Centerstand Wobble

Recently, I've noticed that it was becoming more difficult to park the Vee on its centerstand. I even thought that it might be due to the tires needing to be replaced, that the overall diameter had reduced so much that it was the cause. 

Then I noticed that when on the centerstand, it would wobble a bit from side to side, nothing I'd ever noticed before. I put a SW Motech stand on at 20k miles when I bought the bike, since I won't own a bike that has one. I do all my own maintenance. When the wobble got bad enough that I didn't trust it to stay upright, I crawled under and took a peek. 

The upper allen head bolt on the left side had sheered off, leaving about 1cm of its tip in the frame. Disassembling it was easy enough (the other bolts were loose since I forgot to put any Loctite on them), but getting a drill in there to prep for an extractor was a pain. I broke two bits, once leaving its tip in the tip of the bolt, which was a royal pain to remove before continuing with a fresh bit. Eventually, I was able to get a stubby crescent wrench around the extractor to remove the bolt tip. I even had the exact same size bolts in my hardware pile, which came from disassembling an 80s Subaru engine a few years back. All is right in Vee-land. 

Michelin Anakee 2 Tires at 22k Miles

If anyone is looking for something with serious longevity, consider the Michelin Anakee 2. I had a pair installed when I bought my Vee at just over 20k miles, and now that I'm at 42k, its finally time to get a new set. The bikes has served primarily as a commuter, doing around 40-50 miles a day, with only the rare excursion down a dirt road. Even down to almost no tread in the middle on the front and a bit more on the rear, the tires still do well in the wet, no loss of traction, or confidence. I do believe I'm on the hunt for another pair now.