Any Motörbike riders here?

PC_Dave

jaytmon said:

PC_Dave said:

NBD!!! Traded in my BMW for a KTM SuperDuke 1290 R today - just got home from collecting it, and a long ride home! 
What. A. Bike. I thought the BM was good, but this this is on another level!! I think we’re going to be good friends! 

Pics!! The only bike that tempted me away from the GS at the bike show two years ago... too expensive for me at that time, plus I had an SD990 that was a hooligan machine. Too much so in the end. What BM did you get rid of out of curiosity?

Sorting pics now. I get what people say about it being a hooligan, but surely it’s only down to your right wrist...? I had an S1000XR

PC_Dave

Posted the pics to my Facebook page, hope it’s accesible for those who want to see it...

https://facebook.com/justonemorebike 

PC_Dave

MtB said:

Happy NBD! Welcome to the KTM fold.

I test rode a SD1290R before buying my SD 1290 GT (at the time there weren't any demo GTs). The R that I rode was nuts - it wanted to lift the front wheel on power in 3rd and 4th. I had my GT for a year, and loved it, but I just found it too much. And with the state of the roads, most rides became workouts. Ended up chopping in the GT for a SuperAdventure - which I love to bits.  

Apparently it will easily power wheelie in 5th.

Good job I’m utterly shit and have no interest in wheelies!! 

jaytmon

PC_Dave said:

Posted the pics to my Facebook page, hope it’s accesible for those who want to see it...

https://facebook.com/justonemorebike 

It looks badass in grey/black, happy NBD!

I don’t know why some bikes seem to lean more towards encouraging hooliganism, perhaps we’re just victims of motorcycle journalist propaganda?! I recall the SD990 not being a relaxing bike to ride, for some reason it never really felt settled if for example I was trying to have a gentle commute home after a tiring day at work. I was more inclined to fight with it, (which I strongly suspect is a fight I would’ve lost), so I traded it in in the end. 

MtB

That looks awsome!

PC_Dave said:

MtB said:

Happy NBD! Welcome to the KTM fold.

I test rode a SD1290R before buying my SD 1290 GT (at the time there weren't any demo GTs). The R that I rode was nuts - it wanted to lift the front wheel on power in 3rd and 4th. I had my GT for a year, and loved it, but I just found it too much. And with the state of the roads, most rides became workouts. Ended up chopping in the GT for a SuperAdventure - which I love to bits.  

Apparently it will easily power wheelie in 5th.

Good job I’m utterly shit and have no interest in wheelies!! 

No worries about wheelies, apparently the MTC (traction control) takes care of that for you. Not that I've checked that function (also on the 1290 SuperAdventure). The system detects that the front wheel speed (when in the air) is not matching a corresponding engine speed, and drops the engine revs enough to bring the front wheel back to ground. 

PC_Dave

Thanks @jaytmon - I had exactly that problem with the Yammie MT10 - it always felt like it wanted to kill me, and there was no way of getting it to chill out. The KTM is incredible - it’s so relaxed until you pin the throttle. The turn in is phenomenal!

PC_Dave

@MtB - even so, I think I’ll make sure both wheels are on the ground  

guitargeek62

Congrats on the NBD @PC_Dave, sounds like a beast!

@Roundthebend I’ve just passed a 1,000 miles on the SS, it’s a really, really comfortable bike to ride. I’ve been commuting ~15-20 miles a day since it arrived, and squeezing in as many evening and weekends out too. Just had ~7 hours sat on it today and the seat and geometry fit me (6’3”) brilliantly, very little ache at all! I assume the street twin is very similar in use, I can only compare to a quick test ride but preferred the torque on the SS and general fit when side by side.

In other news, my fianceé had Mod 1 training today, test is soon so hopefully it won’t be too long until we add another proper bike to the stable!

quarky

PC_Dave said:

Posted the pics to my Facebook page, hope it’s accesible for those who want to see it...

https://facebook.com/justonemorebike 

Happy NBD! Take it easy on the new tyres and brakes. Are you running it in according to the service manual, or just hammering it?

