I got the itch | GTAMotorcycle.com

I got the itch

Baironhorse

Well-known member
Gotta get me a nice dual sport. Ktm adventure is a sweet machine...now the question. Should I wait till I can afford a used stock 990 or 1100 (?). Or will the 950 be just fine. I wanna hear from the ones that ride these bikes in our back yard and not some desert tester off the Internet. Also what do you consider acceptable milage for these twins. What's high low? I wanna do some planning and starts with your stories.. help a the lone 640 single lc4 jump into the lc8 twin world!
 
I have owned a 2004 950 adventure, a 2012 990 adventure R and a 2014 1190 adventure. It all depends on what you want to do with the bike - mostly road touring, gravel and some off road, mostly off road, etc.
- the 950 is carbeurated and they are extremely reliable once properly sorted - I got 59,000km out of mine and it's still going. My friend has 96,000km on his and it reads perfect compression when tested last month.
- the 990 is more powerful (rated at 20hp more but it feels like a lot more), is fuel injected and can feel like it's got a snatchy throttle from factory but that's a very easy and cheap fix. I loved my former 990R, best adventure bike I ever had. Both the 950 and 990 are equal for off road riding in terms of weight, capability and components - the 990 was an evolution of the 950.
- the 1190 is a completely different animal in every sense of the word in terms of power, complexity, cost to buy and run and it's off road capability and durability.

depending on what you want, how you want to ride it and how much you can spend, I'd say:
1- 990 adventure model years 2009 and up (worthwhile updates in 2009) - best for touring, city hooliganism and highly capable off road with the right tires
2- 2007-2009 950 super enduro if you could actually find one - lighter than its adventure counterpart by over 60 pounds, zero wind protection and smaller fuel capacity so it's less touring-friendly but incredible off road: the best geometry, weight balance and suspension of any large off road bike ever made

whatever you find, feel free to ping me for any input - I know these bikes inside out and I know most of the ones out there in the ADV community. There are some rare gems worth looking for if you can budget extra for them: any 950S (taller suspension), any 990 Dakar or R, 2013 Baja edition. I would not hesitate to buy a bike with 40,000km on it provided it's been properly maintained and updated (updates are widely documented and cheap to perform). The LC8 engine and platform is virtually bulletproof. They were designed to compete and endur true Dakar conditions without failure. They really are that good.
 
I have owned a 2004 950 adventure, a 2012 990 adventure R and a 2014 1190 adventure. It all depends on what you want to do with the bike - mostly road touring, gravel and some off road, mostly off road, etc.
- the 950 is carbeurated and they are extremely reliable once properly sorted - I got 59,000km out of mine and it's still going. My friend has 96,000km on his and it reads perfect compression when tested last month.
- the 990 is more powerful (rated at 20hp more but it feels like a lot more), is fuel injected and can feel like it's got a snatchy throttle from factory but that's a very easy and cheap fix. I loved my former 990R, best adventure bike I ever had. Both the 950 and 990 are equal for off road riding in terms of weight, capability and components - the 990 was an evolution of the 950.
- the 1190 is a completely different animal in every sense of the word in terms of power, complexity, cost to buy and run and it's off road capability and durability.

depending on what you want, how you want to ride it and how much you can spend, I'd say:
1- 990 adventure model years 2009 and up (worthwhile updates in 2009) - best for touring, city hooliganism and highly capable off road with the right tires
2- 2007-2009 950 super enduro if you could actually find one - lighter than its adventure counterpart by over 60 pounds, zero wind protection and smaller fuel capacity so it's less touring-friendly but incredible off road: the best geometry, weight balance and suspension of any large off road bike ever made

whatever you find, feel free to ping me for any input - I know these bikes inside out and I know most of the ones out there in the ADV community. There are some rare gems worth looking for if you can budget extra for them: any 950S (taller suspension), any 990 Dakar or R, 2013 Baja edition. I would not hesitate to buy a bike with 40,000km on it provided it's been properly maintained and updated (updates are widely documented and cheap to perform). The LC8 engine and platform is virtually bulletproof. They were designed to compete and endur true Dakar conditions without failure. They really are that good.

