Motorcyclist Hyper v. KTM 990SM-T Comparo

I was fighting a very vague feeling clutch for about two weeks, and it wasn't an instantaneous process to get it perfectly dialed in. During this time, I was having trouble pulling away from stops - I even had a beginners stall at one time, which is something that I haven't done in 4 years!

At fist, the amount of free play was out by about 1.5 mm, so I fixed that and felt improvement, but even though it was within spec, I still had to experiment with the adjuster, literally less that a quarter turn at a time, until I found the sweet spot. Now it's perfectly in spec at about 3.5 mm and engages nicely - warm or cold.

I don't have any problems with the clutch...

Frank Rizzo said:

I was fighting a very vague feeling clutch for about two weeks, and it wasn't an instantaneous process to get it perfectly dialed in. During this time, I was having trouble pulling away from stops - I even had a beginners stall at one time, which is something that I haven't done in 4 years!

At fist, the amount of free play was out by about 1.5 mm, so I fixed that and felt improvement, but even though it was within spec, I still had to experiment with the adjuster, literally less that a quarter turn at a time, until I found the sweet spot. Now it's perfectly in spec at about 3.5 mm and engages nicely - warm or cold.

Click to expand...

I had about exact same scenario. Turned adjuster way too much at first and struggle for a couple days. Just prior to adjusting, I started noticing I just couldn't pull away from a stop strong and clean like I was used to. I didn't have to mix clutch/throttle all that much to make smooth starts until around 3500 mile point. Roll on's were very rough and I had to modulate throttle a lot. Yes, stalled like a rookie once too.

At first I was adjusting the friction zone -> engagement point. This was wrong. Used 2-4mm manual spec as starting point and eventually got very close to factory feel but, maybe not quite perfect.

gatdammit said:

I had about exact same scenario. Turned adjuster way too much at first and struggle for a couple days. Just prior to adjusting, I started noticing I just couldn't pull away from a stop strong and clean like I was used to. I didn't have to mix clutch/throttle all that much to make smooth starts until around 3500 mile point. Roll on's were very rough and I had to modulate throttle a lot. Yes, stalled like a rookie once too.

At first I was adjusting the friction zone -> engagement point. This was wrong. Used 2-4mm manual spec as starting point and eventually got very close to factory feel but, maybe not quite perfect.

Click to expand...

I have had very many bikes, think about 40......
Never was the clutch so bad.

Motorcyclist is not much of a magazine these days. A lot of the writing is truly amateur. Those testers did not give the bike a fair chance. If it's not the latest superbike, they have no clue. My clutch is fine cold or hot, you just have to be gentle until you get used to it. And I am also pleased with the panniers - they have been quite useful. A shot of WD-40 fixed the latch sticking problem. But I have removed the mount plate, as it's only a minute to R&R and I don't normally need the bags. OTOH the Ducati tank bag is indispensable. The bike is already very light on the front, so adding a giant trunk to the back seems like a bad idea to me. If I need the luggage space, we have a Harley bagger. It's for sale, BTW...

I like the panniers! My clutch is fine, works in town, slow speed manuvering, twisties.

If I had to change, I would get the base Multi again.

I'm small and like the feel of a small light bike. That is why I bought it. The others I tried just felt bulky and top heavy. I don't really tour, just ride to work and day rides on the weekend. This bike is everything I need and more. I don't run with the panniers just a tail bag. The clutch, it feels great to me. The only issue I had was the surging in the 3000 to 4000 rpm range. The last software update took care of it for me. It is an absolute blast on the track too. I couldn't ask for more.

Stradasphere said:

I'm small and like the feel of a small light bike. That is why I bought it. The others I tried just felt bulky and top heavy. I don't really tour, just ride to work and day rides on the weekend. This bike is everything I need and more. I don't run with the panniers just a tail bag. The clutch, it feels great to me. The only issue I had was the surging in the 3000 to 4000 rpm range. The last software update took care of it for me. It is an absolute blast on the track too. I couldn't ask for more.

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+1 except I'm not small and I do tour.