[Neo18]

Originally Posted by swiftnfurious

Just curious, have you checked any other 390 Adv to see its almost similar?

Yes I did check a couple of my friends' 390 advs. Looks like their feather weight is working in their favour , but it does seem to be just as harsh as mine.

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by Neo18

Yes I did check a couple of my friends' 390 advs. Looks like their feather weight is working in their favour , but it does seem to be just as harsh as mine.

Harsh rear suspension is correct but it is also relative to your butt

There are many who seem perfectly happy with the stock suspension and seem to be munching miles like no tomorrow. So this is definitely a user specific issue as opposed to a bike specific issue.

That being said, the zedling kit is very reasonably priced, I expect YSS or Ohlins to cost at least thrice to four times that. Now whether that is worth it for you with remote preload etc, is your call.

Lastly, you would be the first guy experimenting with a zedling unit on the 390 adventure, and that could work for or against you

Good luck!

[Neo18]

Originally Posted by Red Liner

Harsh rear suspension is correct but it is also relative to your butt

There are many who seem perfectly happy with the stock suspension and seem to be munching miles like no tomorrow. So this is definitely a user specific issue as opposed to a bike specific issue.

That being said, the zedling kit is very reasonably priced, I expect YSS or Ohlins to cost at least thrice to four times that. Now whether that is worth it for you with remote preload etc, is your call.

Lastly, you would be the first guy experimenting with a zedling unit on the 390 adventure, and that could work for or against you

Good luck!

Coming from a Z800 that had a wooden plank for a seat, the rear adjustable suspension made the ride plush on that bike. With that perspective, I expected the "foamy" seat to compensate a bit for the stiffer suspension on the 390 adv. Need to see what breaks in first, the seat or the butt

Talked to Zedling as early as march/April, they said back then, they have not heard of any major complaints for the front suspension and hence no product plans for now, but they did get a load of enquiries for the rear suspension, as most people found it to be on the stiffer side, especially on trails. The company claims to have sold a lot of rear kits for the 390 adv. Hence wanted to know if someone in this community has had experience with the suspension.

[Red Liner]

Originally Posted by Neo18

The company claims to have sold a lot of rear kits for the 390 adv. Hence wanted to know if someone in this community has had experience with the suspension.

Interesting. Do look up youtube to see if anyone has made any review videos on the unit.

[neil.jericho]

Originally Posted by Neo18

I had the same question post 1000 kilometers on the 390 adv. The rear suspension is rock hard (even on the softest setting) and every bump on the road would be felt on my lower back.

Came across a company called Zedling suspension , based out of Pune and when I enquired if they had a product for the 390 adv, they sent out a form when one is required to fill a lot of information (height, weight, riding predominantly on tarmac or trails, riding with/without pillion etc) .Post this , they did reply that they can make customized springs(Customized Spring rate & Damping) for the rear suspension and costs 8500/- . In Bangalore, GGMC (Gear and Gear Motorcycles) are the official retailers for this suspension and their mechanics are in the process of getting trained by Zedling to handle the fitting and service of these custom suspensions.

I am currently in a dilemma whether to go for this upgrade, or wait for some recognized brand(YSS or Ohlins) to come up with the rear springs, as the rear suspension for my weight(~80 kgs) is worst than my Activa

Anyone who has had experience with Zedling Suspensions in the past, please share your feedback.

I have never heard of them but the very fact that they have a form asking the right questions is fantastic! Are they offering only the custom springs which can replace the OEM spring in the stock rear suspension? Or is it a drop in replacement unit with only preload adjustment?

Either way, Rs 8,500 to improve the ride quality of your bike seems like a worthy investment, especially considering how hard the OEM suspension from KTM is for you.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

I have never heard of them but the very fact that they have a form asking the right questions is fantastic! Are they offering only the custom springs which can replace the OEM spring in the stock rear suspension? Or is it a drop in replacement unit with only preload adjustment?

Either way, Rs 8,500 to improve the ride quality of your bike seems like a worthy investment, especially considering how hard the OEM suspension from KTM is for you.

Isn't it possible to ask them for a reference of a customer in your city who you can contact and take a ride of his bike on?

How is 8500 bucks for what's essentially a spring cheap man?!!!

Cheers, Doc

[neil.jericho]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Isn't it possible to ask them for a reference of a customer in your city who you can contact and take a ride of his bike on?

How is 8500 bucks for what's essentially a spring cheap man?!!!

Cheers, Doc

Yeah, hopefully a reference in the same city can be arranged. I too would prefer that before spending my own dough.

If it is just a spring replacement, then yes, Rs 8,500 for a custom unit can appear to be steep. But at the same time, considering how Neo18 has mentioned that the KTM suspension is literally back breaking, I think its worth it, obviously assuming that it improves the ride quality as advertised and makes it comfortable and usable.

I agree wholeheartedly with your point about 99.99% of us riding around the stock suspension on our bikes. But Neo18 seems to be in that 0.01% who cant, due to the limitations of the KTM Adv 390's suspension.