You see this is what I wanted to hear!...Not sure if coming to Canada yet but any opinion on the Honda crf1100Africa Twin?
 
The new Africa twin is in fact coming to Canada and I'm excited given what I've seen and read but compared to the current KTM 1190 adventure R:
1- it's only a few pounds lighter yet only has 100hp vs the KTM's 150
2- it actually has more suspension travel and ground clearance than the KTM 1190 but I'm not certain that the Showa based suspension could equal KTM's WP suspension
3- tires are not going to be tubeless (probably not an issue for anyone who really wants to ride a lot of off road)
4- as an option, it has the Honda famous DCT gearbox for those who don't want to pull a clutch and change gears with their feet anymore. I'm not one of those people but I have to admit that is the direction everything is going in and the adventure market is ripe for some new innovation. There are times where I wish I could change gears with my thumbs instead of my foot but there are also times when I wish I had a left hand rear brake lever in addition to the rear brake pedal.

having said all that, it's going to be about $17,000 and you can buy a very good 950adv with similar power to weight ratio for about $6000 and budget about $1500 for all the accessories / farkles you'll ever need plus it's such a well developed and proven chassis and engine with a massive global community of parts / service / advice / forum experience and they are truly bulletproof. It's up to you: brand new, expensive and modern or cheaper, bulletproof simple reliability. I've been eyeing the 2016 KTM 500 EXC Six Days edition which has me absolutely salivating but at the end of the day, I don't want to thrash a $13,000 dirt bike around and cry every time I drop and scratch it. There's a lot to be said about riding a bike that doesn't cost a fortune and survives crashes incredibly well. A 950/990 can fall on its side all day long and probably not even suffer a single wound where the 1190 adventure is far more exposed to breakage by virtue of its design (tank fairings, low mounted muffler sticking out, etc). The tank fairing cover alone on the KTM 1190 is $485 and they are very exposed to damage from a simple tip-over. Buy the best 950/990 that you can afford and you will not regret it one iota.
 
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The new Africa twin is in fact coming to Canada and I'm excited given what I've seen and read but compared to the current KTM 1190 adventure R:
1- it's only a few pounds lighter yet only has 100hp vs the KTM's 150
2- it actually has more suspension travel and ground clearance than the KTM 1190 but I'm not certain that the Showa based suspension could equal KTM's WP suspension
3- tires are not going to be tubeless (probably not an issue for anyone who really wants to ride a lot of off road)
4- as an option, it has the Honda famous DCT gearbox for those who don't want to pull a clutch and change gears with their feet anymore. I'm not one of those people but I have to admit that is the direction everything is going in and the adventure market is ripe for some new innovation. There are times where I wish I could change gears with my thumbs instead of my foot but there are also times when I wish I had a left hand rear brake lever in addition to the rear brake pedal.

having said all that, it's going to be about $17,000 and you can buy a very good 950adv with similar power to weight ratio for about $6000 and budget about $1500 for all the accessories / farkles you'll ever need plus it's such a well developed and proven chassis and engine with a massive global community of parts / service / advice / forum experience and they are truly bulletproof. It's up to you: brand new, expensive and modern or cheaper, bulletproof simple reliability. I've been eyeing the 2016 KTM 500 EXC Six Days edition which has me absolutely salivating but at the end of the day, I don't want to thrash a $13,000 dirt bike around and cry every time I drop and scratch it. There's a lot to be said about riding a bike that doesn't cost a fortune and survives crashes incredibly well. A 950/990 can fall on its side all day long and probably not even suffer a single wound where the 1190 adventure is far more exposed to breakage by virtue of its design (tank fairings, low mounted muffler sticking out, etc). The tank fairing cover alone on the KTM 1190 is $485 and they are very exposed to damage from a simple tip-over. Buy the best 950/990 that you can afford and you will not regret it one iota.