PC_Dave

Cheers @guitargeek62  

quarky said: PC_Dave said: Posted the pics to my Facebook page, hope it’s accesible for those who want to see it...

https://facebook.com/justonemorebike 

Happy NBD! Take it easy on the new tyres and brakes. Are you running it in according to the service manual, or just hammering it? I take it easy in general anyway

They said just to follow the shift guide which is about 6k until the first service, and giving it the usual mechanical sympathy and not smashing through the gears with the quickshifter. Also waiting until it’s up to temp before giving it the beans.

strtdv

The advice a friend was given by the Triumph/KTM dealer was to take it very easy until it was properly warmed up, then ride it like you stole it.

quarky

strtdv said:

The advice a friend was given by the Triumph/KTM dealer was to take it very easy until it was properly warmed up, then ride it like you stole it.

That is what I do. And I did an extra oil change at about 50 miles too. 

guitargeek62

quarky said:

strtdv said:

The advice a friend was given by the Triumph/KTM dealer was to take it very easy until it was properly warmed up, then ride it like you stole it.

That is what I do. And I did an extra oil change at about 50 miles too. 

500, surely?!

quarky

No, I did one almost immediately. Apparently that is where you are more likely to get containments in the engine. There is something called the motorman method (or something like that) which talks about thrashing it to seat the oil rings. My bike is a few years old now though so not sure if current recommendations are different.

p90fool

An early oil change certainly doesn't hurt, I've changed knackered camshafts under warranty on three KTM v-twins at under 2,000 miles. 

It was a suspected batch fault, but oil contamination was mooted as a possibility. 

Turning down the Cheat's Way Round luvvies forcing them to go with BMW was probably one of KTM's better marketing decisions. 

jaytmon

Came across this after all this KTM talk:

https://www.torquetostrangers.com/t2s/2017/9/5/real-world-test

A brief yet positive ‘real world’ account of (many) miles on KTMs. 

TheBigDipper

p90fool said:

<snip>
Turning down the Cheat's Way Round luvvies forcing them to go with BMW was probably one of KTM's better marketing decisions. 

How so?

I've owned a GS (different ones, obv.) consecutively as my main bike since well before "The Long Way Round". I'm not that keen to be tarred with jumping on a bandwagon, but there you go...  It's still the best all round road bike for my purposes. My first (an 1150) replaced a 916 Ducati as my preferred bike for a country lane blast. 

A KTM sales director looking at their sales figures would probably prefer to have the sales figures of the GS, surely? 

I believe KTM turning E&C down meant they missed a chance for some fantastic exposure. The only reasons I can think of would have been that they didn't think the riders were up to the trip, or that they feared their bikes wouldn't be up to the trip. Either way, they didn't want to be associated with failure and I don't blame them one bit. I think KTMs are lovely sporty bikes with (somewhat Ducati-esque) a need to be well-maintained, on time, if they're going to stay reliable. My mates SM990 is a great bike to hoon around on. 

The GS is equally needy for TLC. They may have longer service intervals, but a bike that needs a satellite link to get ECM downloads isn't something you should be taking to Siberia unless you've got backup trucks to spare (and of course, they did). So, I think BMW showed a bit more imagination than KTM and their sales figures, in part, have shown a return on their investment. 

TBH, the best bike for that trip would have been an XT500 or a TransAlp. Something you can fix with a hammer, a welder or gaffa tape. 

Moe_Zambeek

Having had a 950 adventure from new in ‘05 I’m fairly sure the motor would have died on the long way round. They had some small issues with clutch boosters and water pumps which wouldn’t have been easy to fix in Mongolia. The BMW’s just seemed to break their sub frames, and their fancy shocks on the second trip. The KTMs seem ok once sorted but that’s no use with new bikes on the tv screen.

Im sure KTM wish they had GS levels of sales though!

p90fool

I honestly think KTM wisely bottled out, and at that time (when I was involved peripherally with them) all my contacts thought they'd dodged a likely PR disaster. 

They're generally regarded as well sorted these days though, but even through my years of dodgy RC8 ownership (RC standing for Re-Call) KTMs always made me grin. 

I'd have a new one like a shot if I could afford it. 

TheBigDipper

p90fool said:

I honestly think KTM wisely bottled out, and at that time (when I was involved peripherally with them) all my contacts thought they'd dodged a likely PR disaster. 

They're generally regarded as well sorted these days though, but even through my years of dodgy RC8 ownership (RC standing for Re-Call) KTMs always made me grin. 

I'd have a new one like a shot if I could afford it. 

I think they're great - just not quite what works best for me as my only bike (I don't have more than one, these days). I still hanker after a late '90s KTM Duke 620, though. I had one as a loaner for a day and just kept beating up the back roads of Kent - top speed isn't an issue on those roads. I had a great time and wouldn't mind the chance again if I ever did get back into keeping more than one.