Motorcycle discussion

[RiderZ]

New to me moto.Traded my snowmobile towards this.
Box stock 2015 KTM 690 Duke 3800 miles.
I feel like a kid again.




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[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by RiderZ

New to me moto.Traded my snowmobile towards this.
Box stock 2015 KTM 690 Duke 3800 miles.

Congrats! Is it ok for me to ask what you paid? Looks like a fun bike. I'm weary of the single engine though. How's the reliability on those bikes? And how's the vibration?

[TheLetterJ]

Nice, I love my 690 (Enduro), bought it new 10 years ago!

Jato: if vibration is a concern, you'd definitely be best served to try out the current shorter stroke/bigger bore/dual balancer 690/701's, most people claim they run as smooth as most twins. I've never had a complaint about vibes from my old 654cc variant (though I am a knobby tire'd guy who has never owned a dedicated street bike), and the '12+ 690cc motors were much the same (slightly increased stroke.) In '14, they went to a "twin spark" head and a single ECU (earlier bikes used 2 ecu's, one for fueling, one to control the semi-fly-by-wire butterflie's movement) with a much better throttle curve than the previous 690's (though that's easily programmed with tuneECU) but sadly, no easy way for the user to tune them.

Depending on your definition of reliability, they're pretty solid. I've only got ~17,000 on mine, mostly offroad, but its been parked for 4 YEARS! My last dual sport got 3 pistons, 5 ring sets, 1 cylinder, and 1 crank in only 12k, so in my world, 17k might as well be 100k+! There have been a few guys that have broke the 100k mark with nothing more than preventative maintenance. I'd say the most widespread issue is shitty fuel (more likely dirt) chewing up fuel pumps, and clogged injectors. Not really widespread, but there have been several cases of rocker arm failure, which if not caught in time, could be catastrophic. Many choose to replace the rockers proactively for that reason, but it's really a crap shoot. That's a non-issue on the current bikes as the head has been completely redesigned to (hopefully) remove that possibility.

I know you can take the single balancer engines up to 790cc, and Lyndon Poskitt Racing is claiming 90rwhp from that monster... not bad for a single!

[hpiguy]

Don't most bikes have a single engine? LOL It's all in how they're maintained. My DRZ SM had 26,000 HARD miles on it when I sold it, but it was meticulously maintained. I had one clutch cable failure due to a shitty aftermarket clutch perch, and a freak countershaft failure that my mechanic (only for things I didn't have the tools to do) said was most likely a casting flaw when it was made. It cranked every time I hit the happy button, and taught me how to ride a street bike properly. Lots of great memories and miles and miles of smiles. BUT, if I didn't live near world class roads, and rode more open road stuff I'd have wanted something with more power.

[RiderZ]

Originally Posted by JatoTheRipper

Congrats! Is it ok for me to ask what you paid? Looks like a fun bike. I'm weary of the single engine though. How's the reliability on those bikes? And how's the vibration?

Paid $5600,like I said it's a 2015 and only 3800 miles.Very clean never dropped.
Vibrates like a mofo,from what I've read keep the oil clean in it and they run forever.ABS brakes,hydraulic clutch,electronic fly by wire throttle.
Really fun bike.Im super happy with it.

[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by hpiguy

Don't most bikes have a single engine? LOL It's all in how they're maintained. My DRZ SM had 26,000 HARD miles on it when I sold it, but it was meticulously maintained.

Haha! You caught me.

I'd love an SM. A local dealer turned a Honda 450L into a SM. It's awesome!

https://www.martinmoto.com/New-Inven...51367?ref=list

Originally Posted by RiderZ

Paid $5600,like I said it's a 2015 and only 3800 miles.Very clean never dropped.

Vibrates like a mofo,from what I've read keep the oil clean in it and they run forever.ABS brakes,hydraulic clutch,electronic fly by wire throttle.

Really fun bike.Im super happy with it.

Thanks for the info.

I had my dealership order my bike. Photos will be coming when I get it.

[Sneetches]

Put 46 miles in on Saturday with the DRZ, it was nice to get out again. Man was I tired afterwards though, I forgot how taxing it can be just cruising down back roads and actively avoiding potholes and keeping your balance on gravel.

[hpiguy]

Man, I've been out of the game for almost two years now. But this time of year, when the weather breaks, I always miss the SM!

[Sneetches]

Originally Posted by hpiguy

Man, I've been out of the game for almost two years now. But this time of year, when the weather breaks, I always miss the SM!

Didn't you use to have an avatar of you wheelie-ing?

[hpiguy]

Originally Posted by Sneetches

Didn't you use to have an avatar of you wheelie-ing?

Probably, I've used that one on a few forums. Was it this one?

[Sneetches]

Yeah that was it. I've contemplated getting a SM wheel set for my DRZ but since I have the S trim I still don't have the same forks or brakes either, so I've held off for now since it would be a costly endeavor anyways.

[wings_of_fire]

Originally Posted by hpiguy

Man, I've been out of the game for almost two years now. But this time of year, when the weather breaks, I always miss the SM!

Must have been a hard decision to let go what you love. I remember you saying you had some near misses due to stupid people on road and that's the reason you decided to get out.

That wheelie pic looks cool.

[hpiguy]

Originally Posted by Sneetches

Yeah that was it. I've contemplated getting a SM wheel set for my DRZ but since I have the S trim I still don't have the same forks or brakes either, so I've held off for now since it would be a costly endeavor anyways.