You bring up great points...Honda has always been on lower end of hp scale but adequate torque. The XR is a great example at least on the big bore singles that dominated Baha.but they are low tech old tried design...they are one of the most reliable and bullet proof single bore engine out there. I will keep mine and it's a tank and I luv that bike.. I find they don't make the best DS until you rebuild that soft plush suspension which does not come close to WP set ups..the xr converted supermoto although capable needs a lot of work to compete with a out of the box KTM... KTM is more cutting edge with very good premium quality build and parts...u get what u pay for...I like what I hear from the lc8 as this is a new world for me. Ideally I would like to get a good clean used bike 5000-7000 price range to get my feet wet...from what I read in this thread I am leaning towards 950 990 as it will suite my needs better.feul injection would be nice been on carbs all my life!...couple of questions:
1. Is maintenance doable on your own.
2. What are the service intervals like?
3. How is bike on Highway? How does it handle windblast and high winds? I get destroyed on my Duke after 3 hrs of riding on a windy day. More curious!
At the end of day my heart is closer to DS than street as I enjoy single track and the fire road blazing...
When I was in Europe last yr I rode for the day a 07 or 09 450 ex Damon Ramos edition enduro...what a great bike it was...different world than honda...fun fun fun.
 
The motor in my 950 SM is the same as what you are looking at- and it rocks. Never feels like it needs more....an absolute hooligan bike if there ever was one-and it sounds like Nascar right between your legs.
Note- stock clutch slave will fail if not replaced by a nice billet Oberone or Evo unit- cheap and easy to fix.
 
1- maintenance is a piece of cake. 24,000 km valve adjustments; fuel tanks come off for that but it's easy otherwise. Oil changes are no problem and www.tuneecu.com allows you to load Ecuador maps and adjust other functions easily by yourself. The bike is highly intuitive in terms of its design and components are plentiful and there's a massive aftermarket world for them.
2- see above - easy air filter service, easy oil changes, chains last forever, bearings hardly ever need replacing. Big brembo brakes never need rebuilding and aftermarket brake pads are piss cheap
3- it's heavy enough to be highly stable, even from side winds. I'm 6'3" and I struggled with finding the right windscreen and helmet combination but that was an easy fix with a Rally Raid windscreen and different mirrors. I spent ten hour days at 135kph loaded with gear - zero issues and it got me 300km per tank at those speeds with full load of gear.
4- for a large D/S bike, twit has no equal, not even the KTM 1190 which lacks it's D/S biased weight balance and ruggedness. The engine purrs and when pushed, it's pure sex and power wherever and whenever you need. It's the only bike that carries 21/18 wheels just like a smaller D/S yet can carve turns like a sport touring bike and still allow you 140kph on soft gravel without flinching.

950 or 990, you choose - they're basically the same with the exception of a slight displacement difference and fuel injection. The 950 with carbs is amazing and the 990 with fuel injection is even smoother and faster in every gear. You will not regret either of them and if you're smart, you'll keep it forever. I still regret selling my 2012 990R...
 
1- maintenance is a piece of cake. 24,000 km valve adjustments; fuel tanks come off for that but it's easy otherwise. Oil changes are no problem and www.tuneecu.com allows you to load Ecuador maps and adjust other functions easily by yourself. The bike is highly intuitive in terms of its design and components are plentiful and there's a massive aftermarket world for them.
2- see above - easy air filter service, easy oil changes, chains last forever, bearings hardly ever need replacing. Big brembo brakes never need rebuilding and aftermarket brake pads are piss cheap
3- it's heavy enough to be highly stable, even from side winds. I'm 6'3" and I struggled with finding the right windscreen and helmet combination but that was an easy fix with a Rally Raid windscreen and different mirrors. I spent ten hour days at 135kph loaded with gear - zero issues and it got me 300km per tank at those speeds with full load of gear.
4- for a large D/S bike, twit has no equal, not even the KTM 1190 which lacks it's D/S biased weight balance and ruggedness. The engine purrs and when pushed, it's pure sex and power wherever and whenever you need. It's the only bike that carries 21/18 wheels just like a smaller D/S yet can carve turns like a sport touring bike and still allow you 140kph on soft gravel without flinching.

