Was invited for the DIY session in bangalore was not able to make it!

Update guys?? How did it go??

Took the KTM out for a quick solo rip to the twisties of Lavasa yesterday morning.

This baby corners beautifully, and the rear brake has settled in well when leaned over. Though it still sometimes causes the rear wheel to slide on straights. Also, the rear slides out pretty easily if you gas it beyond a point when leaned over.

Passed a big group of riders close to the Lavasa main gate returning back. Any of the guys here?!!

Bangalore Duke owners,

Auto Service, Banashankari is planning to conduct a DIY session at their premises in Banashankari 2nd stage on Saturday 21st April 2012. It will be not be a read-out of the pdf document print out. A few bikes will be lined up and you will have in-house mechanics (trained by KTM/Bajaj) demonstrate stuff. People having/reporting issues will also be attended to during the session. I am attaching a google doc spreadsheet, where those who are interested can enroll for the program. If the number is overwhelming, Auto Service will conduct more programs of similar nature over subsequent weekends. Please direct any questions to me. Thank you.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/...ngtMXl5VlA2VFE

Mods: Please note that I have no commercial gain in this exercise. The only gain I have in this is goodwill of the Duke owners who can get a practical platform to report issues and have it looked into. If you find this post does not confirm to T-BHP regulations, please feel free to delete it.

Shubz, please feel free to post bro. We would all love to hear about what you learned, photos would be nice, and also the common feedback coming in. These are still early day for everyone, owners, company, service, and everyday we learn something new that helps improve the bikes!

Thank you doc!

Personally I wasn't happy with the theory sessions that was conducted by KTM Bangalore and coaxed Venkat to allow me to organize something like this. He was very obliging! I owe him a lot!

This will be done at his workshop - so any issues can be addressed right there than asking people to go visit the nearest service center.

Hi Aditya,
Did you get any feedback about this product?

Hi Nitin, couldn't meet with the concerned person to get a detailed feedback but he did mention that it is very loud (140dB) and performs very well.

If you have any specific question in mind, let me know and i shall clarify it for you with the owner.

Yup - Had the following questions -
1. How good is the battery? How many days it lasts?
2. Is the Battery available in the aftermarket? & how much is the cost?
3. How sensitive is the alarm?

Thanks
Nitin

Too early to say about the battery. I know it has around 4 or 6 button cells so it should last at least 6 months or more (even longer if the alarm does not trigger often).

My Xena XX6 battery lasted me almost a year and eight months while the manual says the life is around 8 months. Will confirm the no. of cells and let you know. These batteries are available at watch shops and electronic shops that repair phones, etc. My Xena battery cost me around Rs. 300/- and its a lithium ion CR6 battery. When i finally had to change the battery, i checked the health of the old one and it showed 2.9V (for a 3V cell) so i guess even a 0.1V drop in charge makes the alarm hyper sensitive to get the attention of the owner to change the batteries.

Regarding alarm sensitivity i shall confirm and revert. In case of the Xena, the higher the lock is placed on the disc rotor the more sensitive it is and the lower it is placed the lesser the sensitivity.

I have used both Xena(XX 10) and KABRUS(</title><meta name="description" content="Motor Bikes Disc Brake Security Lock Siren Alarm Padlock HONDA SUZUKI YAMAHA TVS in Auto Accessories Parts , Bike Accessories Parts , Safety Security , Locking Alarm System |eBay"><meta name="keywords" conten) disc locks and though KABRUS is cheaper than Xena it is not as sensitive. The battery used in Xena is expensive so if you are buying Xena better order the spare battery as well.

Surbhit,
In your opinion, which between the 2 (Xena & Kabrus) is Value For Money? Did you find any Cons of Kabrus?

The Kabrus lock which you want to go for is different compared to one which I am using so I can't comment on it's Cons. I think Kabrus is more VFM option but if you have someone coming from US better to get Xena XZZ 6L(70$).

I was going through some reviews of Karbus. One major issue reported was - Battery life. Some reviewers said that one set of batteries didn't even last a month! So for the lock which you are using - This One -
1. How was the battery life? I think the battery it is easily available in the market but still changing it again & again is a hassle.
2. The lock which you are using is a padlock & can be used for multiple things - locking garages, chains etc. Can it be used as a Disc Lock? Is there enough clearance/ space available

Yes i would always prefer Xena over this one. My friend is coming back from US but after a couple of months!

Answers above in bold..

3000 km update - Sunday ride to Tamhini, Mangaon, NH17, Varandha, Bhor, NH4, back to Pune

Just after the descent from Tamhini



After the initial flurry of riding, work commitments meant that Baby Duke 222 only gets ridden off and on weekdays (Lonavala chai runs mainly) and on Sunday mornings (Amby valley, Lavasa, Bapdeo-Dive ghat circuit, and now this one last Sunday).

So this Sunday we did a pretty nice 300 odd km run with tons of twisties thrown in with a shortish minimum necessary stretch on the relatively boring NH4 back to Pune.

Tamhini was a pretty decent shape towards to end, though there was a lot of broken sections on the approach still. Varandha as always was a treat - some sections good, but mostly broken, though it is still worth doing, and the Duke performed flawlessly, though there was a slightly nervy moment when I took a corner at speed and suddenly came on a freshly laid section with a generous bajri topping .....

There were 3 of us - a Duke, a Pulsar, and an Impulse. The tyres were given a good workout, though try as you please, the last cm or so on the front, and around half an inch odd at the rear remains unscrubbed. Top speed touched briefly a couple of times was around 132 odd. Otherwise in most of the twisties it was around 80-90-100.

What really impressed was the mileage! The bike was mostly at 2.6 to 2.8 liters/100 km and the actual measured tank mileage came to 37+. Immediately after doing a top end pull though, the indicated fuel mileage jumps straight up to 6 liters/100 km!!!! LOL Though to be fair it quickly comes back down and settles at a sub 3 liters/100 km. Its nice to note that at a constant 90-100 on the highway, decent touring speed, the indicated mileage even went as low as 2.5 liters/100 km which is 40 kmpl!!!! I'll be honest - I have never in 20+ years of riding owned a two wheeler (including my Kinetic) that gave me 40 kmpl so I am

We came back by around 1 pm after a 7 am start with all breaks (breakfast and lunch included) so the pace was pretty good. Even in the afternoon heat, the temperature gauge at max was always two blocks lower than the break.

One thing I did notice - the rear monoshock setting at No. 5 is good for track style riding on good tarmac, but is a tad too bumpy/non-pliant on broken tarmac like what we encountered on many sections. I was often left wishing for the small fork like thingy to adjust my setting on the ride but sadly I don't yet have one (note to self: get one from the showroom asap!). The front fork is brilliant.