[rahul4321]

I am out on a 1200 kilometre solo ride from Ahmedabad to Bhopal and return to Ahmedabad.

Reached Bhopal yesterday and loved the ride. Beautiful acceleration, brakes and the balance is just so sharp - literally on a knife's edge. The new Pirelli's on the rear perfomed very well while the Metzlers upfront were supreme as always. I used to have an all Metzler setup earlier and while the turning and the leaning on the rear was much superior, i had very less grip on roads which were not smooth and exceptionally well paved. The Pirelli's are a notch lower at turning and cornering on smooth roads as compared to the Metzlers but their overall performance on all types of roads - especially in terms of providing grip at the rear on not so smooth roads is very good. However, i kept the front unchanged because i like my braking to be very strong, precise and perfectly balanced - something the Metzler provides in conjunction with thr Bybre's

I covered 600 kilometers in roughly 10 hours - quite happy with the those speeds. I never went above 140 but kept the bike boiling at triple digit speeds all through the ride.

My mileage was just about 20 so I had refuel 3 times on a short 600 kilometre trip - a bummer but it's okay, I can live with a few faults because no bike is perfect

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by rahul4321

Currently; I am enjoying riding both the horses in my stable. In January, I did a 3000 kilometre solo round trip from Ahmedabad to Hyderabad on the D390 and then came back and did a trip to Diu and Pushkar on the Himalayan. Over the weekend – I first ask myself what I am in the mood for and then I pick up the keys to the motorcycle that tugs at my heart.

I seem to be at peace – for now.

I love this, chief :-)

Best wishes for making a thoughtful decision. I have struggled similarly through my 11k/5 year CBR250 ownership and if the D390 Adv was anywhere as genuine an offroader as Himalayan, I would have bought it by now!

[Garylovestorun]

Nice write up, i am a Duke 390 owner for last 3 yrs, and rode three different Bullets for 20 yrs before that.
You have brought out the differences well.

[shabih]

I have been in the same position as you @rahul4321. After living with an RC200 for 2 years, I was itching for something more powerful and I gave in to the hype and picked up a Duke 390 (2015). Picked it up for the brut power and acceleration but living with it was not a great experience, no offense to current D390 owners. I hated it below 2500 rpm, I hated twitchy jerky throttle, the seat, the ergonomics, its highway manners, and scary in-city behaviors. Altogether I was never fond of it and soon after the RE Interceptor launch I put down the money for the 650 and got rid of the Duke. It was good riddance and I am a happy rider with a good bike that listens to me and makes me enjoy & appreciate the short and long rides. I used to dislike RE as well, thinking oh what a dinosaur company making terribly dated bikes but the 650 twin has changed my opinion of them.

Again no offense to current Duke 390 owners. Every bike has its own set of flaws and there must be ways around it, its just that it didn't work for me.

[rahul4321]

Originally Posted by Garylovestorun

Nice write up, i am a Duke 390 owner for last 3 yrs, and rode three different Bullets for 20 yrs before that.
You have brought out the differences well.

Thank you for your kind words

Originally Posted by shabih

I have been in the same position as you @rahul4321. After living with an RC200 for 2 years, I was itching for something more powerful and I gave in to the hype and picked up a Duke 390 (2015). Picked it up for the brut power and acceleration but living with it was not a great experience, no offense to current D390 owners. I hated it below 2500 rpm, I hated twitchy jerky throttle, the seat, the ergonomics, its highway manners, and scary in-city behaviors. Altogether I was never fond of it and soon after the RE Interceptor launch I put down the money for the 650 and got rid of the Duke. It was good riddance and I am a happy rider with a good bike that listens to me and makes me enjoy & appreciate the short and long rides. I used to dislike RE as well, thinking oh what a dinosaur company making terribly dated bikes but the 650 twin has changed my opinion of them.

Again no offense to current Duke 390 owners. Every bike has its own set of flaws and there must be ways around it, its just that it didn't work for me.

100% agreed about the as-good-as-dead torque below 2500 rpm and the twitchy jerky snatchy throttle at low speeds. These are problems which hamper real world rideability and are not just some bells and whistles which would be nice to have. Too bad KTM cant solve these.

Oh yes, the RE 650s are absolutely smoking hot. I actually rode an Intercepter for about 50 odd kilometers on a Sunday Morning Ride and absolutely loved it. The acceleration was brisk, the brakes were absolutely dependable and provided amazing feedback, the weight of the motorcycle kept it planted onto the ground and those old school chrome plated round dials kept me interested in the dashboard too. Possibly the only criticism with the Interceptor I had was its soft seat which - with my weight scrunched up too much and too quickly and made it really uncomfortable for long rides. But other than that - I absolutely loved the Interceptor. It's a fantastic motorcycle by RE

[rahul4321]

Installed the Zana GPS mount on the Duke today.

