Heated grips are the best.
Heated grips are the best.
In reply to Professor_Brap (Forum Supporter) :
I agree, they are the best!
In other news, a fully Rally Raid equipped KTM 690 Enduro popped up locally for a decent price. I'm checking it out this Tuesday evening. I may sell the 640 to get it instead but I'm torn. The 690 has TONS of expensive parts on it, that Rally Raid stuff and all the other mods (farkles in moto language) are probably as much or more than what the asking price of the bike is.
Cons of it are it's one of the early 690's where KTM didn't go the greatest job with the fuel injection system. Fuel pumps/filters are a commonly replaced item. The 6 speed gearbox is a narrow/tight pattern, so not that great for highway riding. The seat height on them is arguably taller than the 640, which is already a camel.
Pros of it are that motor is smoother than the 640 motor and makes significantly more power.
Pros of the 640 are it's dead nuts reliable. Carb'd and easy to work on. Has a real rear subframe and an enormous gas tank. Suspension a bit better on the 640. Has an e start and a kick starter.
Cons are it's a bit heavier than the 690, some parts are unobtanium, vibrates more.
Owner isn't a wrench, he took it to the local dealer and ended up spending thousands on it, getting a new throttle body, ECU, fuel pump and fuel filter. The first two things are very uncommon to replace, when I asked him I got a sorta weird answer for why the dealer replaced them. My radar is up...
I'm gonna check it out this Tuesday and see...
I've reading this thread and other MC threads and have been thinking about heated grips for my street bike. I've been looking at the Coolride heater inserts that fit inside the bar as I just replaced grips last summer. I have no experience with any heated grips and thought they were an interesting design. Any thoughts?
Don't mean to derail your thread.
In reply to wawazat :
I like the heated grips that are all in one. They seem to work better, get hotter, are more even in temperature and last longer. Hard to go wrong with Oxford heated grips...
So I checked out and rode the 690 last night. It was cold, very, very cold. The bike itself is extremely well setup, the first owner did all the mods and they must've spent a TON of money on it. Pretty much everything that could be done has been done.
I drove over to meet the guy thinking I was going to be buying the bike. After all, it's pretty much what I've always wanted and here one is, 20 minutes from my house. Then I rode it. It just didn't feel snappy on the throttle, I was very underwhelmed with the power of it, which surprised me.
He spent a ton of money getting it fixed at the dealer but I don't think he's really ridden it since, which gives me pause. At this point I think I'm going to put my 640 back together and take it for a rip around my neighborhood, just to get a baseline. If my bike feels snappy, like it should, then I'll keep it. If the 690 feels better than my 640, I'll go buy it...
In reply to wawazat :
I also perfer the ones that are all in one.
In reply to docwyte :
That's a fair comparison. Thats similar reasons to why I bought my drz
My wiring harness connectors showed up at the dealer yesterday, so I can finish wiring the GPS mount and the heated grips.
My pile of Klim gear also showed up, so I've got all the stuff I need now. Tried it all on, I ordered the wrong cheek pads for the helmet, Klim is exchanging them for free for me. Pants fit great. Helmet comes with a transitions lens, which is cool. What's a bummer is they say to not run it with the visor, as it can result in goofy patterns
One thing I use alot of my motos is a tail rack. When I riding around town, or doing a short trip I just lash a backpack or small bag to it using Roc Straps.
My old 640 had a touratech tail rack, which worked fine and sadly is no longer made. That bike also had the touratech headlight guard, which looks like the bike is wearing glasses. That's also no longer made by touratech.
I posted on ADV looking for a tail rack and happily someone responded. I bought this Touratech tail rack yesterday.
I also looked on Ali Express and found that there are headlight guards everywhere there that look suspiciously the same as the touratech one. Since I can't buy one of those anymore I didn't feel badly about buying the Ali knock off for far, far less money
Also got my larger cheek pads for my Klim helmet and installed them. I hope to get a lot of the work on the bike done this Friday. I'm debating pulling the carb to check it, last owner wasn't so sure when he'd rebuilt it...
Did a lot of work yesterday.
replaced the cockpit bushings. They were smoked! Of course they're nla, so I had to modify other ones to fit.
then i tried to install an led headlight bulb. Couldn't figure out how it clocked into the housing, which is weird. Will try again later.
then I moved onto installing the heated grips. No issues running the wiring but I needed to move the controls in a bit as I didn't want to trim too much off the grips.
since I need to tap the bars for the hand guards and I have an old set of bars that I'd already tapped. I stupidly thought that pulling all the controls off and swapping over to the already tapped bars would save me time.
yeah. After fighting with the headlight switch/choke cable clamshell for two hours I finally got it back together.
Heated grips are on, just need to plug them in and test them. Hand guards are almost done, need hardware for the plastic shields ans thicker bar end weights.
gps is wired in, I used a molex connector and plugged right into the factory auxiliary power plug.
ran out of steam at this point. Once I test the heated grips I should be able to put the fuel tank and seat back on. Then I'll install the foot pegs, tail rack and side stand when they show up.
Came home from the base yesterday and tested the heated grips. They work! Sadly it looks like my kit didn't come with the parts I need to mount the controller to the bars.
