Mods Update 03/24/07:
Brush cable redesign: After drilling the Enduro Engineering skid plate to lighten it and give the muck somewhere to drain, I reworked the brake brush cable.
I used an old bicycle shifter cable inner wire,
and slotted the center hole in the skid plate. The rear cable fitting is the
stock bike cable shifter fitting. The front one is a bike cable stop - the
crimp-on kind that prevents the wire strands from unravelling.
Closeup of the front attach point. The hole is a number 40, and the slot is
"just" wide enough to slide the cable through when the skid plate is removed.
There isn't enough slack in the cable to allow it to fall out of the slot. The
heat shrink tubing front and rear keeps the cable quiet - without it the cable
will rattle quite loudly.
Mods Update 12/10/06:
Chain Guide: My KTM guide bracket has been whacked one too many times. Rather than toss it, I decided to trim away the front section where all the impacts occurred and leave a skeleton to support the inner plastic piece.
I hack-sawed the front section and dressed the edges
with a file and sandpaper.
The modified guide.
Another view. It should be more impact resistant, and
if the aluminum bends it will be easier to hand form back into place. If it
doesn't work out, it won't have cost me anything.
Mods Update 05/04/06:
Horn: I threw away the POS MegAlert horn and mounted a standard 12 volt motorcycle horn from Sicass Racing - it is a MUCH more satisfactory arrangement, and it tucks nicely behind the headlight mask:
LED Taillight: This came from Sicass Racing - it is a great light for $45, and it is very bright. Installation was painless, Plug and Play. No more corroded bulb bases or broken filaments, and it only uses about 18 watts.
The running light at top, the brake light below
GPS: I mounted my new Garmin Quest using a TouraTech MvG locking isolation mount, TT 12 volt/ 3 volt power cable, clamped to an adjustable Enduro Engineering crossbar adapter. The end result is clean, tucked neatly out of harm's way, and esthetically pleasing. Note also the EE Route Sheet Holder that I mounted to use during organized Dual Sport rides. Normally I remove the single hose clamp that holds it to the crossbar and keep the holder in my spares box.
Picture from the TouraTech website.
Picture from the TouraTech website.
Picture from the TouraTech website.
Gear shift re-clock: The stock shifter is way too low for big feet. You can purchase a bolt-on off-set tip, but the stock shifter can be made to work much better. With the stock 14T countershaft sprocket, when you re-clock the shifter splines one notch, the lever hits the chain very hard in upshifts, so I am not sure if this mod will work with that cog. With the smaller 13T I am running, it doesn't hit very hard. I marked the contact point and carefully filed a depression in the top of the lever. When I was happy with the clearance I filed and sanded it smooth, and later applied some aluminum polish. The shifter sits 1.0" higher than stock and it works great, and it only takes a bit of rider adjustment to learn to shift again ;)
Shifter mod.
Folding shovel: I sometimes ride private timberland, and some National Forests in Idaho, that require all motorized vehicles to carry a shovel. I found a cheap ($7) Chinese made folding camp shovel at WalMart that works great. It is a little heavy, but I can't fault the size, and if I forget it beside some trail I won't regret it.
Fully collapsed with split 5/16" automotive fuel hose
covering the sharp edge.
The folded shovel fits PERFECTLY in the bottom of my
Wolfman Enduro tank bag. And there is still some room for camera, gloves and a
snack.
Mods: Update 09/02/05
Radiator guards: KTM tubular steel. I didn't want to interfere with airflow through the radiators, or lose the plastic air louvers, and these work with the factory cooling fan. They are very stout, though heavier than the aftermarket alloy guards.
Cooling fan: KTM. Plug and play... really a no-brainer. I have read of folks using a computer cooling fan, but I am convinced that one of those won't match the cfm of this fan. I did not feel the need for a manual over-ride switch. The fan kicks on for a while when the bike isn't moving - otherwise it doesn't need to run. I consider a fan to be a mandatory accessory for a dual-sported RFS.
Mirrors: Dual Star clamp-on. They don't show a whole lot of the road behind you unless you cock your head, but they are solid, vibration-free and certainly out of harm's way.
Horn: MegAlert 9 volt bicycle horn and generic push-button handlebar switch. This is more than a little disappointing, and I can't recommend this horn. I had to gut the horn and trim the housing drastically to get it to fit behind the headlight mask. I tie-wrapped and siliconed it to the mask in front of the left fork tube. It is powered by a standard 9vdc alkaline battery. The supplied switch disintegrated after one ride. It is rated at 106 db and will squawk when the bike isn't running, in case it should be necessary to demonstrate that to a police officer. If it quits I will likely install a regular "beep beep" motorcycle horn.
Hand guards: Moose Racing. There are lots of good choices out there. These are stout and well designed.
Moose Racing hand guard.
GPS: I really need to upgrade my equipment! My old Magellan MAP330 was getting long of tooth and would only hold 8 MB of detail maps, but it was all I had at the moment. I made a quickie bracket out of a steel scrap and sandwiched it under the left bar clamp. It worked fine and the gps showed no sign of distress for not being shock mounted. BUT after 6 hours of riding it died and could not be revived. I was sort of expecting this - but now I have an excuse to buy a Garmin Quest and a proper mount for it.
