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KTM 1290 Duke R, Would you?

ZRider

ZRider

Joined Apr 2014
77 Posts | 0+
The Apex, TN
My bike dealer called yesterday and it seems I have first choice on a new 1290 KTM Duke R as a garage-mate for my excellent Hyperstrada keeper. The KTM has shipped and will arrive within a week. After reading a couple of magazine reviews where the testers raved about its ultra-high performance, I am very tempted to grab it. As a bachelor, I'll survive the price.

The KTM beast weighs 416 wet (w/o fuel), displaces 1301 cc and is crank-rated at 180 HP. I saw one dyno result online at 151 HP and 92.4 lb-ft torque at the wheel. Redline is 10,500 RPM. That's potent! I've seen several Hayabusa's dyno 152 - 155 HP carrying 100+ pounds more weight. Handling is described as motard-like, braking from 60 to 0 is an astonishing 99 feet, and 0 to 124 MPH happens in 7.2 seconds when the rider does his part. :eek: Reliability is unknown but it has a warranty and my dealer takes good care of me. This appears to be one of those machines that will redefine the class of naked bikes--I'm all about naked (pun intended) as I don't do much touring anymore. Nearly all of my miles are mountain twisties for fun and I'm a proven sucker for "hyper" performance. :D

Input/opinions are welcome as I'm just thinking out loud here as I ponder the purchase. :cool: Would you?

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yes in a heartbeat, if i had the extra cash

but just wondering... in a straightline, how can all that power be of any use without a windshield?

the hyperstrada has a bit of wind protection but still can hardly sustain a comfortable ride past 160kph (100mph). seems kind of a waste if 150 horses of the duke is just for sprinting out of corners
 
ultimate hooligan

The KTM demo trailer was in town last week, I didn't get to ride the big Duke cause of other commitments but did ride the Adventure 1290. It's the same engine but I suspect in a different tune and i can safely say that thing has serious grunt. I can only imagine what that power would be like in a lighter platform! Might be hard to hang on to a drivers license with the Duke...
 
Monstard said:
yes in a heartbeat, if i had the extra cash

but just wondering... in a straightline, how can all that power be of any use without a windshield?

the hyperstrada has a bit of wind protection but still can hardly sustain a comfortable ride past 160kph (100mph). seems kind of a waste if 150 horses of the duke is just for sprinting out of corners
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Yep, I'm sure top speed is drag-limited very early by the open, naked design. I don't much care about top speed anyway--been very close to a Busa's top speed and seeing utility poles zing by so fast scared the bejeebers out of me. But, the test riders say 3rd and 4th-gear throttle wheelies are routine and easy. It might be fun to tick-off liter sport bikes with impromptu drag races. ;)
 
st2cmack said:
The KTM demo trailer was in town last week, I didn't get to ride the big Duke cause of other commitments but did ride the Adventure 1290. It's the same engine but I suspect in a different tune and i can safely say that thing has serious grunt. I can only imagine what that power would be like in a lighter platform! Might be hard to hang on to a drivers license with the Duke...
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Good point and a genuine concern...the bike's "capacity" to turn a reasonable rider into a hopeless hooligan. :eek:
 
I don't understand not purchasing a vehicle because it has "too much power", especially with traction control. If you're responsible, and owned a Busa, it's not too much bike.

I bet KTM will release a touring version. Now that I've owned a bike with a screen and bags, I can't escape their utility. They'll probably make a sporty little screen that will look cool enough and provide a little peace at speed.

Nutty bike. It just looks mean. Like I can hear the other bikes parked next to it whimpering and tucking their tales between their legs.
 
gatdammit said:
I don't understand not purchasing a vehicle because it has "too much power", especially with traction control. If you're responsible, and owned a Busa, it's not too much bike.

I bet KTM will release a touring version. Now that I've owned a bike with a screen and bags, I can't escape their utility. They'll probably make a sporty little screen that will look cool enough and provide a little peace at speed.

Nutty bike. It just looks mean. Like I can hear the other bikes parked next to it whimpering and tucking their tales between their legs.
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Hmmm...not sure who you are addressing but you'll never hear me complain about "too much power". The only bikes I wouldn't ride are top fuel dragsters. Soft luggage is available and, I'll bet you are right about wind screens being available soon.

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When i had a similar question some time back, i got a similar reply "If you are married with kids then stick to hyperstrada, and if you are single and want to keep your girl friend or want a girl friend then go for KTM".
 
YES please !! But my dealer has to give a good price for the Hyperstrada, and that is not the case.
Terrible what you can get for an Hyperstrada............
 
