KTM 525 EXC as an Adventure Bike

Eric would NOT approve of that kind of delay. He's a top notch dude and is always on the ball. His stuff speaks for itself too.

Yeah, as Stu said there's not much of a gap there. I kept expecting there to be a pop or something as the carrier was seated into the hub but it never happened. The carrier just kind've presses in and floats there. The clamp was probably overkill but it did make it fit in the swingarm without having to spread them or anything and the wheel / hub dropped right into place. And as you said, your axle will do any remaining compression when you torque it and hold everything together nice and tight once it goes on.

If I stay away from hard engine braking on the street do I really need the cush hub on my 520? What breaks, I assume the hub itself cracks?

The hub doesn't break. The no-give of the hard pavement transmits shocks to the transmission's needle bearings. That is why street bikes all have some sort of cushioning effect. KTM's SM wheel set comes with a cush hub. I run a cush hub for a 2002~2005 KTM LC4 on my '07 525 EXC on the street. This hub works for the RFS swing arm and rotor & sprocket alignment. I have the regular rear wheel with a full knobby on it ready for action when I pound the trails.

There are SM street riders on 450s that have reported on this web site that, in once case, the rider had 17,000 miles on his bike and he did not have the hub. Personally I would rather not take a chance on trashing my tranny bearings.

Stu

Thanks - I'll take a look on page 10 :)

I guess I'll find out in a day 2 if its too big when I try to refit it.

Adventurers DO have my money - I paid via PayPal, who now refuse to give me a refund because its been 45 days since the transaction (hey, I leave it 3 weeks, thenenquire where my stuff is, they say its being sent... another 2 weeks to wait for it to arrive, and that's your 45 days gone... SOL). I can't even get my credit card company involved cos I paid direct from my bank account... lessons learnt here :

1) when ordering ANYTHING on the internet, pay with a credit card
2) if you have any problems, screw being nice - follow the complaints procedure
3) only use PayPal as a last resort
4) don't buy stuff from adventurers workshop

I didnt go direct to Wolfman to start with because they didn't seem to be able to ship direct to UK, even though in an email the guy said to just put UK on the shipping thing on thier order form (it didnt change the shipping price, so I assumed this was wrong).

Adventurers seem to be quite happy to take my money and give no refund, won't respond to emails... I'm pretty pissed off at them. I won't recommend them to anybody (infact, the exact opposite).

But yeah, I'll contact Wolfman direct, tell them what the deal is, and see if they can put pressure on thier authorised dealer - hadn't thought of that before - thanks for the idea

I think I should make a point of coming to London to collect a few beers in a local pub for my Wolfman idea. Just be certain to give Wolfman facts (data) so he has something to go to Adventurers with and beat them on their collective hard heads.

Good luck!

Stu

LOL, no problem - either that, or next year when I bring the orange beast to your shores for the TransAm Trail, I'll hunt you down and buy you a few beers then

A deal!
The TAT would be fun as well.
Keep me posted on your plans for the TAT!
Stu

Geez, I have to read this just when I'm telling myself that my DRZ S will do.....(and my last ride was with the local KTM dealer who ran his 525 300 miles on a day ride as well as his son riding a 450.....) This is a great thread.

If you are doing the TAT, I lhave 30A in Claremore, OK (NE Oklahoma) with plenty of room for free camping. I am right off old and current Hwy 66 and near Hwy 20. The TAT comes nearby but I have not checked the exact route difference yet as I have not purchased TAT maps. Plan to try some of the trail this winter. If you are interested I can give you GPS coordinates, directions, and my cell. I know the Arkansas/ S. MO area well and can tell you about a number of things and places you might do or stay at while passing through there. If you are going to take time-out during the good parts then I would recommend Arkansas as one of the slow spots. If you are inclined, a fishing rod is useful in Arkansas. Regards, John

I know you're not talking to me, but I love riding that area. I have some off-road routes from broken bow/clayton up to pickens, mena, and then clarksville, oark, etc. I'll keep you in mind and send a pm next time I'm up there if interested....maybe make a long weekend of it.

here's what I came up with :
tested on a 4 week riding trip, trailered in a toyhauler, started at the KTM Adventure rally at Mammoth CA riding 80 miles soft powder right behind Chris Blais , the bike cut arrow straght through the wobbly lines, rode 130 mile Canyonlands loop in Utah in 100+ deg and ended up at Taylor Park CO,rode most every trail in the TP area from Aspen to Pitkin ( even timberline, star) rode it approx 750 miles off road in July



