Cycling is a great way to get out, get fit, and go places. But in order to keep your bike in good shape, some regular maintenance is necessary. This bike stand will hold up your bike to let you do repairs. And it costs significantly less than one you could go out and buy. In total it cost me around $30, and most of that was the piping. If you decide to make a shorter version you could do it for cheaper.

Step 1: Materials

1 4'(1.2m) length of 3/4" threaded pipe

1 10"(25.4cm) length of threaded 3/4" pipe

1 3/4" elbow

1 3/4" flange

1 pipe clamp

Wooden base: This depends, I used 3 pieces of scrap wood laying around. You could also use a single large sheet. If you're starting from nothing then 3 2x4s will work. One that's 21"(53.3cm), and two that are 27"(68.6cm) long

You'll also need screws that depend on the thickness of the wood you used. For 2x4s use

8 4" wood screws
4 2" wood screws

You'll also need a drill/screwdriver

Step 2: Constructing the Base

If you're using a single large sheet of wood for the base you can skip ahead to adding the flange.

Otherwise, lay out your two 27" 2x4s parallel with a gap of 13"( between them, and place the 21" piece across them, about 2" down.

Where the cross board overlaps with a base board, mark 4 screw locations and drill pilot holes. Then put in the 4" screws to attach the cross board to the base boards, repeat this to attach the cross board to the other base board.

If you find the ends of the screws sticking out of the bottom you can file, hammer, or cut them down flush

Step 3: Adding the Flange

Place the flange in the center of the cross board and use a pencil to mark the screw holes' locations. Then remove it and drill starter holes where you marked. Once those holes are drilled replace the flange, and attach it to the board with the 2" screws

Once again, make sure to deal with any bits of screw poking out of the bottom of the wood.

Step 4: Assembling the Stand

Screw the 4' pipe into the flange on the base. Doing this first will help give you some thing to hold onto while screwing on the other parts

Once you have the 4' pipe on, use the elbow to attach it to the 10" pipe.

Step 5: Adding the Clamp

On the end of the 10" pipe, which should be sticking out parallel to the 2 base boards, slide the first section of the pipe clamp about 5" in, and screw the other section onto the end of the pipe

Step 6: And You're Done!

As an option, depending on what kind of clamp you used, you may want to add something to the pads to help them hold onto your bike a little better. Something easy and cheap is to simply cover them with a few layers of duct tape, or a generous amount of hot glue.

Now that you can keep your bike in tip top shape, you have no excuse not to get out there and do the same for your body!