I was already using the MotoTech Komodo mobile holder earlier. The mount of the mobile holder was earlier directly mounted onto the handlebar (where you can see the Silver blemishes on the left handlebar). However when i turned the motorcycle handlebar to the left in a full lock to lock turn, the mirror handle as well as the nudge from the tank bag fouled with the large mobile pouch and dislodged the pouch off the 4 hinges of the mount (hinges visible in the photo). So the pouch and the mobile inside it fell down once or twice on the road.

Very scary thought proposition on long rides as i had to continually keep looking at the mobile pouch every few minutes to ascertain it was still there.

A few weeks ago, Google showed me the advertisement for this Zana GPS Mount and I promptly purchased it. Its the bar which runs parallel to the handlebar and is a very sturdy unit. I have fitted the Mototech mount on it now and it looks like it will hold the pouch securely without any nudges from either the mirror handle or the tank bank because it is in a different plane geometrically. I do believe when i fix the mobile pouch on the hinges of the mount, it will obstruct the view of the dashboard partially. I will have to crane my neck to view the fuel gauge on the dashboard but its a small price to pay for the peace of mind.

[rahul4321]

The oil seal on one of the front forks gave up once again. I have always had this issue; the rubber oil seal on one of the forks gives up and needs to be replaced. Then the seal on the other fork will give up and will need replacement. Costs me a 1000 bucks each time for a new oil seal + fork oil top up to replace the lost oil + labour + tax.

You can see the two dried up puddles of oil and the oil on the front fork. Got a bashing from my mom too for good measure because of the mess it made in the verandah.

[VijayAnand1]

Originally Posted by rahul4321

The oil seal on one of the front forks gave up once again. I have always had this issue; the rubber oil seal on one of the forks gives up and needs to be replaced. Then the seal on the other fork will give up and will need replacement. Costs me a 1000 bucks each time for a new oil seal + fork oil top up to replace the lost oil + labour + tax.

You can see the two dried up puddles of oil and the oil on the front fork. Got a bashing from my mom too for good measure because of the mess it made in the verandah.

Rahul does the bike frequent pot hole riddled roads and doesn't care for speed breakers? If yes, this is bound to happen, this happens on big bikes too, for that matter. The only solution is to try to keep the fork sliders and the seal periphery clean. The seal has a lot to hold, especially upside down suspenders. Try to slow down on speed breakers and ruts, make sure you clean the fork sliders using a damp cloth every other day, so that the minute dust accumulation that causes fork oil seal leaks will be gotten rid of.

A clean fork is a happy fork, meaning it slides on a clean metal rather than a dust puddled metal which will eventually make the seal give up coupled with our roads and riding style. Hope it helps!

Good luck.

Cheers!
VJ

[rahul4321]

Originally Posted by VijayAnand1

Rahul does the bike frequent pot hole riddled roads and doesn't care for speed breakers? If yes, this is bound to happen, this happens on big bikes too, for that matter. The only solution is to try to keep the fork sliders and the seal periphery clean. The seal has a lot to hold, especially upside down suspenders. Try to slow down on speed breakers and ruts, make sure you clean the fork sliders using a damp cloth every other day, so that the minute dust accumulation that causes fork oil seal leaks will be gotten rid of.

A clean fork is a happy fork, meaning it slides on a clean metal rather than a dust puddled metal which will eventually make the seal give up coupled with our roads and riding style. Hope it helps!

Good luck.

Cheers!
VJ

Thank you so much VJ. You have given me something to think about. The bike never goes over speed breakers and potholes at fast speeds in the city. I ride very carefully and do not abuse it. However, yes - at times when it is fully loaded munching up kilometers on long tours on unfamiliar roads, it does go over a pothole / speedbreaker which just came up in front of me and I did not have any time to avoid it. However - these instances are quite rare as I manage to stop in time 80% of the times.

However, I think - its the 2nd point you made which is very important and relevant to me. I never cleaned the forks till now because I never knew it was important. I've always seen dust and sand there after I have returned from rides but I never knew / thought that a dusty surface has such a drastic effect on the longevity of the oil seals. I will ensure I keep it spick and span now. I think - that is why my motorcycle keeps eating up these front fork oil seals. Thank you so very much for making me aware VJ!

[rahul4321]

Taking a solo trip from Ahmedabad to Daman for the long weekend. The bike munched up the 325 kilometers in no time. I had got the front brake pads changed a few months ago but hadnt got the chance to take it for a long ride. Glad to confirm that Its still a demon on the brakes. The bike stops without any fuss from triple digit speeds with two finger modulation.

