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So - i've just bought myself a KTM Duke 690 R, and it's sat outside in the bike shed and it's too cold to even enjoy going out and looking at it for more than a few minutes. Bugger.

I bought the 'R' version as it had lots of extra trick bits, of the sort that a devoted fiddler and fettler like myself might fit. So hopefully I'm a bit ahead of myself and have saved myself some money.

Fat chance, I hear you say. It's just a raised baseline from which the mods will commence.

Good point, well made. Have to agree.

It's getting to something when you're having a conversation with yourself on a motorcycle forum in the run-up to Christmas, isn't it?

Yes. So I'll stop now.

Well nothing so grand but I did just buy a set of beowulf tri oval cans with link pipes and those very nice hangers that get rid of the footpegs that I have wanted for ages looks like Christmas has come early for both of us 😎 happy to swap I'd you get bored

I may just have to refuse your kind offer, Geoff...

Maybe 'cabin fever's is setting in early, I'm itching to get going with new bits and pieces but first I need to move everything out the bike shed and reduce the width of the workbench by 2.50/300 mm and I can't chuck all my shit outside when it's pissing down and I only have 20 mins of daylight left....
And I'm not in the least bit jealous of your new toy Graham, no ,no no, you are just imagining my jealousy....
Roll on spring

I hate winter. I'm sure I should have been born somewhere warmer. We're restricted in the time we can spend outdoors even in the summer by the weather, but in winter that reduces almost to zero. And like you I desperately need to totally rearrange the contents of the bike shed but realistically it will be months before I can do that. Grrrr...

Would your pangs of jealousy be helped by details of what I have planned for the new purchase?

Probably not...

Well I've been out for the last 4 hours, cycling, got very hot and sweaty so glad its cold as it'd be a nightmare in hot weather. Covered 45 miles in that time.

True, that's the way to treat winter - get out there and exercise.

OK Graham, milk this for all its worth and rub our noses in it.....
Gloat over revealing your plans....

You know I'd do the same

Well, if anyone is feeling terribly sad about not having any projects, I have to fit my VFR's auxiliary lights next week?


No?



Bugger...

What are these auxiliary light of which you speak? Surely you're not festooning the poor VFR with seasonal chav LED tat, complete with illuminated Santa? Or is that how you decorate your living rooms down Oxford way...

Well.. there's a KTM link here ...

I've just stripped a Falco motor, just for shits and giggles mostly as I found out the the parts I wanted from a donor had already been scavenged ...

Anyway, once I'd got as far as heaving the pistons off, I realised that the gudgeon pin was about the same size as the one I was looking for for my KTM barrel conversion.

What Conversion's that? I hear you ask. Well, I have one of the few remaining LC4 400E's left, but it's always been a little chuffly and wuffly rather than the braaaaap that I've come to enjoy from the Falco. Anyway, a couple of years ago I picked up a 540 cylinder and piston (with no pin) with a view to dropping it onto my 400's bottom end. KTM in their infinite wisdom used a few key components but did a mix and match to achieve a greater range of engine sizes. The 540 was originally long stroke, but the 400 is short, but the 540's bore is greater, so effectively I'm making a 475 out of the short stroke wide bore combination that I've got, Throw an FCR41 into the mix and I'll have the best single cylinder motor that KTM never made...

mangocrazy wrote:What are these auxiliary light of which you speak? Surely you're not festooning the poor VFR with seasonal chav LED tat, complete with illuminated Santa? Or is that how you decorate your living rooms down Oxford way...

Only the classiest tat for Oxford

Although, the idea of festooning the bike holds some appeal...

Greg wrote:Well.. there's a KTM link here ...

I've just stripped a Falco motor, just for shits and giggles mostly as I found out the the parts I wanted from a donor had already been scavenged ...

Anyway, once I'd got as far as heaving the pistons off, I realised that the gudgeon pin was about the same size as the one I was looking for for my KTM barrel conversion.

What Conversion's that? I hear you ask. Well, I have one of the few remaining LC4 400E's left, but it's always been a little chuffly and wuffly rather than the braaaaap that I've come to enjoy from the Falco. Anyway, a couple of years ago I picked up a 540 cylinder and piston (with no pin) with a view to dropping it onto my 400's bottom end. KTM in their infinite wisdom used a few key components but did a mix and match to achieve a greater range of engine sizes. The 540 was originally long stroke, but the 400 is short, but the 540's bore is greater, so effectively I'm making a 475 out of the short stroke wide bore combination that I've got, Throw an FCR41 into the mix and I'll have the best single cylinder motor that KTM never made...

Didn't KTM start out by using Rotax motors for their single cylinder 4T bikes, or am I imagining that? May be the reason why a Falco piston pin works with your 540 piston. The extra capacity should pep the bike up a bit...

So I guess your plans for the orange one do not include led lights, inflatable Santa's and the sort of classy tat that one might find in Oxford ?

fatboy wrote:So I guess your plans for the orange one do not include led lights, inflatable Santa's and the sort of classy tat that one might find in Oxford ?

You're clearly a perceptive chap, Paul... :)

However the colour orange will probably feature in some purchases, so you may wish to save those words and use them in evidence against me at a later date...