PRO Bike Repair Stand Sport

The PRO Bike Repair Stand Sport is designed for simple at-home bike repairs. However, I found it held bikes in a position where just about any fettling would be awkward. And it's not exactly cheap. Have a look at our guide to the best bike repair stands for more options, at various prices.

There are a variety of options available in the world of bike stands, with different adjustable arms and clamps being used to hold a bike in a position to make tinkering easy.

This PRO stand uses a simple two-arm design to hold the bike under the saddle. Simple can sometimes be good, but because this stand doesn't feature an adjustable clamp (as the non-Sport version does), with the two-arm design functioning simply as a raised hook that the bike hangs from, the bike's angle is dictated by the centre of gravity. In my experience, the angle makes any meaningful bike repair work hard to do, compounded by the fact that the bike isn't held securely.

I tested the stand using one bike with a 32mm aero-shaped seatpost, and another with a 30mm cylindrical seatpost, and neither were held securely. (You can rotate the rubber on the arms, to narrow or widen the gap.)

Looking at PRO's product photo, the stand might be more effective at holding wider aero seatposts.

Having taken any bottles and weight off the bikes, both were held at an angle where the front wheel was almost touching the floor. Honestly, if I needed to remove my chain, or adjust my derailleurs, the task would be easier to accomplish with the bike on the floor.

Okay, PRO does says that the stand is 'better suited to home mechanics not performing intricate maintenance tasks', but I found that even basic tasks such as oiling a chain were difficult.

Though the height of the stand extends to 1.62m, I still found that low.

On a more positive note, two extendable legs offer a stable base, and the stand can cope with bikes up to 25kg.

The stand can be folded down to just a metre, and is also relatively light and easy to move around, so might be handy if you need to travel with a stand – getting a bike ready before a race or sportive, for example.

It could also be useful as a quick-mounting option for bike cleaning.

It's a bit pricey for that, though, considering what else is out there. I've used a £29.99 bike stand from Lidl for years, and this functions significantly better than the PRO stand.

Emma reviewed Topeak's similar bike stand, the Prepstand ZX, a couple of years ago and found it fine for lighter fettling, though the clampless design was equally ineffective for anything more strenuous. That's gone up to £159.99, so actually a tenner more than the PRO.

But you can get workstands with an adjustable clamp for a similar price, such as the LifeLine Pro Bike Workstand at £149.99 – and for a lot less: Lifeline's Home Mechanic Workstand is £89.99, and that includes a mat, and FWE's Compact Folding Workstand, which Dave tested in 2018, is £69.99 (and currently £34.99).

In summary, despite being relatively light and folding down well, the poor functionality of the PRO Bike Repair Stand Sport overshadows any positives. Yes, it's only designed for 'simple home repair tasks' and washing your bike, but the lack of stability and the acute angle at which it holds a bike mean I'd rather not use it when working on my bikes.

We put Nick's concerns to PRO, and were told: 

On the way the stand holds a bike: Our bike stands are designed with the home mechanic-in-mind to make it as easy as possible for them to work on their bikes at home. Both the Regular Stand and Sport Stand offer a couple of options: while the clamping method varies between the models, both stands can accommodate a variety of holding positions from securely clamping to the seatpost to being placed securely between the rubber grips. The rubber grips, specifically part of the Sport Stand, were designed asymmetrically, so that the holding position can be changed and fit either an aero or cylindrical seat post, between 35 – 51mm.

Specifically on the adjustability and wheel balancing: Both stands offer adjustable height options, are foldable for easy travel and made of a lightweight alloy construction – so they can be taken wherever you go. Depending on the weight of the bike, the balancing effect should allow for the front wheel to be balanced off the ground, and not touch the floor. Each of the stands will accommodate an e-bike in the stand, up to 25kg (max height 140cm), or 30kg (max height 162cm), so depending on the center of gravity and placement of the bike the wheel shouldn’t contact the floor.

Verdict

A simple stand, but pricey and only suitable for the lightest of fettling