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-   -   The KTM Duke 390 Ownership Experience Thread (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorbikes/138082-ktm-duke-390-ownership-experience-thread-193.html)

A simple and effective way to carry luggage on the 390 as I found on a recent trip.
For those who have the Cramster tank bag, it can be placed on the rear seat and the magnetic straps twisted around the grab rail tight and the magnets in the straps attach to each other to provide a strong bond.

The bag did not shift and provided bit of a back rest as well . Did not affect the grabrails or body panels by constant rubbing either.
The tank bag can be stuffed quite a bit and this works fine for a 2-3 day trip.

Trip was a round trip to Chennai via Salem and back to Bangalore on member SandeepMohans 390.

Rynox has a tankbag which can be mounted as a tailpack too, the Optimus. It has a detachable base which holds the suction cups/ magnets. It has rings on the sides which can be held by a bungee chord/ net around the rear seat. Capacity of the same is 22 litres which can be expanded upto 32 litres. This also doubles up as a backpack. This tankbag has straps at the bottom which can be attached to the rings and thrown over the back. Really handy equipment.

^^ I now own a 390 and am interested in knowing where can i procure a tailpack like that from and how much would it cost ?

Check out the dirtsack web for the waterproof tailpack. Needs no rain covers. But at a premium. If it works out like it is advertised, then look no further. However this is a pre order with 10% off on MRP. Real world data is yet to be published.

Shell petrol pump has closed down in Hyderabad now. What are the other alternatives? SVC guys are saying you can fill up normal HP fuel since it's 90 octane?

I have not tried premium gas to know if there are significant improvements. Regular gas is what I have been filling on my KTM from day one and the bike runs without a hitch.

Not much difference. Save money.

Hi all, I am Mithun. :)

Though I am an avid follower of Team BHP threads, there are only a few posts to my credit.

I took delivery of my Black Duke 390 on last week of September from Kochi KTM. Since then, I have read all the posts in this thread. And have followed all the precautions posted by the seniors. Have ridden abt 500 Kms till date. After a few weeks of riding, I have found a number of problems with my bike.

1. Stalling.
-Had to fill up at a HP bunk after the delivery, as I feared I would run out of fuel. I have noticed that the problem reduced considerably, after I changed to BP. May be I also slightly open the throttle while downshifting. The bike mostly stalls before it is completely warmed up.

2. Ticking Noise
-This has been there since day 1. It subsides after about 4000 rpm. Hope it will be rectified in the first service.

3. Chain slapping
-Have to adjust the chain. The chain maintenance is really difficult without a paddock stand. Using a Motul chain cleaner and a Lube.

4. Rattling
-Bike had an annoying rattling, around 3000 ish RPM. Kochi SA assured me it was the character of the bike. When I insisted and after a few rides, he found out it was from the belly pan. After the belly pan was removed, the noise vanished. I liked the look of the bike without the belly pan, so I didnt fix it back.

5. Headlight Pointing
-In the night, the dim was working as bright, and when switched to bright, the beam was pointing upwards. Again the SA assured me that the light was perfectly aligned. He also showed me another bike with the same beam level. But the next night also it was the same. I have put this also off till the first service.

Overall, after reading all the posts, I have seen that a few of the earlier owners were expecting the niggles to be rectified in later models. But sadly,:Frustrati nothing has changed.

Sucks to read such issues with a new bike . I am taking delivery of mine coming monday which brings me to my request , can someone please guide me on the necessary things one should check during PDI . Also how to determine the manufacturing date of the bike , if it by a no. located on the chassis then please mention location of said number .

Thank you


ps: is the stalling almost unique to lower speeds say below 25kmph ? If yes then keeping the machine at a higher rpm by slipping clutch helps avoid the issue ?

Its very difficult to keep higher rpm while downshifting. The motor revs down to idle very fast. But since I shifted to BPCL petrol, I havent had the issue. I am also extra careful to keep rpm a bit higher than idle, when coming to a stand still. Once the bike is heated up, i dont have to be careful about rpm levels anymore.

I really dont want to blame the rider, but the 390 probably requires a different approach to standard 150cc bikes. The stalling i hear almost always happens when you are at the wrong gear in this bike. At crawling speed its a gear difference between a 150cc and this bike. And we ride bullets where gear change is always responded with "but why" club.

If the stalling is not due to wrong gear kindly check the fuel filter. At higher speeds and rpm you will hardly feel the difference. Try revving move than 9K and seep if there is a dip in pulling power, or a jerky power delivery. this could indicate fuel not reaching the engine in a refined flowy manner.

The filters are like 60rs i guess and can be DIY with bare hands.

I once had a problem due to bad petrol but changing the filter brought back the life in that engine.

The other reason is that the gear shift knob when it came fresh from factory was slightly too close to comfort for my feet that i was accidentally hitting the lever even when i was going over small bumps. I basically changed its position in 30 minutes from delivery. You will not realize this and you will accidentally be changing gears or getting the lever stuck between two. And sometimes the engine dies because of this as well. Has happened to me before.

One of my friends 390 had a lose battery wire which was also a cause. Check those wires for any breakage or any damage.

Mods please excuse this short message but once again I request the members on this page to guide me towards -
1. PDI during delivery including tire pressure .

2. How to determine month of manufacture .


I won't be able to log in for the next 3 days and take delivery on monday so this is the only time I can post this :)

Thank you .

Hi all

Recently I have test driven the 390 Duke and am confused between my C5 and the 390.

I am not so keen on selling my beloved C5 but test riding the 390 was great fun! I do not want to keep 2 bikes and a car and hence have to decide between the C5 and the 390.

I don't do a lot of travelling on my C5 but it does keep going into a lot of potholes and the bike is still intact with nothing going loose yet.

Will be great if some of the 390 owners and C5 to 390 turned owners could share their views and help me in making this decision.

Thanks

Check out this thread, iron.head

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorb...uke-390-a.html

It has been discussed. At the end, you buy what you have already decided to buy!

Better option might be to toss a coin - heads= Bullet; tails=390. As it comes down, you will know what you want it to be! (Mine was tails)!

PDI during delivery is pretty much routine stuff. I guess I have posted this elsewhere on the forum but here goes:

1. Take a thorough look at the bike in broad daylight for any scratches or paint imperfections. Do this before sending the bike for Regn. Note down the Engine and Chassis number of the bike which you zero in on.
2. Once its regd. and ready for delivery, take the delivery during the day times as much as possible. Visually ensure that the bike is scratch less and cross check the engine and chassis number
3. Ensure all the electrical components like head light, tail light, blinkers, horn are functioning
4. Ask the delivery guy to check the engine oil levels and ensure its at the optimum level as marked. Same goes for the coolant level. Too much is also not good. Coolant has to be in between the Max-Min marking.
5. Check tire pressure in the nearest petrol pump as the delivery guys would have invariably over inflated the tires most of the times. The sticker indicating the tire pressures will be on your vehicle. Follow the same for best ride quality. I guess for the 390 as mentioned by owners, Front - 25/26 and Rear - 29 if you are solo.
6. Please ensure that there is sufficient amount of petrol to take you at least to the nearest bunk.
7. Ensure that the documentation is complete & correct with the engine/chassis no. clearly mentioned on the invoice and the Insurance papers. Also ensure your name is correctly entered in the documents without any spelling mistakes as that is what will be entered in the RTO for issuing the smart card.

For bikes, there will be sticker from the factory with a barcode stuck to the rear number plate. That indicates the month of manufacture (Dates will be mentioned explicitly). The same bar code sticker is sent along with your documents to the RTO so that the month/year of mfg. gets entered on the smart card.