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Hail’s KTM 790 Farkle Thread

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Please don’t soil my thread. I understood and appreciated perfectly what was said and it needed no comment.
 
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I wonder what else it could be. It could also be a bead not seating properly due to the tire not being shaped perfectly. Personally I'm not a fan of Shinko.
 
Tire still holding air. ;) No freaking clue at this point.

My latest problem is that my fuel level sensor has gone out. Maybe something got gummed up from the several times the tank was taken off when boat loads of work was being done. It started with it taking forever to update after a fill up. The next fill up it just perpetually reads empty. Used a rubber mallet to try and gently jar the internal mechanism loose with no luck. The good news is I got my replacement sensor in and will be installing that tonight.
 
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Hail said:
Tire still holding air. ;) No freaking clue at this point.

My latest problem is that my fuel level sensor has gone out. Maybe something got gummed up from the several times the tank was taken off when boat loads of work was being done. It started with it taking forever to update after a fill up. The next fill up it just perpetually reads empty. Used a rubber mallet to try and gently jar the internal mechanism loose with no luck. The good news is I got my replacement sensor in and will be installing that tonight.
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Well, I haven't had a single problem with my 790 since I sold it. :lol2:
 
I had an 1190 that were notorious for fuel sensors going bad. I had 2 go south in less than a year. I now have a 790 S. Looks like KTM stayed with the same style sensor on the 790 as the 1190. Wonderful.......... arrrrh.....
 
The 790 definitely had more of the teething issues than the 890, they had the two years of the 790 to work out most of the kinks.
 
William Wolfen said:
This sort of thing influences my choice in bikes. Reliability trump's everything in my book.
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There's a trade-off there. Reliability usually comes at the cost of weight and performance, I appreciate both ends of the scale. There's still a common misnomer that KTM's are altogether unreliable because of their well known issues on their early 4-stroke bikes and smaller problems with their trail oriented smokers. I wouldn't call a modern 890 or 1290 Honda/Yamaha reliable but they aren't far behind and the new Japanese bikes aren't free from their own set of issues as well. Simply put the 890 Adventure R smashes everything else in the category, these are facts, but if you want boringly reliable at half the performance (but not half the price) then look to the Japanese. My advice is not to let the vocal minority sway your opinion on something.
 
tex68w said:
There's a trade-off there. Reliability usually comes at the cost of weight and performance, I appreciate both ends of the scale. There's still a common misnomer that KTM's are altogether unreliable because of their well known issues on their early 4-stroke bikes and smaller problems with their trail oriented smokers. I wouldn't call a modern 890 or 1290 Honda/Yamaha reliable but they aren't far behind and the new Japanese bikes aren't free from their own set of issues as well. Simply put the 890 Adventure R smashes everything else in the category, these are facts, but if you want boringly reliable at half the performance (but not half the price) then look to the Japanese. My advice is not to let the vocal minority sway your opinion on something.
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It is a great bike and if my only plans were to ride it in the US where I'm near a dealer, I would have kept it. I plan on going some places where reliability will trump the benefits of the 790. My comments are not based on what I heard from other people but my own experiences. However the number of people who had the same experiences as me is not insignificant. I did enjoy the bike while I had it but was leery of it's reliability due to my experiences with it. Then again I've never been brand loyal to a fault regardless of the brand. That doesn't seem to be the case with most KTM owners.
 
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tex68w said:
There's a trade-off there. Reliability usually comes at the cost of weight and performance, I appreciate both ends of the scale. There's still a common misnomer that KTM's are altogether unreliable because of their well known issues on their early 4-stroke bikes and smaller problems with their trail oriented smokers. I wouldn't call a modern 890 or 1290 Honda/Yamaha reliable but they aren't far behind and the new Japanese bikes aren't free from their own set of issues as well. Simply put the 890 Adventure R smashes everything else in the category, these are facts, but if you want boringly reliable at half the performance (but not half the price) then look to the Japanese. My advice is not to let the vocal minority sway your opinion on something.
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My opinion has been colored mostly by issues in rides I've been on. Mostly with 690s. The smaller Enduro bikes seem to be solid. I've fewer experiences with their larger bikes, especially the newer ones. I don't have an overly negative view like a lot of the internet. I just like my bikes to be at that Honda level of reliability. Starts every time and I don't have to worry about it.

Now if KTM could put out a 690/701 that ran on regular gas and had a rally/adventure tank, fairing, and windshield setup I might be swayed.
 
Tigerkf said:
It is a great bike and if my only plans were to ride it in the US where I'm near a dealer, I would have kept it. I plan on going some places where reliability will trump the benefits of the 790. My comments are not based on what I heard from other people but my own experiences. However the number of people who had the same experiences as me is not insignificant. I did enjoy the bike while I had it but was leery of it's reliability due to my experiences with it. Then again I've never been brand loyal to a fault regardless of the brand. That doesn't seem to be the case with most KTM owners.
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Yea you had a 790, it's a little different experience than the newer 890 but I know where you're coming from. There are a lot of Orange Blooded homers out there that only march to the beat of the Katoom drum, I am certainly not one of them as I have owned stuff from every single one of the Japanese makes and many of the other Euro and Italian builders as well. There are some areas where KTM dominates the market though and for good reason, the middle weight adventure bike being one of them at the moment.

If I were going to travel internationally on this side of the pond it would be on one of two extremes, either something super simple and cheap found the world over like a KLR, or a full blown GSA which is also easily serviced in most countries.

William Wolfen said:
My opinion has been colored mostly by issues in rides I've been on. Mostly with 690s. The smaller Enduro bikes seem to be solid. I've fewer experiences with their larger bikes, especially the newer ones. I don't have an overly negative view like a lot of the internet. I just like my bikes to be at that Honda level of reliability. Starts every time and I don't have to worry about it.

Now if KTM could put out a 690/701 that ran on regular gas and had a rally/adventure tank, fairing, and windshield setup I might be swayed.
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The 690's, especially the early ones, are their own kind of special lol. If you want and expect Honda reliability and serviceability then nothing else will do.
 
tex68w said:
The 690's, especially the early ones, are their own kind of special lol. If you want and expect Honda reliability and serviceability then nothing else will do.
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They certainly seem to be, erm, special. Sucks because they occupy a weight and power category I like. As for reliability, yes I like my Japanese bikes. Serviceability, on the other hand, I'd prefer something as simple as an Enduro bike. Probably not going to happen with the amount of wind protection I like to have.

I'm still looking forward to riding more with guys on 790s and 890s, @Hail included, to see how they do. They're certainly impressive on paper!
 
Other than a mysterious flat I have not had a single issue that would prevent me from riding. I still think the fuel sensor got gummed up when the tank was off the bike for an extended period. The 790 is a beast of a bike for its displacement. I like beastly bikes.
 
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Some gorgeous bikes on here. Love looking at what folks do to make it their own. Lets see some pics!
 
I chopped the side panels (which I hated to begin with) and added the Perun side rails with Mosko Moto Aux Pox 5L bags. It took some slight modifying to the mounting holes on the bags themselves to work with the side rails without having to use straps. In the end I am satisfied and it'll be nice to have dedicated space on the bike for small stuff regardless of the length of my ride.

itsuNj2.jpg
 
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