I can use double sided sticky tape and put it on the highway dirt bikes top clamp.
had a delayed start this am, so went out and put the tank bag mounting straps on. When I get home I'll route/zip tie the heated grips wiring and then put the fuel tank and seat back on
Ok, figured out I can run the heated grips controller under the HDB (Highway Dirt Bikes) top clamp and while the wiring gets squished, it's ok. Then I used a little 3M double sided body tape to hold it in place. Cables zip tied up and everything connected, confirm it works. I wish there wasn't so much spare cabling, it's not as neat looking as I'd like.
Next up I confirmed the GPS power wiring works and happily it's switched power. Sweet. At that point I put the fuel tank back on, put the seat back on and installed the tank bag.
I still need to put the right front brake caliper/rotor setup back onto the bike. Also waiting for some parts, my touratech rear rack, (which was supposed to show up Saturday but didn't, thanks USPS!), my Black Dog foot pegs, (which are supposed to show up today, but doubtful, thanks USPS!) and my SW motech side stand, which will hopefully be here from Germany in a week, then maybe another week me?
Need to call HDB today and get the hardware for the plastic shields and see if they have thicker bar end weights.
Oh yeah, I have to make another attempt at installing the LED headlight bulb too. Friend sent me a 3D printer file to make the headlight dust caps, so hopefully I can make a set of those and modify them for the LED wiring/ballasts.
After that I'll ride it a bit, then rebuild the carb...
Had my last patient of the day cancel on me and it was a beautiful day, so went home early. Gonna snow tonight, that's the way it is here.
Anyways, got a bunch more done on the bike! My touratech tail rack showed up and I ninja'd it into place. Pretty sure I was supposed to take off the factory tail rack but with the help of my gear wrench I didn't have to. Stoked about this score as it's no longer made!
Next up I dealt with the hand guards. HDB had given me these other inserts to use but I couldn't get the anti vibe bar inserts to go into the bars enough. I decided to drive the anti vibe inserts in as much as I could, then cut down the other inserts to size. Did that, now I have a tight fit with the bar end weights. Job done! Not happy with the grips though, clearly I should've waited to trim them until I'd finalized the installation.
Next up are the foot pegs. Here's the stock one vs the Black Dog. Big difference in size and since I wear a size 12, the bigger the better for me!
Installation was easy, Black Dog gives you new springs and a tapered pin to use so everything stays in position while you're compressing the spring into place. Installed!
I also installed a battery tender pig tail. My tire air compressor plugs into it, plus the trickle charger etc. Next up is the right front brake caliper, do an oil change and install the SW Motech side stand when it shows up.
In other news a guy on the 640 FB group sent me a 3D printer file for the head light end caps. My friend printed out a set for me! I'll pick those up and figure out the LED headlight bulb installation and use these caps.
Well, straight from the Father land my SW Motech side stand showed up last night. Time to get to work.
Pretty easy install, two bolts. I also put on my Ali Express side stand foot at the same time.
This side stand is renowned for having so much spring tension that it doesn't want to stay down and will break your leg if you're unlucky enough to get smacked by it when it's retracting. So I pulled the inner spring from it.
Now it's quite reasonable. Stand wants to stay down and I don't think it'll break my leg.
Next up was the LED headlight bulb. I was able to clock it and get it into position. Unfortunately the end caps my friend 3D printed me didn't really fit. KTM also glued the freakind headlight harness into the end cap! So I just used a uni bit and drilled a hole in the back of the cap for the LED headlight heat sink mesh and wiring to come out. No pics of this as I was donating blood to the KTM gods installing it. Really tight quarters. Works great tho! I need to order another one for the high beam
OK, time to get the "mask" back on and install my ali express aka touratech headlight guard. These headlights aren't made anymore and if you're able to find them used, they cost a jillion dollars, so I don't want a rock breaking one...
Time to see if it starts! Key on, power to the dash and gps, thumb the starter button and....nothing. Hmm, check the kill switch, thumb the starter button again and nothing. Try to kick start it, nothing. Check the fuel taps, check the cross over, WTF?! After racking my brains for a minute or so I come to the realization that it's not in neutral. Oh. Snick it into neutral, thumb the starter switch and it cranks but doesn't start. I check the fuel taps again and put them in the middle. Thumb it again and she roars to life! Idle seems a little low, so I play with that a bit, I like having it around 1700rpm. Give her some gas and she seems fairly happy.
Next up is installing the right front brake setup, doing and oil change and then riding for a bit. After that I'll pull the carb to rebuild it.
Looking awesome. Love the progress.
In reply to Professor_Brap (Forum Supporter) :
Thanks! It's been a fun winter project. Supposed to be close to 60F this Friday, so I'll get the oil change and right front brake setup on the bike.
I texted the previous owner and turns out he never rebuilt the carb. With 21k miles on it, it's definitely due, I'm sure the slide, slide carrier and needle are totally worn out. I was hoping to do it in the Fall, but will order the parts for it tomorrow and do it before riding season really kicks off this Spring.
I also cleaned and lubed the chain, which was absolutely filthy. I may spray more lube on it later. Hopefully this gets me a little more time with this chain...
