" Remember back in time when we would mount the centerstand while sitting on the bike? "Both my KS500 & ES350 still work flawlessly this way. I kick start them on the centerstand whilst standing off to the right side, then step aboard, rock forward and then "on a Firey Horse With the Speed of Light, a Cloud of Dust and a Hearty Heigh-Yo Silver!" I'm off to the races. It is however helpful & less embarrassing to "break free" the clutch plates first...
These bikes both run the 3.50 x 19 front and 4.00x19 rear, so centerstand lift is only about 1/2" - 3/4".
I have a project 550 Nighthawk that for some reason has
at least 2 1/2" of air under the rear wheel when on the centerstand;
that'll strain your 1/2 & 1/2.
The Bullet allows for rear wheel changes by having a rotatable rear fender substructure, maybe that's why they don't elevate the rear as far off of the ground as modern hardware. Having to have a friend help you tilt over your 500 pound bike simply to remove the rear wheel does seem a bit ham-fisted, but that's been the drill I've always seen on "modern" hardware. I've even resorted to digging a pit below the rear wheel on occasion. After that, the Bullet system of allowing easy wheel removal access and retaining the greasy bits on the swingarm was a real treat, just like it was designed by someone that actually had to ride it every day.
But none of the aforementioned helps if you stuff it nose first downhill into a fortuitous parking space - it's grunt & strain time then, much to the amusement of any bystanders.
https://www.goldwingmisfits.co.uk/goldwing-1500-history/After a false start the previous year, the long awaited GL1500 finally hit the buying public for the 1988 model year. This of course was a major new model and totally redesigned from the ground up. The GL1500 now had a silky smooth flat six cylinder engine of 1520cc and a reverse gear, real news for touring motorcycles in those days. This was the first mass produced six-cylinder motorcycle to have a reverse gear and was more in line with the intentions of Honda's 1470cc six -cylinder prototype M1 of 1972. The M1 had been an engineering exercise to see what could be achieved with the available technology of the day and it is possible that the GL1500 engine designers drew some inspiration from the earlier work.