All input is appreciated. After some soul searching, I decided to let the first KTM 1290 Duke in east Tennessee go to the next person on the waiting list. :rolleyes:

Why? Yesterday morning, I ran some local mountain curves and extreme switchbacks on the Hyperstrada. The roads were clean and warm with very little traffic. Conditions were ideal so I "let it hang out" a little. :D With 31 PSI cold in my Michelin PP3 tires, the HS is so curve-capable that my confidence peaked quickly and I began powering out of turns hard in Touring mode at full lean and...the rear tire spun briefly a few times. It's not the first time in my life I've done that but it's a hell of a thrill every time on asphalt at 45 degrees tilt! It just sneaked up on me while I was "in the groove". I'm not sure if I backed-off a little or if the traction control immediately squelched the spin but, then and there, I decided the HS would give me all the twisty fun I would ever need (or could handle maybe) and the KTM slipped quietly out of my mind. :cool: Now, I can move on to other obsessions...
 
I love a little slip powering out of turns! Normally I whack it in Touring with DTC 3 and don't let off. It gives a couple little slips and hooks up. I'm a little more cautious in Sport but it's good to find and get familiar with this limit.
 
gatdammit said:
I love a little slip powering out of turns! Normally I whack it in Touring with DTC 3 and don't let off. It gives a couple little slips and hooks up. I'm a little more cautious in Sport but it's good to find and get familiar with this limit.
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Exactly! ;) I've had many 2-wheel sweethearts but none quite so satisfying as the Hyperstrada.
 
As a thread footnote, I'm now glad I passed on the KTM. Otherwise, I would not have found this new-in-the-crate '13 ZX14R for $3K below retail. It's identical to 2014 ZX14R's except for paint and will be the stable-mate for the Hyperstrada. I'm tempted to name it...KONG! :p

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gatdammit said:
Bonus: you could carry your Strada on the back to/from the track!
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That's a creative thought but you don't think it will actually be ridden, do you? I'll just sit on it stare at the instruments...!

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I had a 2010 KTM 690 Duke. It don't think I ever rode it to the limits of its capabilities. Nothing ever touched down. It never changed its line mid turn due to a road imperfection. The ride quality was outstanding. Yet I traded it in for the HyperStrada.

I'd prefer to hit a limit, so I know where I'm at. I'd never ridden anything that didn't touch something down when leaned over hard, so it felt weird.. like a limit might sneak up on me, and toss me off. Weird, I know. I went riding with a friend last weekend, was headed around a sweeping left and touched the tip of my left toe down. It gave me comfort at that instant to know where I was with the bike's handling, because I knew where it was in relation to the road. I also had a situation in a left hand curve where a Subaru came over the double yellow right at me while I was in the apex of the turn. I don't know how I did it, but I changed the bike's line mid lean, mid turn, and gave myself room to avoid having my head taken off by the Subaru. Scary after the fact, but the bike really did what my brain needed it to right then and there. It won me over with that.

Also, the KTM had the most complicated oil change process of anything I'd ever owned, and it cooked its fuel pump the first summer I owned it. Nice of them to put the pump in the tank right over the exhaust header.
 
Good Points

NurseDaddy said:
I had a 2010 KTM 690 Duke. It don't think I ever rode it to the limits of its capabilities. Nothing ever touched down. It never changed its line mid turn due to a road imperfection. The ride quality was outstanding. Yet I traded it in for the HyperStrada.

I'd prefer to hit a limit, so I know where I'm at. I'd never ridden anything that didn't touch something down when leaned over hard, so it felt weird.. like a limit might sneak up on me, and toss me off. Weird, I know. I went riding with a friend last weekend, was headed around a sweeping left and touched the tip of my left toe down. It gave me comfort at that instant to know where I was with the bike's handling, because I knew where it was in relation to the road. I also had a situation in a left hand curve where a Subaru came over the double yellow right at me while I was in the apex of the turn. I don't know how I did it, but I changed the bike's line mid lean, mid turn, and gave myself room to avoid having my head taken off by the Subaru. Scary after the fact, but the bike really did what my brain needed it to right then and there. It won me over with that.

Also, the KTM had the most complicated oil change process of anything I'd ever owned, and it cooked its fuel pump the first summer I owned it. Nice of them to put the pump in the tank right over the exhaust header.
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Thanks. Your post makes perfect sense to me as I really am satisfied with the HS. :) I can relate to your Subaru incident too. A couple of years ago on the Dragon, I was on my Kaw Z1000 and committed to a hard left turn when, to my horror, another sport bike appeared in my lane coming at me way too fast after blowing his turn. An instinctive trajectory calculation made me hold my line so that we might miss one another. I did and he crossed my path, immediately in front of me, VERY close to my tire. Somehow, we didn't quite touch nor did either of us fall. I leaned the Kaw back up and stopped but he kept going after returning to his proper lane behind me. Too bad. He and I were about to have a serious conversation about lane discipline! :mad: Blind turns can be great fun as well as great danger.