[mithunvvijayan]

Originally Posted by theredliner

If I were you, I wouldn't bother with the retrofit, since from what I have observed, you use your bike only for weekend rides. Also, why would you want to mess with the factory setup for a thing that doesn't seem to matter much for your usage?

I have been holding back on fitting the slipper clutch on my bike, for a while now. The usability of a slipper clutch on a street bike like 390, has been a point of debate recently, which was the reason.
When I woke up this Sunday morning, I decided, what the hell. Gave the bike today. Will take delivery tomorrow evening. All the parts with different part numbers than that of the old assembly, will be changed. This includes the whole clutch assy, cover, child parts and everything else.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by theredliner

BTW, you seem to have got me confused for someone else. May be with another BHPian 'Red Liner'

My bad totally then buddy. Yes I must have mixed up then.

Yes the clutch is very light. Incidentally once on a flight to Delhi I was sitting next to a chap working on his lap top at the window.

Normally I manage to get an aisle seat, stretch myself out to permissible levels and doze off.

But since I was on the center seat this time playing elbow hockey (!) I idly glanced at his laptop screen (I know, rude) drawn by a tehnical looking machine art and not the usual text or tables/graphs etc.

Turns out it was the photo of the bell housing and clutch assembly of the Pulsar NS 200. And the man was a technical officer in the R&D dept. of the company in Chakan that builds it.

I got chatting with the guy. Turns out they make the KTM clutches also. He explained the working of the Slip and Assist clutch to me and the bottom line was softer actuation thanks to the 3 springs instead of our 6.

Everything else points to what I've suspected - lesser (softer) engine braking. Slightly longer life. Clutch bites equally for life of the plates (some sort of ratchet type mechanism).

Cost wise there is hardly any difference to manufacture incidentally.

The soft actuation would be great not only on the track or in city stop-go traffic but also when riding in the mountains and ghats with many gear changes.

Off late I'm again getting the pain in my wrist tendons on my left hand which I used to get while touring with my LB500 (also a hard clutch compared to my Std 500).

My suggestion is not to wait indefinitely beyond Diwali - New Year. Nothing new usually comes after that if the signs aren't already there.

Cheers, Doc

[unk9ja]

Originally Posted by schakravarthy

Friend spotted this at CCD, Bangalore-Mangalore highway.

Interesting handguard!

Attachment 1430983

He is one of the Bhpians, bik1906 and he has posted the mods carried out on his bike in post nr. 4300 in this thread. The thread is 2 posts away from the Indi bashplate one which you have put up. Check it out. Very subtle mods but effective for a daily tourer I must admit.

[barcalad]

Originally Posted by mithunvvijayan

I have been holding back on fitting the slipper clutch on my bike, for a while now. The usability of a slipper clutch on a street bike like 390, has been a point of debate recently, which was the reason.
When I woke up this Sunday morning, I decided, what the hell. Gave the bike today. Will take delivery tomorrow evening. All the parts with different part numbers than that of the old assembly, will be changed. This includes the whole clutch assy, cover, child parts and everything else.

Eagerly, eagerly waiting for your review. My final decision just needs a glimpse of your report. *This* close to getting it fitted.

[VW2010]

Off late I'm again getting the pain in my wrist tendons on my left hand which I used to get while touring with my LB500

You have to get the levers changed. A world of difference when you have those adjustable levers and also try to play around with the (Play of the) clutch which gets the lever closer for your 1 finger action.

A friend of mine did completely insane work of actually bending the handle bar at the end portion to reduce the gap between the clutch and bar. It actually worked

Another thing is to get the clutchless upshift going. This is the easiest way to get rid of major Clutch action untill i stop for standstill.

No wonder the old bulls are fun riding around the town in 1 gear - You just need to chose which gear you want to

[AMG_ang]

I plan to do a 8-10 days road trip (approx 1.3 k kms over 10 days) with my wifey as a pillion.
Has any of you have done such a long trip with a pillion rider? Please share your experiences.
I was thinking as to what all arrangements i can make to carry the luggage.
Tank bag is one thing i will carry.
Can anyone suggest what arrangements/modifications that i need to make to carry luggage in the saddle bags? Currently i have the Cramster colt saddle bags.

[VW2010]

Can anyone suggest what arrangements/modifications that i need to make to carry luggage in the saddle bags? Currently i have the Cramster colt saddle bags.

You have to think about side boxes or saddles. The motorcycle has very limited natural mounting points and you will have to be innovative to get things going.


8-10 days riding pillion in this bike, i personally wouldnt advice. The bike is too cramped for two people riding 8-10 days. First 1-2 days it may not appear that way but as the days progress you will start feeling the lack of anything in this bike.


Not a 1+1 bike this 390 is.

[abhinav.s]

Originally Posted by AMG_ang

I plan to do a 8-10 days road trip (approx 1.3 k kms over 10 days) with my wifey as a pillion..

Not on the D390 but I went on a small 120kms round trip with wifey as pillion on the D200. Onward journey she was ok and did not complain much. But return journey took a toll on her comfort though she was geared up to an extent (Helmet, Jacket, Gloves, Jeans, Boots). You may have already done some home work and test long rides if you are planning a ride of this magnitude but still thought it worthy to share. Also the major limiting factor was i was not able to move around much in the seat which caused me some discomfort after returning.

[ArizonaJim]

IMO, the Duke 390 isn't really designed for a pillion rider to go for long distances.

I'm not saying it can't be done because as many of you know, it can.

What I'm getting to is, for the rider, it's easy to get caught up in the fun of twisting the throttle, diving into corners and feeling the motorcycle respond to your slightest thoughts.