576 big bore/stroker kit
hybrid trans; EXC 1-2/mxc 3456 to pull 14/42 FD
HT oil cooler
SX end cap on exc muff
trailtrick suspension set-up with 11 rear and 46 front springs, subtanks
scotts UBM and 18 mm billet clamps
6.6 Acerbis tank; built a CF guard for the petcock and aluminum braces
EE soft tall seat
ICO dual sport speedodo in billet case
built a dual, 2 high-low beam HID headlights using gen5 Osram parts, aluminum frame/CF cowl/lexan lens cover
rewound stator myself for 100 watts DC using 16 GA magnet wire
built a 4Luxeon star LED tail/brake light
LED turn signals, rears cased in CF
PMB rack
PMB sidestand
SM front fender for better high speed aeros
very loud BMW/Bosch horn
folding handguard mounted billet aluminum bar end mirror that stays put on-road and has a useable rear view, tucks inside handguard

it worked flawless all those miles only electrical issue was a loose brake lite wire that come unplugged.
It also performed excellent on extreme single track, excellent dirt road handling at high speed
IMO this is the best config for high speed road that is also extreme off road capable and fun to ride on single track

GumbyDave,

Thanks for the information and pix! Looks great and obviously worked very well. I have my 525 set up similarly to yours. However, I didn't get the PMB rack when they were available. Yours obviously held up without breaking the sub frame so you must have not overloaded it. (What was the weight of the white container in the White Rim Trail shot?)

Your gearing (3.0 -- 14x42) can obviously pull the nasties with your 576. I have to go 3.466 (15x52) on my 525 in order to get over the gnarly stuff. However with stock EXC gearing I should be geared about the same for 6th.

What is the "CF" that you used to protect the Acerbis petcock? I presume something you fabricated. Can you post a pix of this? What mileage did you get? I'm doing pretty well on that and think the 3.1 Clarke currently on the bike might do the Shaffer and White Rim from Moab and back. Thoughts?

Stu

Hi stu, I'm still getting around 40 mpg and thats with a rich; 45 pilot,1/2 turn, SX needle, 180 main
I was expecting in the 35 range maybe the tall gearing helps
From the town of Moab and back around Schaffer I would guess is around 175 miles, 120 miles of shaffer and add about 50 to Moab and back, after I got past the first and last 20 miles in on shaeffer where all the Jeeps were, I saw not a soul and was able to do some high speed running, the road is very predictable with only a few rough spots. Although riding solo with those temps there would be survival issues in the event of a breakdown which is why I carried the extra water,
the tank was only 1.25 gallons of water , so about 10 lbs
120 miles of this stuff, with no bailouts, only a few dead end side roads down to the river to explore....

I made a carbon fiber guard for the petcock because it worried me, this is the best photo i have, ( the rock took a ride in the front sprocket chain guard)
I made a form with duct tape and aluminum screen and wrapped the carbon fiber and epoxy resin over it, then the duct tape popped right out after hardening. It attaches where the tank brace bolts in with an aluminum angle bolted to the CF, I have the petcock mounted facing inside. It's nice not worrying about having enough gas. I really haven't noticed any weird sloshing and I mostly stand up when riding so the width doesn't really annoy me

Thanks for the pix! I can see some fabrication in my future....

I cut my plastic chain guard off and put an EE guard on the clutch master cylinder (see pg. 10 of this thread for a shot of it). That keeps the rocks & Mud out of the chain.

I rode the Shaffer & White Rim returning to Moab on the Hidden Canyon road a few years ago on my '03 450 and, as you said, after 20 miles didn't see anyone so I hooked it up. Fun on some of those sandy two tracks. Worrisome in the event of a bail. I made it all with the 3.4 gallon MXC tank putting in 2.8 back in Moab. A memorable day.

Stu

I forgot to mention that the full Akrapovic system has helped my clean running on the bottom and smooth power delivery dramatically over the stock header and muffler with the restrictor cut out. (A smooth velvet hammer, as it were.) It has a spark arrestor. I also put in Bill Thomas's vane and kept the stock jetting and that combination works wonderfully. The JD kit worked but my mileage really suffered.

Stu

Yep I noticed that evryone with the JD runs out of gas, but hey no blue pipes
before the big bore I ran Bills HT head pipe and tork vane jetted lean (14/50,mxc gears) and it worked well on trails

Let's see some more pics of that headlight setup.

I run a EE slave guard too but I keep the plastic guard on the swingarm to save the chain, that one is important IMO. you must be talking about the small plastic guard at the front sprocket
the BRP lower chain guide wears out clip-on master links so you have to keep an eye out and change them links:eek1

Yep. Only cut off the part at the front. Makes installing a sprocket easier as well.
I did not get blue pipes with the HT vane and stock jetting. Living right out here in Yahoolandistan.
Stu