Beyond a point, a motorcycle with suspension that is too stiff is not fun any longer and one would just sell it and get rid of it. The way I look at it, an investment of Rs 8,500 keeps it in the garage and ensures that it can be enjoyed for many more years to come

P.S. - I prefer holding onto my vehicles for as long as possible, that is something that influences my thought process as well.

[nasirkaka]

Heard the new lot of 390Adv is coming with MRF Mogrip meteor in place of Metzeler tourance. Is it due to lack of available stock, or some cost cutting measure? How do the Mogrips compare to tourance which is a good dual sport tyre.

[nutcracker]

Does anybody have experience with aftermarket cushions, since the seat is kinda too hard for long rides?

I was considering the Ride-on-Air ™ - ADV-Sport - Alpha - Motorcycle Air Seat Cushion - available on Amazon. It costs Rs. 2499.

My only concern is, since the 390 Adv seat tapers thinly going forward, I'm worried whether this seat will slowly slip towards the front, slimmer part of the seat during long rides. That can be an annoyance since I'll to stop and readjust all the time.

Also, there is still no news about official KTM powerparts (as promised) for the KTM 390 Adv, so I am holding back on panniers, saddle bags and top rack/top box. Was thinking about Bungee cords for luggage. Does anybody have experience with them? Which one would you recommend? And how compatible are they with the KTM 390 Adv?

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by nasirkaka

Heard the new lot of 390Adv is coming with MRF Mogrip meteor in place of Metzeler tourance. Is it due to lack of available stock, or some cost cutting measure? How do the Mogrips compare to tourance which is a good dual sport tyre.

That's an easy difference of 15k ... forget about comparing a Metz to an MRF.

Cheers, Doc

[nasirkaka]

Does anybody have experience with aftermarket cushions, since the seat is kinda too hard for long rides?

I have used air cushion from (www.airseat.in). Purchased it mainly as it was available for 1650 after discount. Used it for Bonnie with mixed results. The ride does become comfortable but the road feedback is lost. Rear feels like floating in air. The cushion does not shift much, unless one is into cornering but mentally one is aware of sitting on a separate seat element held on to motorcycle with nylon belt. Another issue cant leave it on bike if one has common apartment like parking, as the fear of puncture is there and its a pain to install for every ride. Eventually i sold the bonnie and gave it to a friend who also used on his bonnie for a while with similar thoughts.

[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by nasirkaka

Heard the new lot of 390Adv is coming with MRF Mogrip meteor in place of Metzeler tourance. Is it due to lack of available stock, or some cost cutting measure? How do the Mogrips compare to tourance which is a good dual sport tyre.

https://www.autocarindia.com/bike-ne...f-tyres-418784

KTM has import issues with Metzelers.

Cheers

[Red Liner]

Honestly I would have dumped the tourance as well brand new and opted for something far chunkier. Sadly with the lockdown imposed within a few weeks of bringing the bike home put paid to all such ideas.

With these mogrips, the decision will be made even easier.

[Neo18]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

I have never heard of them but the very fact that they have a form asking the right questions is fantastic! Are they offering only the custom springs which can replace the OEM spring in the stock rear suspension? Or is it a drop in replacement unit with only preload adjustment?

Either way, Rs 8,500 to improve the ride quality of your bike seems like a worthy investment, especially considering how hard the OEM suspension from KTM is for you.

Zedling, on their website is offering a product which is currently only the spring, customized based on weight/height among other parameters. This is the one that costs 8500/-. They did say that they are going to come up with a complete rear suspension unit which is basically a plug and play unit with customized spring rate and preload. This unit will probably cost close to 20k , since their Customized rear suspension for the ktm 390 duke (for off road) is 19k on their website.

Originally Posted by ebonho

Isn't it possible to ask them for a reference of a customer in your city who you can contact and take a ride of his bike on?

How is 8500 bucks for what's essentially a spring cheap man?!!!

Cheers, Doc

Zedling did say that once retailers are appointed in Bangalore, and once technicians are trained to fit and service these custom suspension, they would invite interested folks(folks who have enquired through the Zedling site), to a demo session where folks can test these suspension (test ride? demo vehicles? not sure what they meant).

But I guess Covid has put a spanner in the works and has thrown the schedule way off. I am yet to get in touch with either Zedling or GGMC post my last conversion with them, which was about 2 months back.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Neo18

Zedling did say that once retailers are appointed in Bangalore, and once technicians are trained to fit and service these custom suspension, they would invite interested folks(folks who have enquired through the Zedling site), to a demo session where folks can test these suspension (test ride? demo vehicles? not sure what they meant).

But I guess Covid has put a spanner in the works and has thrown the schedule way off. I am yet to get in touch with either Zedling or GGMC post my last conversion with them, which was about 2 months back.

Never the same thing as riding a paying customer's bike.

Cheers, Doc