Ducati Monster Forum

Yesterday I took a ride over to the local Yamaha/KTM emporium, hoping to see a Duke 690. No luck on the thumper, but they had a white '08 990 demo on the floor.

"Of course I want to ride it....."

All I can say is wow. I took it on a 5-10 mile blast on a favorite road and can't say I can find fault with it anywhere (well, I guess it does need more obnoxious exhaust....). What a handler, and the clutch/gearbox action is sublime. They've got a price of $12.5K on it, which could drop a bit more IMO, after checking eBay. Seriously thinking about it....

(http://i367.photobucket.com/albums/oo118/Speedbag/whiteduke.jpg)

The owner of the place had his newly acquired 1098R there also. I made him fire it up to hear those 70mm Termis bark. What a beauty, wish I had that kind of cash to drop on a bike. Drool....

Form personal experience I much prefer the S4RS over the KTM.  Having said that it is a very good motorcycle and KTM has a parts catalog that could put you in the poor house. The WP suspension is probably equal to the Ohlins units too. Over the weekend the local KTM shop offered a friend of mine a brand new one for just over $10K. That's a deal. [thumbsup]

LA

I lust after the S4Rs, but honestly I'm just not keen on the typical/frequent belts and valves routine after having my M900. I talked to their tech in detail regarding maintenance on the 990 and it doesn't seem too bad.

And, yes, the KTM goodie book is amazing....

They'll have to drop a bit more in price to get me. I'm considering swapping a quad, have to see what kind of deal we can swing. If it's sweet enough, I might have a new troublemaker.

I looked at those seriously before I bought the S4.   I decided that I didn't want to drop $14 large or so on a toy (it was the R version with the CNC ported heads, light flywheel, and bigger injectors, according to the salesman).   As far as the price of KTM accessories, has anyone looked at the Ducati accessory catalog?   I'd say damn close on prices. 

They are bad ass bikes. 

There are also leftover Supermoto 950's out there still, too. 

+1

I initially went down to demo the 990 SD, and when they were all full all that was left was a 950SM.

It was about the ugliest bike I'd ever seen but I wanted to ride something so i took it.

It was the most fun I'd ever had on 2 wheels.

Fast forward 2 years and I sold my 675 and was on the hunt for a 950sm when that same dealer had a left over 07 950SMR (juicy WP stuff, different tank and seat, blacked out stuff etc) for $11.5K plus the taxes and stuff.

I found a used 950SMR with 486 miles on it and got it for $8300.  The thing is a rocket in disguise.  It will leave most sportbikes for dead in the hands of a good rider.  Notice I said good rider, not great rider.  This is an easy bike to ride.  I wheelies and stoppies like crazy, and will damn near lean over to the horizontal.

I added racks and bags meant for the Super Enduro (same bike but spoked wheels and knobbies) and rode it 1340 miles to DIMBY and back.

I can take it down dirt roads and not cringe.  And I do ;D

What I ended up hating about the 990SD was the fuel injection.  I found it very unsettling when you rolled off the throttle.  Very very jerky.

The Supermoto's (950's) are carb'd and run pretty smooth.

A set of FCR flat slides on one of these bikes would turn it into a widow maker.  I think I read about someone doing it on a Super enduro with *excellent* results.

You owe it to yourself to demo a 950 Supermoto, R version or not.

I like both of Duke's - super and non-super.
Have been at tests, very good stuff to ride. But after all Ducati has style and KTM  -just orange (or grey).
;)

You're right on about the 950 SuperMoto. My Bro-in-law has been riding one since 2006. It's a hell of a good motorcycle - one of the best handling bikes ever and up to something over 120 or so will keep up with almost anything.

Of course you have to put the Akrapovic Ti cans and do some carb/airbox mods to make it work like it should, but one hell of a great bike.

LA

Orange disease is right....

Anybody got any FHE on the 690 Duke? That's the one that really seems super silly fun.....and I found one only an hour from me.

I had an 06 Super Duke before my current S4RS.  I had an unfortunate accident on the KTM after the gearbox locked up while in 4th gear.  The resulting sliding and bounding down the road led to the bike being replaced.  KTM didn't want to listen to my concerns about the failure.  I sent them photos of the straight section of road, with a 30 foot long tire mark prior to me coming off the bike.  As the insurance company had paid for the bike to be removed from the scene, KTM saw it as an insurance (rather than warranty) matter.

I pushed the insurance company to see if they would send the bike back to KTM, but they seemed to just want to py the claim and be done with it.  I offered to go and strip the bike to found the exact cause of the failure, only to be told that interfering with the bike now could lead to the insurance claim being knocked back...

Having said that, I am over the moon with the way the S4RS makes me feel when I ride it.  It's quicker accelerating, sounds better, looks better (IMO), less wind buffeting for my 6' frame.

I think the KTM had better initial turn-in, was a bit cheaper to buy initially, a bit cheaper on servicing.

Both great bikes, but I wouldn't even consider another KTM until I could be sure that the transmission wouldn't let me down.  Bouncing down the road at 75mph is not something I want to repeat anytime soon.

I had the same thing happen to my 900ss on the track 4 weeks ago.  I managed to stay up though (and I was going significantly faster than 75 at the time.)  My point is that something like that isn't specific to any brand.  Shit happens.

That being said, here are a couple good videos of SM tomfoolery ;D

KTM 950 Supermoto on the track - Vid1, left side Cam (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=en2HUjq-DXU#lq-lq2-hq-vhq)

ktm 950 sm (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmeZ2DZINb4&NR=1#lq-lq2-hq-vhq)

I sat on a superduke at the dealer last year and the seat felt like a 2x6 wrapped in vinyl.  Is it better when actually riding?