So much fun, it is easy to forget the pillion rider is not having half as much fun just sitting back there going along for the ride.
This is especially true if the pillion is your wife.

By remembering this and taking more short breaks than you would if you were riding alone, she might not say anything but she will really appreciate the stops.

Choose little places that look interesting. Stop and look around and stretch your legs while she does the same. The stops don't need to be long. Just long enough to "smell the roses" and then be on your way.

The trip will not take a lot longer if you do this but the little memories will last forever. Especially to your wife who was just starting to think, "My bum is getting unhappy. A short stop sure would feel good."

[theredliner]

Originally Posted by ebonho

My suggestion is not to wait indefinitely beyond Diwali - New Year. Nothing new usually comes after that if the signs aren't already there.

Yes. I think Bajaj will start rolling out slipper clutch model from Jan 2016. That way it would be easy to find out for everyone whether the model has slipper or not. VIN will give it away.

Coming to retrofitting, since Mithun has agreed to be a beta tester , you can see how it turns out to me before taking the plunge. Light clutch is indeed a big boon in bumper to bumper traffic.

BTW, can we order KTM powerparts through showrooms/service centers here in India?

Originally Posted by mithunvvijayan

I have been holding back on fitting the slipper clutch on my bike, for a while now. The usability of a slipper clutch on a street bike like 390, has been a point of debate recently, which was the reason.

Eagerly waiting for the result. All the best

[mithunvvijayan]

SLIPPER CLUTCH FITMENT

Engine Braking-Quick Downshifting

The engine braking is much reduced. This has the obvious advantage of quicker down shifts. I didn’t have time to do extensive testing. But I couldn’t get the tail out of line, however I tried cornering a road near my place with a weird camber. I normally exit in 2nd gear with some clutch slipping, but with this clutch, the exit has been clean.

Clutch Lever Tightness

After using the earlier clutch for a while now, with the new one, the lever tightness is almost nonexistent. It’s amazing, the transformation.

Gear Shift Feel

I expected a nicer click like action from the gear shifts after the clutch replacement. But this has not changed. The shifts are still crude, when compared to the Japs.

Engine Smoothness

The 390 engine sputters at low rpms, especially in colder conditions. It must still sputter, but the jittery effect on the ride at low rpms is almost gone. Now I can potter around in lower rpms much better, which is a pleasant unexpected outcome.

Tech Stuff

As you can see from the bill, I have changed everything with a different part number, when compared to that of the 2014 model.

The newer model has only 3 springs, newer bearing, seal, re designed Cover assy

It also has only 13 disks, when compared to 15 in the older design.

The Clutch cover design is new. It accommodates the redesigned clutch cable clamps, oil glass level, among others.

[VW2010]

The shifts are still crude, when compared to the Japs.

Not sure about that. The Yamaha thuds at first gear like any bike but is butter smooth when you dont use the clutch and upshift with a blip.

With clutch its equally clumsy at first 3 gears which is what the 390 also does.

[mithunvvijayan]

I forgot to add a few things. This retrofitment was done at KTM Muttam, Cochin. It was done by Mr Ranjith and team who is also the head for KTM and Kawasaki service from the dealer side. He mentioned that my bike is the first one to get this retro fitment in Kerala. I dont know about that.
He also said he can fit the same in RC 390. Any one fron Cochin or Kerala is interested to fit this clutch in RC 390 also, can contact him. He said he can fit the same in RC also. I can PM his contact No if anyone is interested.

[twinblades]

Originally Posted by barcalad

My God, thank you for keeping me alive. I'm not sure when I will mentally and physically find myself competent again to hit the road again.


Big shoutout to my co-riders mehuel, Gautam and Bhaskar for taking care of us 3 injured and shaken souls and proving that we are brothers first and co-riders later. Shabi (RC200) realising that his injuries were negligible, joined in to give us both help and assistance.

.

I wish you will find the courage to ride again. Take it slow, for you sake and the sake of your family. I often ride with care because I don't want my family to be worried.

+1 to Mehuel, Gautam and Bhaskar. Amazing work guys

[nasirkaka]

The engine braking is much reduced. This has the obvious advantage of quicker down shifts. I didn’t have time to do extensive testing. But I couldn’t get the tail out of line, however I tried cornering a road near my place with a weird camber. I normally exit in 2nd gear with some clutch slipping, but with this clutch, the exit has been clean.

Good move! Please share in-depth experience once you clock in some more kms with the new assembly. Personally, i do not have any issues with clutch as such, and am also used to the engine breaking and sort of like it, but i must admit i have not had any experience with a slipper assist clutch. will try and test ride a bike with one, and take a call.


I HATE THIS:

Ok, about 2-3 months back, my rotor coil died and was replaced with a new one. It seems the new bike comes with a completely re-designed and improved rotor coil, which can not be fitted to the 2013/older bikes. Although, they have tweaked the the rotor design for the old ones also for better longevity. this is the one they fitted to my bike.

Coming back to present, since yesterday, the bike is behaving exactly same as it was when the rotor coil was about to die last time. that is, the speedo shows zero at low rpms, and back to normal at higher rpm. Switch on the headlight, re-confirms the same. Could this also be a symptom of dying battery (mine is the stock battery, 2 years old). Or is it that the rotor coil is burnt again. One point to be mentioned here is that during routine service 2 weeks back, the rotor coil side cover was removed and the gasket replaced, as there was oil seeping. Could there be a probability some something was not fixed right during that process? am really bothered with all this niggles, as i am scheduled to travel coming week, and have many thing to do this weekend. Dont want to return to a bike with dead battery. :(