Which bike?

[pdibsie]

Hey guys, I'm new to KTM and looking for a little advice. I recently went to the local dealer to take a look at the 690 Duke and the 690 SMC. They didn't have the SMC, but did happen to have a couple of Super Dukes. Of course the dealer knew how to hook a customer and let me take their demo Super Duke for a 25 minute test ride. Wow. I've only ridden inline-4's, so the torque immediately blew me away. Every part of the bike did, as a matter of fact.

My question is this: are there any 690 Duke riders that wish they'd have splurged on the Super Duke, or are you happy with the ride and power of the Duke?

FYI I'm currently riding a Honda 599, so I'm sure either one will be a nice treat. Thanks!

[NotoriousNick]

I haven't ridden a SD, but have noticed on a number of threads (possibly on the UK KTM forum, can't remember) that rather than Duke riders wishing they had a SD, SD riders got rid of the bigger machines and bought Dukes!

Maybe lighter is better ...

[cbradford]

Hmmm......I might know just the dealer you're talkin about.....I have a 690 Duke I would consider selling although I'm affraid in the long run I'm gonna regret it......
As far as answering your question.....if you're looking for a bike to be the fastest thing around on the back roads and get excelent mileage and turn heads everywhere it goes......the Duke is your machine......don't get it if you're looking to do much offroad riding or LONG jaunts on the interstate.....that's why I'm thinkin about selling mine.....I'm looking to replace it with 2 bikes to do the same job.....a small more offroad friendly sumo that I can still zip around town on but that I can take to the mountains for some single track riding also......and a Super Duke or various model Ducati that I can take on longer trips on the interstate.....
here's said machine.....btw if you rode the same super duke I'm thinkin about with the akra slipons.....this 690 with akra is MUCH louder just to give you an idea but does have baffles to tone it down some.....

Originally Posted by pdibsie

Hey guys, I'm new to KTM and looking for a little advice. I recently went to the local dealer to take a look at the 690 Duke and the 690 SMC. They didn't have the SMC, but did happen to have a couple of Super Dukes. Of course the dealer knew how to hook a customer and let me take their demo Super Duke for a 25 minute test ride. Wow. I've only ridden inline-4's, so the torque immediately blew me away. Every part of the bike did, as a matter of fact.

My question is this: are there any 690 Duke riders that wish they'd have splurged on the Super Duke, or are you happy with the ride and power of the Duke?

FYI I'm currently riding a Honda 599, so I'm sure either one will be a nice treat. Thanks!

[pdibsie]

That's a sexy looking bike you've got there. My problem is I don't have the resources yet to get two different bikes. That's why it would be nice to have the fun around town, but still be able to take longer rides.

I don't know if we're looking at the same dealership. The bike I rode was completely stock. I'm on the Western slope of Colorado, if that helps.

[Danny_Two]

Originally Posted by cbradford

.this 690 with akra is MUCH louder just to give you an idea but does have baffles to tone it down some.....

How is your bike running with the Akro? In the uk the Duke seems to run **** without the stock exhaust. People with the Akro are having a lot of problems with stalling and hunting at low revs, and that's with the ktm fuel maps.

[Bri690]

I wouldn't recommend the Duke 690 for long freeway rides, but it rocks on the back roads.

As far as the choice between the 690 and the SD:

Do you have a lot of $ and like big power, then SD

Less $ and very light weight, awesome handling, then 690.

[jcrocker]

Originally Posted by Bri690

I wouldn't recommend the Duke 690 for long freeway rides, but it rocks on the back roads.

As far as the choice between the 690 and the SD:



Less $ and very light weight, awesome handling, then 690.

I never have any regrets , 690

[jcrocker]

Originally Posted by cbradford

Hmmm......I might know just the dealer you're talkin about.....I have a 690 Duke I would consider selling although I'm affraid in the long run I'm gonna regret it......
As far as answering your question.....if you're looking for a bike to be the fastest thing around on the back roads and get excelent mileage and turn heads everywhere it goes......the Duke is your machine......don't get it if you're looking to do much offroad riding or LONG jaunts on the interstate.....that's why I'm thinkin about selling mine.....I'm looking to replace it with 2 bikes to do the same job.....a small more offroad friendly sumo that I can still zip around town on but that I can take to the mountains for some single track riding also......and a Super Duke or various model Ducati that I can take on longer trips on the interstate.....
here's said machine.....btw if you rode the same super duke I'm thinkin about with the akra slipons.....this 690 with akra is MUCH louder just to give you an idea but does have baffles to tone it down some.....

are you running the full system or just the pipe? , just ordered but curious about the stalling talk

[cbradford]

OOOps my dealer called me last week and said he had someone looking for a 690....I assumed it was you, but I'm in VA.....This bike is fine on longer rides I've done 340 miles in one day.....it's just not great for interstate rides longer than 20-30 miles.

Originally Posted by pdibsie

I don't know if we're looking at the same dealership. The bike I rode was completely stock. I'm on the Western slope of Colorado, if that helps.

The bike runs pretty well. At idle it used to constantly search for RPM but after the Akra remap it idles rock solid....I am still having a stall once in a while but I'm learning to ride so that it doesn't happen as much.....It started to get bad a few weeks ago when I was riding in the city though. Constant stop and go and the bike got hot and shut off 4 or 5 times in 30 minutes of riding.

How is your bike running with the Akro? In the uk the Duke seems to run **** without the stock exhaust. People with the Akro are having a lot of problems with stalling and hunting at low revs, and that's with the ktm fuel maps.

There is no choice when you go Akrapovic. You must run both the down pipe and the muffler together. They get rid of the 3 bolt flange that the factory muffler/pipe have and replace it with a slip joint.

are you running the full system or just the pipe? , just ordered but curious about the stalling talk