[chaotic]

Not a biker, please don't beat me up for my opinion!

As people have mentioned above - spoked or alloy wheels have their share of pros & cons, thus I don't think KTM's introducing them for just it's physical benefits.

Unlike premium cars, which are more about joining a club, premium bikes are more about individual expression and this is where spoked wheels would help stand out and have a good reason for doing so as well.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by Mik

Ok. Noob question. Can this be retrofitted on a first gen D390 to make it a somewhat palatable off-roader
I did come to know from a knowledgeable bhpian that it takes more than just this to get the first gen duke390 off-road friendly. But still..

A first gen 390 with the right tyres and fender and bar lifters, will do everything the Adventure does, and as well if not better (on tarmac).

This is for the crowd that has already spent 4 lacs on their Adventures. 40-50k more will not be that big a hit.

Cheers, Doc

[FloatingCanvas]

Originally Posted by suneel

Single point punctures are much less likely than small - medium tears while hardcore offroad riding. Tears cannot be fixed with tubeless puncture kits. Tubes are an advantage here.

Also tube tires can be aired down lower than tubeless without fear of complete failure if your bead slips out while hitting obstacles hard. There is a reason why all dirt bikes, motocross bikes and trail bikes run tubes.

Great points!

I was aware of most off road bikes having spoked wheel but didn't really think of the ease in lowering the tyre pressure.

But is there a tangible advantage of the BMW's patent spoked wheels over normal traditional ones? Especially considering the extra price and extra trouble to fix them if broken or bent out of tune?

Just curious because I was surprised to see how difficult it was to retune/fix a out of shape BMW wheel on a G310s, at an authorised dealer (without the right equipment or skill). So roadside shops will be of zero help when off roading..

[GTO]

Originally Posted by ebonho

They are the holy grail for hardcore adventure riding where the wheels take big hits at speed and big drops.

Secondly, a spoked wheel can take a lot of damage, including multiple broken spokes, and still keep going. Limping, but not stranded. When an alloy breaks, you are stranded. That's a huge consideration for guys who actually do adventure riding into places where the nearest civilization is often hundreds of kilometres away.

Thanks a ton! You just told me why Mahindra gave spoked wheels to the Classic. And for 20 years, I had thought it was poor taste on their part:

[RevItUp]

This is a good move by KTM, currently the 390adv is a road focused adv, adding spokes will give confidence to the rider riding off road trails.
The alloys tend to bend specially when the air pressure is dropped and you hit a pointed rock on the trail.
However I dont think this will make it to India any time soon if at all.

[Turbo Head]

Originally Posted by shyamg28

Very interesting to know how many will go for it, given that we (ok, I) haven't heard any rim bending stories yet.

Disclaimer - The VStrom-650 XT is my only source of an example for tubeless spoked rims.

Attachment 2091492

Bending rims in bikes is most common cause of breakdown, We ride in a small group and usually one or two such cases pops up in almost every outstation trip we do. Now I am talking about highways, imagine what rough terrain can do to the rims, when you take it for li'l adventure.

I had to change the rims of my Ninja 1000, Hyosung GT650, Hayabusa, its can be an unexpected pothole, broken patch of road or an unmarked speedbreaker, which easily bend the rims, sufficient enough to leak the air and you are left stranded. Heavier the bike, easier it is to bend/crack the rims.