Hidden Kill Switch: Sicass Racing. This was a major disappointment when I first received it. The website will not tell you how it works, to keep it a secret. I would never have ordered it if I had known the reality. Well, I am breaking that secret now! The harness is intended to plug into the factory headlight switch to turn it into a second kill switch - push the headlight switch off and the engine will not fire (though the starter will crank). The harness plugs into the light switch wiring and grounds out the spark at the coil. Unfortunately, having modified my headlight switch for High/ Low use, the new harness was useless.
So I bought a marine SPST toggle switch with waterproof cover from my local West Marine store, and mounted it in the airbox using the Slaven's harness. I replaced the spade connectors with ring terminals and coated the entire housing with Liquid Electrical Tape, a waterproofing compound (again from West Marine). The switch is actually visible from the left side of the bike, but it blends in so well with the background that most people will never find it.
Hidden kill switch - can you find it?
Hidden kill switch close-up. The white thing behind
the toggle is a wiring harness tag that I removed after taking this shot, to
make the switch less conspicuous.
Rear brake light switch: Enduro Engineering...the factory switch must be spliced into the OEM harness, but this one is P & P. Bleeding the rear brake system after installing the switch can be a real pain - I had to remove the rear caliper and tie it above the level of the master cylinder to get all the air bubbles out.
License Plate Holder: Enduro Engineering. It mounts with 3 bolts to the rear fender, using factory locations. I shimmed the back of the plate at the two upper plate holes to keep the plate from distorting over the two upper mounting bolt heads.
Enduro Engineering license plate holder.
Security: OnGard Rotor Lock. It is a heavy little sucker, but I had to buy it because of the KTM Orange safety cable. It comes with a neat little Cordura pouch for storage.
OnGard Rotor Lock
Another pic of the lock.
Skidplate: Enduro Engineering. Well built, quick detach with 4 bolts. There are holes for mud to escape and for maintenance, but it really is much easier to remove it for an oil change.
Enduro Engineering skidplate.
Rear Exhaust Guard: Enduro Engineering. I wanted to keep my right boot from melting when riding on the balls of my feet. There are lots of these to choose from - this one works fine, except the front edge of the guard was eating up the inside of my plastic Sidi boot after just one ride, so I bent the bottom corner inward a bit more and bevelled the leading edge with a file, and sanded it smooth.
Enduro Engineering rear exhaust guard.
Clutch slave cylinder guard: Slaven's Racing. I liked the open design that lets you bleed the cylinder easily and flush out mud from around the cylinder. The plastic frame/ countershaft sprocket guard must be trimmed to install this.
Slaven's Racing clutch slave cylinder guard.
Brake pedal brush cable: Home-made from a bicycle cable and heat shrink tubing. The front (upper end of the bike shifter cable) is anchored to a drilled aluminum elbow mounted under the case bolt. The pedal end is secured with an aluminum bicycle cable crimp terminal.
Brush cable:
Brush cable, made from an old piece of bicycle cable
and some red heat shrink tubing. Cost $0.00.
Kick Starter Guard: The first time I kick started this bike I knew there was a problem that KTM should have addressed. The KS arm slams onto the top of the right foot peg, gouging it badly each time you kick. I forced a short section of 3/4 automotive water hose over the arm to stop the damage.
Kick starter guard. See the teeth marks in the
rubber?
Upper Chain Guide Mod: I removed the two bolts holding on the front guide and the upper one brought out the threads from the swing arm. After talking with my local dealer, and thinking about where the bolt would end up if it came out. I secured the upper portion with a 3/16 inch stainless pop rivet. They are $1 each at West Marine, but I don't have to worry about the bolt getting jammed between the chain and the CS sprocket! I installed the rivet with blue Loctite to prevent it from loosening through vibration.
Riveted upper chain guide.
Safety Wired Drain Plugs: As an ex - A & P mechanic, I am very uneasy with a non-safetied oil drain on a dirt bike. While the odds of a plug coming loose are slight, the results can be catastrophic.
Oil drain plugs safety wired together. The front is a
stainless hex-head bolt from Slaven's Racing. The stock Allen bolt is notorious
for stripping during removal.
The long oil screen safetied to the drilled engine
mount bolt.
The TDC locking pin safetied to the brush cable
elbow.
Miscellaneous:
Extended Fuel Mixture Screw: Slaven's Racing. It has the o-ring on the shaft so it won't vibrate out of adjustment like some other brands. It's easy to adjust with gloves off, eliminating the need for the awkward factory "special tool" or tilting the carb.
JD Jetting Kit: The carb comes jetted very lean from the factory. The JD kit makes it easy to correct the jetting for altitude changes with its two special color-coded needles. Correct jetting results in easier starting, much cooler running and no more blue pipe! In my opinion, rejetting is a must!
Seal Savers: Neoprene covers help prolong the life of the seals. They are a PITA to install because you have to remove the fork tubes one at a time, but they seem to be effective. Update: I have since buught a set of velcro type covers for sloppy days, and they are much easier to get on and off. I leave them off for routine gravel road riding.
Pirelli MT-21 DOT Tires: My choices were these, or the Dunlop 606. The Pirellis work fine on pavement and gravel and are ok in the dirt. They definitely don't work as well as pure dirt tires, but they won't evaporate on the pavement either. They are showing almost no wear after 200 easy miles.
Links to Vendors for the mods described above
return to John Davies' KTM Index Page