The heat in Gujarat is quite a bit but the motorcycle keeps running at 3 heat bars with 2 heat bars still to go- this after keeping the motorcycle at a speed of 90-110 km/hr for almost two hours. Pretty impressive. Looking forward to another exiciting 325 kilometers back home.

[Sudarshan42]

Originally Posted by rahul4321

Currently; I am enjoying riding both the horses in my stable. In January, I did a 3000 kilometre solo round trip from Ahmedabad to Hyderabad on the D390 and then came back and did a trip to Diu and Pushkar on the Himalayan. Over the weekend – I first ask myself what I am in the mood for and then I pick up the keys to the motorcycle that tugs at my heart.

I seem to be at peace – for now.

Thanks for penning your experiences down, Rahul. As someone who has been scouring the market for a new bike, I've pretty much come to the conclusion that there isn't a single bike that can do it all, and horse-for-courses seems to be the better approach. Your journey proves that. Ride safe!

[rahul4321]

Originally Posted by Sudarshan42

Thanks for penning your experiences down, Rahul. As someone who has been scouring the market for a new bike, I've pretty much come to the conclusion that there isn't a single bike that can do it all, and horse-for-courses seems to be the better approach. Your journey proves that. Ride safe!

Thank you so much for your kind words Sudarshan. I can absolutely relate to your conclusion. Age and experiences have taught me that different motorcycles have different virtues and it's probably best to have more than one motorcycle as each motorcycle can then cater to your specific excursions.

[rahul4321]

Completed 20,000 kilometers on the KTM today. The last 5000 took a long time due to Covid (and the Himalayan joining the family).

I completed the 20k kilometers on a 850 kilometer round trip to Vapi and Daman. Rain, mud, the rear wheel slipping, skipping and sliding, brief high speed runs - the trip had it all. I was stuck in heavy traffic between Ankleshwar and Surat for about 2 hours and I was making my way up the road in 1st gear - 2nd gear crawls on the side of the road through sand, wet mud, gravel and packed dirt. The KTM is not the easiest bike to ride in these situations but it did the job without overheating. When i got a clear dry road, I ran it speeds of 100-120 to cool it down. It eagerly sucked up the moisture laden wet cold air like a thirsty lad who had jogged in the afternoon sun

I am so glad i went in for the Pirelli's at the rear this time around. The Metzler rear with their fantastic on road grip had practically no grip offroad while the Pirelli, not as great on road were much better offroad as i found out yesterday. They were gripping adequately and as long as you gently feathered the throttle and the clutch, the bike kept crawling forward through wet muck.

Summary: Metzler - awesome on road. Below average off road. Pirelli - very good everywhere but awesome nowhere

I am now looking at racking up more kilometers on the KTM possibly ranging around 6-8 thousand kilometers / year.

The motorcycle has been generally trouble free and as long as I keep it serviced properly and get the spares changed at regular intervals (chain, sprocket, brake pads, tyres etc), it has never let me down. Incidentally, all my problems with the bike (battery, starter motor, etc) came up because the motorcycle did not run much due to Covid. But as long as i keep riding it for long durations on interstate trips, it keeps on performing reliably day after day like a true workhorse.

[100Kmphormore]

Great review and to the point, Rahul.

I am in exactly the other way round thoughts - own a Himalayan but want a scare you, updated with electronics bike like the Duke 390 now. The Himalayan is great for touring but not breakfast rides. I do breakfast rides every weekend and boy is the Himalayan slow. Did your bike have the slipper clutch and quickshifter/blipper? How does it feel to shift, is it smooth? The Quickshifter is exactly why i am considering the 390. this is the cheapest bike that even has a quickshifter. At nearly 4 lakhs on road, it is not a small amount to do a heart over head purchase :(

[rahul4321]

Originally Posted by 100Kmphormore

Great review and to the point, Rahul.

I am in exactly the other way round thoughts - own a Himalayan but want a scare you, updated with electronics bike like the Duke 390 now. The Himalayan is great for touring but not breakfast rides. I do breakfast rides every weekend and boy is the Himalayan slow. Did your bike have the slipper clutch and quickshifter/blipper? How does it feel to shift, is it smooth? The Quickshifter is exactly why i am considering the 390. this is the cheapest bike that even has a quickshifter. At nearly 4 lakhs on road, it is not a small amount to do a heart over head purchase :(

Thank you so much

Yes, i understand. The Himalayan wouldn't be the best bike for breakfast rides and would leave you pretty frustrated. Its an amazing tourer - but definitely not the correct bike for breakfast rides

My bike has the slipper clutch but not the quickshifter. The slipper clutch is butter smooth and a huge bonus when touring. I go up and down the gearbox seamlessly without having to rpm match -especially while downshifting to avoid the rear wheel hopping. The D390 is great for touring too - except for the LED headlights and the low end torque. You can use both for touring like I do.

Go for it - you will love it!