For a year I had a Pletscher two-legged kickstand mounted on my Surly Long Haul Trucker. It’s one overriding benefit was that it doubled as a repair stand when inspecting the drivetrain and lubing the chain. But the Pletscher had more drawbacks than benefits, so I swapped it for a one-legged Greenfield kickstand which I like a lot better. When I removed the two-legger, though, I lost my portable repair stand. Oh well, at least I have a Topeak Flashstand. The Flashstand is a one-pound six-ounce repair stand which folds into a compact package that can be stored on a shelf when not needed—a significant plus if you live in cramped quarters. Here’s what it looks like when folded:

 

 
And here’s the other side:

 

 
When expanded, the Flashstand looks like this:

 

 
Two pairs of rubber pads support the bike under the bottom bracket shell, the padded hook wraps over the down tube, and the weight of the bicycle loads the stand’s legs. The Flashstand extends aft of the bottom bracket, and its legs lift the rear wheel off the ground in the same way as a dual-legged kickstand. In the photo below you can see the rubber pads supporting the bike under the bottom bracket shell:

 

 
And here is a view from above, showing the hook over the down tube:

 

 
The hook is plenty large enough to wrap around the wide aluminum tubing of my mountain bike, and though the steel tubing of my LHT doesn’t fill the void, the textured rubber coating on the hook firmly grips the bike and prevents shifting or sliding. You can see the port-side leg of the Flashstand beyond the crank arm. Here’s the stand in use from another point of view:

 

 
There’s plenty of clearance for the rear wheel, and the legs splay widely enough to hold the bike up, just. The supporting bracket is hinged and plastic, and can’t be expected to support heavy loads. I wouldn’t want to use it if my bike was weighed down with panniers, but then again, I wouldn’t put a loaded bike on any repair stand. The length of the stand can be adjusted by loosening a knob and sliding the legs out. This lifts the rear wheel higher off the ground, but also destabilizes the bicycle so it’s more likely to topple. In this way the Flashstand shares the main disadvantage of the Pletscher two-legged kickstand. I prefer to lift the rear wheel only as far as necessary to allow me to rotate the crank:

 

 
I don’t leave the bike unattended when it’s supported on the Flashstand, particularly in a gusty wind, or if dogs or children are running around nearby. And I keep a firm grip on the bike when I spin the crank at high revs, just in case.

The bottom line? I can’t give the Topeak Flashstand a glowing evaluation. It’s not a substitute for a shop repair stand. It’s not even as sturdy and stable as the small Nashbar Stand By Me stand. But at less than USD25, it’s a handy addition to the cyclist’s tool kit as long as it’s used within its abilities. When all I want to do is oil the drivetrain, this stand does the job in a flash.

 

 
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