Rimtape

Just an observation on the Superduke website nowadays.

Shoot me down. I deserve it but…….

Do 1290 owners do any mods to their bikes at all except put on rim tape decals?

When are you lot going to start modding the bike in the way people really mod bikes after six months of ownership? What are there mechanical things you've worked out need sorting? What are the engine mods that unleash more power that the factory had to hide due to emissions regs? What happens when you remove the air box? What happens when you start tinkering with the electronics? What happens when you start changing the steering geometry or swapping out the suspension for something else?

Oh, I forgot. The new KTM 1290 is a bike that has too much electronic trickery for any mere mortal to tinker with. I empathise, I wouldn't know where to begin with this.

The engine is basically a sealed unit and no one dare go inside it for fear of invalidating the warranty. I'd feel the same guys.

All the shit manufacturing issues to do with leaking oil is not something you can just fix. It is just badly made.

The rear wheel bearing? What can I say? I think it's all been said.

The bad finish on cast components? It's not something you can really fix is it? Just get to live with.

The badly made stuff like mirror stems braking etc. Well get some other mirrors, job done.

Which leaves you all with nothing to do except……..

Communicate endlessly which exhaust you are all going to buy. Answer: Any that does away with the shit emissions Euro regulated crap that was OE. Just pay a lot off cash and take your pick. Very few of you will be able to feel the actual performance enhancement. Christ the standard OE silenced engine makes far more than I could ever really cope with anyway.

Discuss and show off your generic and obvious wheel colour customisation, (orange and white with "ready to race" copy).

And for all you others that don't know how to remove thew wheels.

Rim tape.

It always seems to come down to rim tape.

All this makes me want to slash my wrists. Sorry but if this is what biking and forum debates about ownership have come down to then I just need to vent.

There are some exceptions to the rule in SD1290 ownership on this forum. You know who you are. This is not vented at you lot:)

But the rest of you lot.

So maybe you should just ask the admin to start a new topic called the "Mod Squad" and ignore the rest of the Forum.

So what's really bothering you! Bike won't start.

Seriously!

Sorry, are you a rim tape person?

No, bike is starting fine now thanks, put in a new battery and now start the process of finding out why the old one couldn't tackle a pretty ordinary journey in the rain.

But yes, I do as you advise, ignore the part of the forum that has diluted a once passionate and informed group of people into a banal and shallow group of orange fashionistas.

Seriously.

Seriously!

I agree the forum is boring right now. But what have you done to contribute. And by the way this thread is pretty boring as well. I think it time to go riding . I got my bike just the way I like it right now. Don't feel the need to mode it at this point any further than it is. It's doing every thing right. It handle beautifully. The motor for agressive street riding is perfect compared to my old 08 SDR 990. I'm afraid at this point if I mode it it will loose the near perfect balance.

Btw I don't like rim tape. If I'm going to bolt anything to my bike it's going to have to add performance. I may try one of the air box modes and power commander and fook with the tuning in the future. But right now I'm satisfied.

Edit: Oh yea I'm a street rider only. But like to go fast in the turns. And use all the performance the bike has( I twist the throttle wide open). I'm sure I'm not in your league though.

Current bolt on modes:

Ergo sport seat.
Hooligan pegs.
Suspension: New front springs. Rear Ohlins shock.
Akrapovic race exhaust system.
Dunlop Q3 tyres.

Now settle down Bic we all know how much you hate rim tape.

As for mods for me it will be the same as the 990. Wait for guys much smarter than me to carry them out and see if they are worthwhile but to be honest you dont really need more power and unlike the 990 the delivery is smooth and it is quite happy in any zone. A lot of mods were carried out on the 990 to make it a more civilised bike which to KTM credit they got the 1290 pretty much right (fuelling and rideability wise) with the exception of a few teething issues.
For me the 1290 stock is a far better bike than my modded 990, as it should be.
The high purchase price might go someway to stopping peeps fooking with it too much to void warranty.
I am happy with the AR pipe and will eventually fit a Rotty but between the MHR and the Tiger rebuild it leave little play money left over for add ons to the 1290, so the rim tape will have to wait

Why don't you buy one yourself and crack on with the mods ??

Seems you have been unhappy with the forum for while now. What can I say..? Even solid gold pussy gets old! Maybe it's time to move on. Maybe it's time to get something entirely new that you don't completely understand, but are intrigued about. Crazy is good, but too crazy is bad. No sense in bagging on a forum. Don't be a Debby Downer. Adapt to your surroundings. Become to specialized you may go extinct.

Cheers

Have you ever considered that some 1290 owners may be spending their spare time (rainy days) modifying other bikes instead and just RIDING their 1290??

P.S. I don't have rim tape!

P.P.S. I do have Bodis Decat, BMW S1000RR silencer, home fabricated tail tidy and home fabricated race screen

Comrade Bic: You know the answer to your own questions. Your problem is that you are relatively old-skool

KTM have looked to expand their customer base and have chosen to pursue new owners rather than repeat owners They are looking to attract a younger client and have, like BMW, built some models that will appeal to new buyers. Those new buyers are growing up in an environment of bolt on bling and shop-window watching. One only has to pick up a magazine to realise that what is being discussed is show rather than go. Indeed, as a responsible motorcycle builder KTM have decided to make their next model track only

The 1290R really is locked down unless you have enough experience and confidence to take a financial hit if whatever you are doing (mod wise) goes pear-shaped. Unfortunately, younger buyers generally don't have enough money to gamble with pears. I've made the point elsewhere that the rapid turnover of 1290's might indicate that some of our younger members have been drawn in by the marketing hype on the 1290 and over-extended themselves. Teething problems in that situation don't help. The point is that at this moment in time the 1290 is still an expensive toy to be mucking about with and it is also difficult for some people who might be relatively new to technical stuff. The desire is there but the way forward isn't so easy. If the market drops out more experimentation might occur.