950 or 990, you choose - they're basically the same with the exception of a slight displacement difference and fuel injection. The 950 with carbs is amazing and the 990 with fuel injection is even smoother and faster in every gear. You will not regret either of them and if you're smart, you'll keep it forever. I still regret selling my 2012 990R...

This is amazing info. Thank you. I don't mind a tall seating bike as I am 6'2. How is the saddle ergo? Japanese all out flat to me and the ergo just doesn't feel right. Ultimately I gotta sit in the saddle...but the winter gives you something to think about!
 
I'm not only 6'3" but actually long legged for my height and when I moved from my 990AdvR to my 1190, I was actually somewhat disappointed that the footpeg to seat distance had been decreased on the 1190 to make it more friendly for those not as tall as us. There is a plethora of seat options for the 950/990 adv from the standard seat, scooped comfort seat, tall and narrow R seat and a ton of aftermarket with the Renazco suede seat being the best by far but I loved my 990R seat and for very long trips, I used an Airhawk pad which is an ***-saver but only for the longest of trips. For off road / dual sport riding, you'll want a pair of handlebar risers for your height if you stand a lot but they're cheap too and even available from www.rallyconnex.com who make a very simple and effective pair that many people use.

Your duke 640 will feel like an absolute dinosaur in terms of the engine and chassis. The LC8 v-twin is so refined and smooth and its a freight train on highways.
 
Every time I see this thread title in my timeline I think it's about someone getting crabs.
I'll see myself out.

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The orange 950 looks so sweet!
Yes, but did you notice all the extras on the black one?

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My biggest gripe about owning an LC8 twin?
Oil changes are a pain if you are used to a Japanese bike.
LC8 has filter and screen, two covers with seals, different sized bolts on each and differnt torque specs for them.
My bike is 100% naked and it still takes way more time than a spin on oil filter change.
 
Yes, but did you notice all the extras on the black one?

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Did not look at the details because I am not looking to get one. I just like the way that bike looks physically in orange. I am a huge CB500X as I am sure everyone who's read my posts knows already, you should buy one Joe.
 
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On the 950/990 adventure, the oil drain hose kit makes a huge difference in effort for oil changes.

For example: http://www.cjdesignsllc.com/products/cj-designs-lc8-adv-oil-tank-hose-kit/



My biggest gripe about owning an LC8 twin?
Oil changes are a pain if you are used to a Japanese bike.
LC8 has filter and screen, two covers with seals, different sized bolts on each and differnt torque specs for them.
My bike is 100% naked and it still takes way more time than a spin on oil filter change.
 
Nam is saving his pennies for suspension and spoked 19/17 wheels - if you're going to keep riding off road, you need those things. It's a pity though how expensive the rally raid stuff is and I'm willing to bet that there are other options for wheels aside from rally raid.

Did not look at the details because I am not looking to get one. I just like the way that bike looks physically in orange. I am a huge CB500X as I am sure everyone who's read my posts knows already, you should buy one Joe.
 
I like the orange one I posted. Which one are you talking about, this one: http://www.kijiji.ca/v-dirt-bikes-m...re/1103932935?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

i like it too, mileage is higher and I love the 17" rims for touring / canyon carving but I think the right price for it is something under $7000 and probably closer to $6500 - given the time of the year, if you were serious about getting it, I'd say take a run at it with a low offer and see what you could get it for provided it's mechanically sound. Are you really going to use the other set of wheels? Is it going to be one of those things where you always run the street wheels and install the original ones with aggressive tires for off road riding? Given that the second set has a sprocket and brake rotors, it's a ten to fifteen minute job if you've got front and rear stands. Let me know if you want help looking at any of them.
 

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