As mentioned last week in another thread, I have bought another bike. There are many reasons, some health issues, a bit of age creeping in perhaps, but mainly because I look back on my early biking days as a time of great fun on compact, light, really revvy, flickable bikes. I probably should have bought an Elsie. I looked at a few and they really are gorgeous. I also looked at RD400s and then dreamt of an RG500 £25K -err nope... But, I have been there done that in a way with my 2 stroke TS185er, and finding the parts, buggering about with the carbs is not something that I want to get into right now. I also am still slowly meddling with my VFR400 NC30 so I kinda have that covered -4 carbs! So I looked again at what is available. Low weight. Compact. Electric start. Easy to get all parts. Cheap to maintain. Simple to fix (probably). Cheap to buy -this could be a pipe dream that doesn't turn out well. Well known for good simple reliability. Firstly I thought of the RC390, but like @perryl I didn't find it that too comfortable and looking into the future I doubt that will improve with age. Idly glancing around in the KTM showroom I saw the little sister bike, a 390 Duke. And I sat on it out of curiosity more than anything. I mean its orange. Its almost ugly. Odd styling. Not enough power really. But it felt a good fit! I went for ride on the demo bike to find that it was quite fun. A buzzy engine and brilliant handling. Honestly I was surprised to be even considering one of these. Anyhow I left the dealership (sorry) and thought it over. Theoretically it hit all the criteria I set. Scrolling through reviews I found many from happy old git owners, mostly long term riders, who all mentioned the fun aspect of the bike, and most of the other things I wanted too. Just then, social media hooked me up to a guy with one that needed some TLC, was available now and cheap as chips. Its mostly white & black with not much orange. So I get to reading the KTM going broke thread. And @Kevin Tallant says "I wonder what a 390 would be like with some mods... So enough waffle. I drove up to the far North, paid the man and slung it in a hire van. Today I ordered the bits that I need to get the thing up and running. I'm in danger of buying silly toys that will probably give it another 10bhp LOL! Then I wiped it down with an oily rag, in the sun. Game on.
Congratulations on your new bike! Red wheels are looking lovely, a bugger to keep clean but look the part
One of the apprentices at work had one, he loved it, pretty good tool on the B roads, had a loud pipe on it, sounded like a moto3 bike
I should think that an open airbox with a decent air filter combined with an exhaust and remap would get you close to 10 bhp. Just off to YouTube to see what I can find........
Well done, I think like the Elise, lightweight is where the real fun is to be had. Most fun motorcycle I've ever owned was a rgv250, with around 160kg and 60bhp. Let us know how you get on with it . Rumours BMW are doing a gs450 adventure bike next year.
BMW & a brand new 450? I'm more of a "cheap thrills" kinda guy! I have looked into a few fabled bikes of my youth to try and get an idea of what I need to get out of my KTM to make it on a par with my memories as seen through rosy red tinted glasses. Of course each bikes torque curve will also make a difference, but here's a comparison: KTM 390 @ 147kg / power 42hp = 0.286 X7 250 @ 160 / power 30hp = 0.188 RGV 250 @ 160kg / power 60hp = 0.375 LC 350 @ 149kg / power 47hp = 0.315 RD400 @ 171kg / power 44hp = 0.257 If I mod the air box, exhaust & fueling, and if I gain 10hp (doable for £400) my little Duke would be at 0.354. So right in the ball park. Obviously its not just about the numbers, but this will be a fun project. LOL BTW. The real deal of course is a Ducati Pani V4 which is @ 180kg / power 214 =1.19!!! Amazing...
Typically, when messing about with bikes that need a fix -or six- I do the prettying up last. Not so this time. Surprisingly my local KTM dealer doesn't seem to stock a great deal of simple parts for 390's and they told me that the time delay is from Austria is about a week. Oh well... So as the weather has picked up with a few warmer days, I figured I might as well put them to good use. A quick trip to the paint shop where they color matched the tank's odd add ons (I think they look OK but they're definitely odd) front mudguard & rail fairing, which had all seen better days. The paint comes in a rattle can with pre-mixed with clear so ideal for small scale repairs. Simple job really. If you've never done it, just watch a few Youtube vids. The main points to remember is to always use a sanding block, scrub everything at least 3 times before spraying, never attempt doing it in less than 15C or 60F and if you get it wrong wait until the paint is 100% dry before you try to sort it out. The shop sold me new a range of filler and primer allegedly specially designed to use on flexible plastic items. They're good lads in the shop and so I took their advice. Time will tell, though I don't generally have any issues with the regular products. The bike pictured is the same as the one their grandfather rode as runabout in Africa during the war years. So "show us your white bits!" Turned out OK. I'll t.cut them a little more and polish once they're back on the bike.
Still getting all the parts together. The bolts and seals to reassemble the clutch allegedly arrive tomorrow. Fingers crossed the boys in Mattighofen have sent the right ones. It does seem ludicrous to me that simple things like this are not easily available within a day or two... The rest of the bits to solve the issues I know about -though there will be other surprises I expect- are also enroute from from a multitude of private ebay sellers. I planned & intend to rebuild the bike using recycled parts wherever possible. The gains are obvious, but the drawbacks are waiting for the auctions to end, then waiting for people to actually send them, followed by Royal Mail either being spectacularly brilliant with 48 hour deliveries -ladders- or losing the items completely (twice) -snakes. Plus other people have the audacity to suddenly outbid me and it starts over. Its all good. I've an idea that I may throw a couple of sixes soon!
Update now says KTM Stoke will have my bits on Friday. Hrumph, I will see if I can fit them into my busy schedule...
Looking at these and the larger KTM's on forum reviews, a great many have screens. So since I have no idea if I will really want one, and as I'd like to test the usefulness of Ali Express for something other than pure tat, I ordered one from them on the 30th. The claim is that it will arrive from China by April 14th which is almost as fast anything I've bought for it from either KTM via Austria or eBay UK. It will be interesting to see the quality too. Not expecting a great deal for £23 (half of which is shipping), but it will be fun to find out. Puig offer what looks to be a near identical one for £109.