In my own defence I can say that my only mod is a rad-guard. I absolutely refuse to buy an exhaust that I can't tune the engine to and have chosen to spend my money (about $1,500 so far) on electronic gizmo's that one day might help the comrades to tune their own bikes. I could have spent the money on a PC5 Etc but the bike already has, as you say, enough power. Personally, I'm more interested in freeing my poor tortured engine than what it's exhaust sounds like, but that idea is,as we know, old-skool

As an aside, younger buyers should be buying the 990 rather than the 1290 because that bike lends itself to technical improvement and as much bling as one can point a stick at

I am a younger rider, I am also someone that would post on here asking for peoples opinions on what they thought about the cosmetic mod of my bike i.e. Rimtape but is that not what a forum is for - asking opinions and questions to more knowledgeable owners?? - The point of me asking would be to feel included in a community or like minded people or is that not what this forum is about?? - I hope not!

I am also aware that i might not be able to pay the amount of money required if i broke it due to a mod - so i would stick to smaller cosmetic mods - that doesn't mean i shouldn't own a 1290, it just means i should either learn more about it (which a forum would help on) or not attempt it until I could afford to fix it.

There is also the fact that some owners just like the bike - they don't want to modify the engine...

I totally agree with jmann.

Well so far my 1290 has the Akro full exhaust, air filter SAS etc. Alloy triple clamps and upgraded steering damper, crash bungs, some CF. Got a PCV to go on with quick shifter and hoping to get a Rootveiler Airbox ASAP. Best bike I've every owned and loving it. I'm guessing I'm about the same age as you Bic and have grown up with Yamaha two strokes and Kawasaki triples. Lately I've had a succession of SDs (20005,2009 and 2008 SDR). The great think about the new SDR is the engine is such a peach. I've had virtually nothing go wrong in the year I've owned it. I don't really understand the overt resentment you (Bic) have shown to the new bike. I loved my old SDs but Lord knows plenty went wrong with them. If you don't like the new bike that's fine, it does actually mean it's dreadful it's just not for you. Personally it's the best fun I've ever had with any bike. I've used it a reasonable amount and it just gets better. Taking her to the IOM this year and hoping to get some track time as well.

To be honest I do have an issue with rimtape! Since I'm old fashion and value craftsmanship I recon it should be painted on a bit like the trim lines on a Rolls Royce!

I'm also value the Darwin awards so I suggest the following:
Get a good quality brush and paint in the colour you want. Don't hold back get the best, it's a superduke so let the cash flow.
Get some preferred drinks in a reasonable quantity as good jobs in the shed deserve a drink!
Start with the back wheel and remember, preparation is everything so have a few cold ones with your helping buddy while doing the hard graft of sanding and degreasing the rim with nasty chemicals.
Put the bike on a stand so the wheel can rotate freely.
Have a drink to stabilise the hands for the difficult and precise task ahead!
Start the engine and let it warm up a bit so you have the time for another nerve calming refreshment!

Put it in 4th gear and let your by now pissed helper give it some throttle so the gyro effect stabilizes the bike for a more accurate line.
Find a stable point and use the quality brush to carefully apply the paint at the correct spot.
If somehow you still have both hands and you made a bit of a mess with the paint use a rattle can sprayed trough the chain to cover the mistake up with a dotted line as that will look cool!

BTW don't try this at home, do it somewhere else....

Bic is a designer, so he knows what looks good.
He was out last night putting the finishing touches to his stealth Superduke…

^^^Best it has ever looked.

Ha! Vey good Millar!

That's what this forum is all about. Good piss taking but all taken with a pitch of salt.

My bike looks good with rim tape!

Jman. You are a brother. In many ways. Respect.

Seriously Bic,your bike looks so cool with rim tape.

I think in light of bic_bicknell's recent posts the moderators may want to add a sticky for this sheet. Maybe they can arrange some counseling or mediation for the parties involved:

Love it!

Extreme rim tape . . .

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sticker-Wheel ... 419192a41e

I just received these in a package from West Sussex, UK. Do we know anyone from there ?

Here's my two cents on mods and rimtape.

To me, sadder than rimtape, orange fashionistas or (a sword was included with the bike? ), is to seeing people on the roads not having a clue of how to ride their supermega modded bikes properly. And I wonder, why in the heck would I want to mod my bike, if she has more power than I'm capable of handle? Just to showing off? Are we really counting horses here? Why not squeeze all the bike's potential before I start tunning up my ride? At the end, you won't get by tunning your bike, the riding skills that you may lack. Wait, neither by rimtaping!

Think about this, if you please, how much have you invested in tunning your very looooooooong list of rides? And how much have you invested improving your riding skills? I've may not had the need of tunning too much if I was really an expert rider, right? Or maybe you have mischosen your hobby, you like to ride, but maybe you should be a mechanic instead, if modding is what you really enjoy to do, I don't know... maybe another bike will fulfill your needs better, than making a thousand mods that won't get you where you want to go with your bike now.

I like mods, I've done a lot of them in my life, but strangely I don't dislike rimtape 'per se' (even your blacky looks nice with some of it! ), but what I do like above it all, is to ride my bike. And there's where I think we riders should be improving, instead of in counting horses... or decorating christmas trees.

Now, you can shoot me. Cheers!