I agree! Stands are essential and I always have to educate my local newbies on the need for them.
You're clearly not a newbie Wwilmoth, but this seems like a good opportunity to talk about front stands...
To the uninitiated that don't know this, a standard floor jack can replace the need for a very seldom used front stand (once you already have a rear stand). Once up on the rear stand, just jack up the bike using the gusset on the exhaust downpipe. I used to put a hockey puck or a section of 2x4 in between so the metal jack pad doesn't touch the manifold but the manifold is still plenty strong and has no problem supporting the weight of the bike. This set-up isn't as secure but I've used this configuration to completely strip my front end down for a steering bearing replacement, my fork swap and for many front tires. If one is really worried about tipping the bike over while it's on the rear stand and jack, you can even get creative and build a tip over support structure with 2x4s.
That being said, if one is dead set on a front stand, seriously consider getting one of these instead:
BURSIG USA Motorcycle Stands
My gosh I absolutely LOVE my rolling lift stand. It's so incredible being able to move the bike around your storage space like it's an office chair and it does a better job at providing access to your front end components than a front stand does.
so im waiting on them to come in.