It was in the mid to high 50s all weekend here did a bunch of riding.
I normally go through the carb of whatever I buy just because you never know what junk is in there
Usually a little lube on the chain helps.
You guys are killing me. I so wanted to drag the Ducati out today but the mounds of snow everywhere made for giant sloppy puddles all over the place. It's above freezing all this week so hopefully the snow melt is mostly done and things start drying up.
In reply to Professor_Brap (Forum Supporter) :
Yeah, I know. And while the previous owner is a nice guy, there's ample evidence of him not being much of a wrench, so going thru the carb is a good idea. I was just hoping to wait on that as I've been blasting away on this thing pretty hard the last month or so. I probably need to re-jet the carb anyways tho, I think it's running a bit too lean.
wawazat, we got over a foot of snow here last Thursday! It's basically all melted of the roads tho.
Ok, well I decided to just man up and pull the carb. You don't need to loosen the rear subframe. It's tight, but you can wiggle it out the top once you've pulled the seat, fuel tank and moved the "mask" forward.
Ok, my curiousity got the better of me and I drained the float bowl to look at the main jet. First off, the fuel that came out was obscenely dirty...
Then the carb itself was dirty inside, no shock there
The shock was the main jet was still the stock 152.5! I could've sworn the previous owner told me he'd rejetted it and put in a 157.5. Nope! So chances are the bike has been running lean, which is probably why the handle bars were vibrating so much at idle and it had a little stumble right on throttle tip in
Ok, I took it to work since I have an ultrasonic cleaner. There's a really good DIY on the BST40 Bible thread on advrider.com on how to take it apart, I followed that. What I also found is that someone installed an extended fuel screw, which is great, but set the fuel screw at 3 3/4 turns out, where it should be 2 1/4 or 2 1/2. So they tried to make it more rich that way vs using proper jetting.
I got a ton of parts from Derek at Moto lab to rebuild the carb. Basically everything I needed, one stop shopping. Not the cheapest but I won't have to go into the carb again for a long time...
Ok, lets compare some of the old parts vs new. Here's the slide itself, which shouldn't have those grooves in it...
Here's the new slide vs the old one. Old one had two holes plus the needle hole. New one has one hole plus the needle hole, which is supposed to be much better for power
Here's the slide carrier. See the 4 circular indentations on the new one? See how two are missing on the old one and the other two are almost gone? That's not good...
A lot of the time the needle starts to get cut apart. I did notice that the clip holding it into place was half off. You can see some wear on the needle. I set the clip on the 4th groove at Derek's recommendation
Ok, bagged up the parts, filled the bags with cleaner and popped them into my ultrasonic. Here's the result, ewww...
Here are the clean parts
Reassembly is the reverse as they say. Very clean now...
Just need to pop it back into the bike, hook everything up, start the bike, set the idle, play with the fuel screw and hope I've got the TPS sensor back where it was. I marked it before I removed it, so fingers crossed. Then I'll do an oil change. Supposed to be nice tomorrow so I plan on riding the bike to see how it does, tune as necessary, then reinstall the right front brake setup.
Unsure if it's my phone or forum issue, photos look wild.
In reply to Professor_Brap (Forum Supporter) :
I can see the pics fine. I was getting a weird upload window when I made the post, not the typical window I get. Not sure if the forum is having an issue or not...
OK, got the bike back together last night after my son went to bed.
My friend, who also has a 640, was convinced that my idle was going to be crap since I rebuilt the carb. I told him no way, I'm a maestro.
So here's a video of the bike idling now that I've rebuilt the carb. It runs great. Vibrates less, nice strong idle, doesn't stumble when you goose the throttle anymore.
It's supposed to be close to 60F today, so I hope to ride it over to the moto store so I can buy a bluetooth helmet headset...
Well, had a successful first ride! Which was actually my first ride of the bike ever! Bike seemed to run well but I did notice that if I was taking off from a stop and gave it some throttle, sometimes it would die.
A quick call to Derek@Motolab confirmed that, yes, I should've followed his directions about setting the idle screw and fuel screw properly. Doh!
So I did an oil change, which I would love to say is quick, but on this bike is anything but quick. Not because of access but because there's so much to do! There are three drain plugs, two oil filters and you have to fill oil into the sump as well as the front down tube. Anyways, got that done.
Started up the bike, let it warm up, set the idle to 1500 rpm. Then started turning the fuel screw in/closed until the idle started to get worse. From there I turned the fuel screw out/open about another 1/8-1/4 turn.
Took the bike around the neighborhood for a rip, stopped/started multiple times and it's great! I'm also pleased with how I've set the bike up ergonomically. The bar risers and drop pegs are perfect, super comfy. The bike came with a Seat Concepts seat and so far that feels just fine, so I'll run it.
Really happy with the bike, this isn't a case where my memory was rose colored, it's what I remember. Snappy throttle response, feels light and agile, vibrates but not excessively, fun ride.
Happy it's running good for you, fuel screw tuning is super important, on my DR-250. You had to pull the car every time unless you had an extended fuel screw which was a pain in the ass.
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