Not likely.

;D

Yeah, the monster seats are plush marvels of comfort.  [laugh]

Don't you just love the way that guy in the first video just motored around all those GSXR's, R-1's or 6's or whatever, on his converted dirtbike?   After all, those things started out as 950 SuperEnduros.   That guy was smooth. 

And that Russian (I assume) guy was an excellent rider also.    Maybe I should have bought one of those when I had the chance.    Nah, I'd be in jail by now. 

[laugh]

I took 1 for a test ride today, and I have to say that it is a pretty nice bike. The exhaust is too quite and there were times when going through a corner that I felt like I was going to fall off, but the engine was super smooth and so was the gear box. With the monster I get a sore left wrist and you hear the notorious clunk when shifting. I wont be giving up the S2R any time soon , but if I had an extra 15k laying around the Duke may find its way into my garage.

If you had 15K laying about, you could buy a S4RS and find yourself right in moto Nirvana. The Ducati is a better motorcycle, but like the KTM requires a bit of fiddlin to make it "right" - cans, airbox and fueling at a minimum.

LA

I can't agree.  My SMR is all stock.

Well, ok I did a -1 sprocket in the front.

It absolutely crushes.  It's more bike than I know what to do with.

I don't think you can compare an S4RS to any KTM (other than RC8) because that engine just stomps.

;D

Get them both [evil]  It's only money

greek. but he is really good.

Your SMR is a fine bike - very fine.  But at about 120 mph the S4RS will walk off on you and handles just as well in the very tightest terrain.   The Ducati just out powers the KTM at about that speed. I've done it too many time to be convinced otherwise.  Bring it on. ;D

But I will have to heal from my hip replacement before. Give me a week.

LA

I don't spend much time above 120 MPH.  ;)

(although I did twist it up to that on the test romp)

I know what  you mean. Actually, a hot rod 650 single is bad ass up to about 105 mph.  Many of my two wheeled brethren have acquired dual sport singles just because of the power and handling of the single - up to a point. KTM690 comes to mind.

I pretty much do run my bike wide open and well above 120 every time I take it out, which is pretty much every day.

Heck a Fully kitted S4RS geared at 14/43 or 14/44 will hit 130 mph so fast, not too much real estate is needed.

No, I gotta admit, I don't think any informed motorcyclist would be disappointed in ownership of any of the KTM line. And with the accouterments available in that KTM catalog you can tune at the same level achievable in the Ducati arena for sure.

LA

Bingo. That one is the one I really wanted to see when I ended up riding the 990, and I think it would fit the bill just fine for tearing it up around the lakes in my area.

I have a 2008 Superduke as well as a 1098s and 848. I can say without any hesitation that the KTM is the best road bike I have ever owned or ridden (including the S4RS which I have ridden for over 1000 miles). I went through a lot of consternation because I really wanted the S4RS to be the bike I wanted but after riding both, the Superduke outhandled to S4 every time especially in the really tight switchback stuff. I put the full Akropovich system on it and it is almost as loud as the full termi system on the 1098. Obviously, different bikes appeal to different people. For me, the SD is the most intuitively handling bike for the road I have ever ridden.
Also, the 4.8 gallon tank lets me go 150-180 miles on it without a problem.

If only I could move my ATV.....  :P Damn economy. (And the dealer seems to think he can get more than it's worth.)

The thing I liked a lot was how your knees seemingly could almost touch on the SD despite being separated by the tank.

Whee.  ;D

Might as well go with the "R".

(http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa91/chiflado/ktm-990-super-duke-r-07.jpg)

(http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa91/chiflado/KTM_990_Super_Duke_R_07.jpg)

Uh oh!  Guess I should go change my shorts...

According to the salesman at Santa Barbara KTM Kawasaki whatever, that R model has CNC ported heads, a lighter flywheel and either bigger injectors or 1 more injector per cylinder.  Of course, that might all be salesman b_llsh_t also.   Pretty cool bike, nonetheless. 

I have the 690 SM,i must say that bike is one of the easiest and friendliest bike i have ever ridden,it's got power to a point,the real fun is in the twisties, very nimble and light.The only diff bet the Duke and SM would be the front fender,the SM has that spy vs spy beak while the duke has that streetfighter look from the front.The exhaust on the SM has a dual pipes ,while the duke has it underneath.

The only negative thing about the SM compared to my s4r would be it's not very comfy on long rides,since the seat is narrow and very hard.

I think there are more than a few differences between the SD and the SM's...

I have and love my Duke 690. I could not think of a better bike for me. I do almost all canyon riding and the weight/power/handleing is better than I could have asked for. It's still a little vibey, but not bad. Two weeks ago I rode it 400 miles back from laguna seca, and it even did that reasonably well.

Duke sucks. Go Heels.  [cheeky]

i am pretty spoiled by the exquisite looks of the ducati. no matter how good i just couldn't feel excited about the duke. there is a 2007 tuono factory in my neighborhood that has me drooling though. supposedly, it's one step up for handling vs the monster. i doubt though, if any motor could be better than the 999 in my S4Rs. perhaps the streetfighter with full termi would do it but that just seems over kill IMO

and it's especially hard to get motivated to put all the upgrades into another bike!!! you'd be looking at a total investment of 25K before you could stop fixing the streetfighter  s [bang]