Yeah, to do it right and get true SM performance would be costly for sure. If you want both, it’s actually cheaper to start with the SM model and just get a set of dirt wheels and tires. Which I thought about, but the only thing to ride around here anymore off road is Forest Circus gravel roads. And to me, that would get boring quickly, and can be done on the SM setup just fine anyway.

Originally Posted by wings_of_fire

Must have been a hard decision to let go what you love. I remember you saying you had some near misses due to stupid people on road and that's the reason you decided to get out.

That wheelie pic looks cool.

Yeah, it wasn't just the close calls for me. It was many factors combined, that was only one of them. Cost was a big one too. $2-3k in tires a season got old too. Thanks man, it took me a while to work up the nerve to wheelie the big bike like the pit bikes. That's another reason I got rid of it too. Supermotos just beg you to be a hooligan, and growing up on dirt bikes I didn't have a lot of reserve for behaving properly other than around town.

[JatoTheRipper]

I picked up my new toy last night!

I put money down on Good Friday (April 19) and it arrived at the dealer on April 23. Very impressive considering they are closed Sunday and Monday.

The dealer was swamped so we spent over 2 hours there. But I am not the proud owner of a 2019 Honda Grom in Blue Raspberry flavor!

[Browneye]

WTF???

Thought you were getting a CBR1000 or something? LOL

[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by Browneye

WTF???

Thought you were getting a CBR1000 or something? LOL

I thought about it! The CB1000R (not the same as a CB1000R) have really bad paint. It scratches so easily. It's an issue I discovered online and the bikes in local dealerships have nasty scratches on the tanks just from people sitting on them!

I'm sure I'll get another big bike eventually, but I've wanted a Grom since they came out in 2013 and I already have my Buell so instead of getting another big bike I just a lil' one. I didn't want a payment either so this thing was inexpensive enough for me to buy it outright.

[hpiguy]

Cool Grom, congrats Tim. Now bring it down here so I can but out some circle wheelies on it.

[durok]

Very cool purchase, Jato!

I was a big scooter/moped fan before I went on to bigger bikes.

I had a '80s origami-styled Honda Elite 80 when I was a Marine out in the Mojave.

After I got out I bought a rusty old Puch moped, rode it to work at my first real civilian job.

Years later after I had a handful of cars I picked up a new Yamaha Zuma 50cc 2-stroke, total blast - it was the older model that was built by Motobecane in France (called the BWS in Europe).

Now that I have went through a few bigger bikes and my last Suzuki is slowly rotting away in my brothers 2nd garage I find myself wishing for another little runabout.

Mainly because my new job is only 12 miles away, just 2 sections of 40-45mph road connecting apartment to work.

If I could just find a buyer for a 2000 SV650 with a hole in the tank, rusted chain, and dry-rotted tires (and everything else that dries out and falls apart when parked for a few years)...

At least it has been inside a garage the whole time!

Wondering if I could get nearly a grand for it, it's very low miles with no drops.

Not sure what I'd get next - I like everything from the Zumas, the Honda Ruckus, the VanVan 200, all the way up to the new parallel-twin 650 Royal Enfields.

(none of this is likely to happen, though... just dreamin' out loud!)

[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by hpiguy

Cool Grom, congrats Tim. Now bring it down here so I can but out some circle wheelies on it.

Thank you! I haven't gotten the front wheel up yet. The clutch is so odd! The engagement is when the lever has been let out about 80% and I hate that. I like clutches that start to grab almost right away. It's a blast though. I was literally laughing out loud on my way home from work today.

I plan to put a Yoshi exhaust on it, which I got months ago during an eBay 15% off sale, a Power Commander and open up the intake somehow. That should let it breath and come alive. That is the case from what I've read.

Oh and a Yoshi tidy tail. The stock fender on this bike is obnoxious.

Originally Posted by durok

Very cool purchase, Jato!

I was a big scooter/moped fan before I went on to bigger bikes.

I had a '80s origami-styled Honda Elite 80 when I was a Marine out in the Mojave.

After I got out I bought a rusty old Puch moped, rode it to work at my first real civilian job.

Years later after I had a handful of cars I picked up a new Yamaha Zuma 50cc 2-stroke, total blast - it was the older model that was built by Motobecane in France (called the BWS in Europe).

Now that I have went through a few bigger bikes and my last Suzuki is slowly rotting away in my brothers 2nd garage I find myself wishing for another little runabout.

Mainly because my new job is only 12 miles away, just 2 sections of 40-45mph road connecting apartment to work.

If I could just find a buyer for a 2000 SV650 with a hole in the tank, rusted chain, and dry-rotted tires (and everything else that dries out and falls apart when parked for a few years)...

At least it has been inside a garage the whole time!

Wondering if I could get nearly a grand for it, it's very low miles with no drops.

Not sure what I'd get next - I like everything from the Zumas, the Honda Ruckus, the VanVan 200, all the way up to the new parallel-twin 650 Royal Enfields.

(none of this is likely to happen, though... just dreamin' out loud!)

Thank you!

Once you get your ego in check you realize it really is fun to try to ride fast on slow machines!

My commute is 8 minutes each way all on back roads so the Grom is perfect!

How did you get a hole in the tank of your SV? I've always wanted one of those bikes.

I wanted a Ruckus until the Grom came out. I love manual transmissions on motorcycles. The Van Van is very cool as is the TW200, but those bikes are overpriced for what they are IMO. They both run $1,000 more than a Grom.

[cpl666k9]

Nice looking bike.