threatening look coming from the kitchen to me. I can see them even through the wall.

As for stability - no problem. If we plan to unscrew the seized pedals of course, we may not be able to do it, but such expectations are out of place. Likewise, hanging a bike instead of a frame is bothersome, but no, I know why someone was supposed to grab a seatpost.

The main advantage of the stands is that the whole structure consists of several solidly connected tubes and plastic quick-locks, so the first assembly (even without instructions) takes about 2 minutes. Then folding and unfolding takes about 20 seconds. Complex take up as much space as 4-5 brooms or mops. If we want to fold them vertically, they are even lower than brooms. It is a pity that it is impossible to assemble this horizontal part (bicycle boom) at the top - it must be unscrewed and taken out. The plastics look solid, but if they look the same on the roof rack, I probably would have doubts. They are enough for the current application and nothing is made up, although I confess without beating - I did not try to hang a fatbike.

As nice additions, in both cases (Decathlon is not there) we get a shelf for tools and screws with a magnet (or its substitute), which should prevent their random falling out (these screws). The second bunker, probably the worst solution in the entire structure is a small telescope with a rubber at the end, which serves to immobilize the steering wheel. The rubber clasp is bordering on a miracle through too small holes, and when we're done, we have a nice scent of the Far Eastern tire mixture on our hands for the rest of our lives.

Like the same, and yet a bit different.

If you ask Piotrek, who was doing these great pictures, which one to choose - he will tell you that Lidl, because better clasp. The bicycle mounting system is the biggest difference between two devices. In Lidlowski, under the handle we have a butterfly with which we adjust the clamp, and then a clever paw (such a latch), which simply tightens. If you always mount the same bike (or similar cross-section of the upper tube) - it takes a few seconds. Here, there will probably be voices that such squeezing will immediately break the expensive and light carbons, but not. Believe me, it is not so easy to break even the most slim structures. The grip is fast and reliable.

On the other hand, we have Julia, on which the bike hangs, and then spins, closing the bicycle and unscrewing to take off. It takes longer, because first you need to hang the bike well (find the center of gravity to hang freely), and secondly, it is slightly longer. In addition, the closing paw lifts the bike slightly, which I hope can be seen in the picture. It's like clinging a bit to strength and a matter of taste, but actually, Lidl gently wins here. According to us.

I will answer to you that Jula, because I got in gratisie. Okay, a joke ... but this one anyway. It has the main advantage when it comes to legs. In Lidl the legs are attached to the edge of the feet, so that the stand, after being completely assembled, does not necessarily want to stand still. Heels bend and he falls over. To stay stable it must be minimally distributed. Jula, on the other hand, has footers mounted at the center of the legs, which makes it much more stable - even when completely folded. For those who are oversensitive, both racks can be glued to the floor, because they have holes in the feet.

Panda will tell you that Lidl, because blue is nicer than red and there is something in it. The Lidl stand looks somehow more decent (because it's heavier?). Maybe it's a matter of some elements being silver. This is also a good procedure - the first big features on black Julia (however bad it sounds) appeared after about 3-4 spreads. Rather, it is not equipment for aesthetes or people who like to touch expensive things. It may also be a matter of cross-section of pipes, which are round in the Germanic executioners, and in rectangular Swedish invaders. These rectangular ones are a bit like the cheapest roof racks, which is why it can be associated with this. Either way, I suspect that endurance is similar, although the only test I made was with the tibia in the dark.

Which one?

There is no wrong choice here. I think you will not be disappointed with any of them. If they throw to Lidl - run and stand under the door 15 minutes before opening the store. if you want right awaygo to Julia (where you will overpay a bit, but maybe you will not be stuck by the crowd, or you will not have to wait six months). Of course, only if you are sure that the stand will be useful to you. Although not ... probably yes, whether you sell it without a noticeable loss on Allegro.

I was sure that when I had a stand, I would become a novice service technician. It did not happen - it turns out that an apartment is not a place for such things. The balcony is too small, the corridor is too narrow, and the rooms are too clean. Maybe if I still bought myself garage tent…. ;-)

 * All photos in the text (except for the last, the ugliest) are the work of Piotr Olkowski, so if you want to sell a nice bike (or ugly, and yet you want it to look nice), you know where to apply

PS. If you were wondering what was going on with this throwing the stand out of the house and making sure you wanted it, I'm adding a picture taken just before in the classic Warsaw M3 ;-)