[arjpillai]

Are you getting this done at Zenngine? Looks so from the pictures and if so, can't have better people do this for you.

[Dhruv Shetty]

Originally Posted by arjpillai

Are you getting this done at Zenngine? Looks so from the pictures and if so, can't have better people do this for you.

Yes it is getting done by Zenngine and my bike has being going to them only, for the past 3 years. I have practically gotten spoiled with the quality of work while paying Ssuperbike level labour prices .

Cheers,
Dhruv Shetty.

[arjpillai]

Originally Posted by Dhruv Shetty

Yes it is getting done by Zenngine and my bike has being going to them only, for the past 3 years. I have practically gotten spoiled with the quality of work while paying Ssuperbike level labour prices .

Cheers,
Dhruv Shetty.

Can relate, especially the bit about premium pricing . To be fair, Zain makes no bones about the fact that he charges a premium and that might not always make sense for entry-level performance bikes such as the KTMs and Dominars of the world. But they're too good, really know their stuff and most importantly, communicate well.

[Samarth 619]

Originally Posted by Dhruv Shetty

In a way i am excited to see and feel how the slipper clutch is going to behave.
Until the next update.
Cheers,
Dhruv Shetty

That's a huge lot of work you got done. My overhaul at 1.4L kms simply pales in comparison. Anyhow, I hope all goes good for you, it looks like a stressful situation, specially if you're on a job too.

I've also installed slipper clutch on my 2013 Duke 390. The first thing you'll note is a far lighter clutch lever pull, it gets as light to pull as a CBR 250R, and that's saying something.
Of course, its a slipper clutch so it will not lock the wheel on rev dipping or downshifting, so if you're heavily reliant on engine braking so far, you'll be mighty disappointed. This is something that bugged me initially, as downshifting gave such a momentary, artificial feel of a disconnection between speed and revs.
But I got used to it.
It may be good for engine safety or even personal safety, but given the chance, I'm not sure but I may choose to not install it again. Its a subjective matter though and your opinion might differ.

[Dhruv Shetty]

Engine rebuild complete with a few hiccups

Its been quite awhile since the last update and felt very lazy, caught up with work scenes and mustering the physical and mental strength to write this, so here is the update and enjoy.

After 11 years and 37 thousand kilometres Tali gets a brand-new heart, total time taken including ordering parts, delays and testing it took around 4 months to complete. Post the rebuild and almost 1000 kilometres, the engine feels more smoother, responsive and there is minimal strain while taking a pillion.

Fresh new engine












All the fresh parts been laid out.


After seven months of waiting while being in another country i got to finally meet her, the best feeling, best thing is the day i landed in Mumbai, i was working on the 16th, went home freshened up a bit, checked all my stuff was in place, went to the airport super tired, barely got sleep in the flight, rested up for about 2 hours.



When i came to know that the fork seals gave up, i wasn't bothered that much.

Gen1 RC and Duke in one frame with a Daytona peaking from the back.


A sexy Ducati in a full spec attire, the scary part was the winglets, the scare while moving around it.


The remains of the previous engine


Final checks


On the topic of the slipper clutch conversion, the difference which was felt was, during aggressive downshifts, the rear does not unsettle itself, I do miss that feeling, but i want the engine to be more reliable, so best of both worlds. The clutch pull during the first 300 kms felt a bit hard and during downshifts from 6th to 2nd gear there was a some clunky noise either from the clutch wire or the main clutch side, but after doing a ride to Igatpuri that noise disappeared and the clutch pull became lighter, with that I feel the response time is quicker, could be a placebo effect never know.

The culprit for the fuel leak.


Old vs new output shaft


So 90% of the engine is new except for the gearbox, all the parts which went into this build are from the BS6 engine. The break in period was 1000 kms and running Silkolene 10W50 and keeping it under 7000 R.P.Ms, it sure wasn’t an easy task, but for a good engine health for the future kept it under control 90% of the time, the bike felt responsive even under 7k and addictive.

Replaced the O2 sensor to see if it solved the random stalling at low R.P.Ms and neutral, which it didn't solve.



Due to time constraints and the bike being idle and sitting in the rains the, fork seals gave up and there might be some damage in the fork pipes, which were still leaking even after fork seals. Even the brake rebuild took a back seat as the brakes were still functioning good with no problem, but I did switch to EBC brake pads, now the brake squeal from the KTM sintered brake pads is not there, just a slight scrapping sound, still miss that squealing sound from the previous brake pads. The swingarm did get refurbished. During the first few days the engine light was flashing and disappeared, then there was a fuel leak from the filter area, which I realised later on, the culprit was a rusty old clip which took half a day and 5 shops to source it. The issue which still hasn’t gotten resolved because of time constraints is the idle issue at neutral and 1st,2nd gear at low R.P.Ms where the bike just shuts off randomly, which was kind of irritating as I was on a vacation in India and cancelled alot of my riding plans. Now since im back to work overseas and the bike has gone back to her sasural, the forks and the idle problem will be diagnosed properly with a good amount of time, so next time I come there will more riding and less to no downtime, and mostly there will a nice upgrade.

Came across this Fireblade Akra exhaust lying around and it was super light as you can see in the pic.


Some random clicks.




The gorgeous art piece of the bike especially in this angle, the art piece doesn't need any introductions.




In the end i am satisfied and happy with engine rebuild., now i have to hunt for a 2014 spec wiring harness, some say its discontinued and some say its available, i do not want to change my ECU for it, this will be a problem for me to deal with on my next trip to India. Got the HSRP number plate installed on the bike.



Cheers,
Dhruv Shetty.

[Dhruv Shetty]

Originally Posted by Samarth 619

That's a huge lot of work you got done. My overhaul at 1.4L kms simply pales in comparison. Anyhow, I hope all goes good for you, it looks like a stressful situation, specially if you're on a job too.

I've also installed slipper clutch on my 2013 Duke 390. The first thing you'll note is a far lighter clutch lever pull, it gets as light to pull as a CBR 250R, and that's saying something.
Of course, its a slipper clutch so it will not lock the wheel on rev dipping or downshifting, so if you're heavily reliant on engine braking so far, you'll be mighty disappointed. This is something that bugged me initially, as downshifting gave such a momentary, artificial feel of a disconnection between speed and revs.
But I got used to it.
It may be good for engine safety or even personal safety, but given the chance, I'm not sure but I may choose to not install it again. Its a subjective matter though and your opinion might differ.

Well the engine was kaput, so might as well go for the entire rebuild. The only stressful part was when the rebuild going to start , the industry i work, it is a very busy and demanding and critical job.

Initially I didn't feel much of a difference, but took it for a breakfast ride and felt the difference with the standard clutch, in the corners I can exit much quicker and smoothly without the thought of locking up the rear while downshifting (kind of miss that feeling), but hey gotta move on.

Cheers,
Dhruv Shetty.

[VijayAnand1]

The bike sincerely looks proud and handsome. Considering the age of your motorcycle, If may, I would suggest a work-around with the stalling, especially it's pronounced at idle and neutral, I'd strongly recommend you to replace your IACV, or the stepper motor. A finicky stepper motor would almost always end up with idling and especially idling with the clutch pulled in when coasting, this is where it's job matters, and if it's finicky it would stall when cruising and the clutch pulled in. Try replacing the stepper motor, it's not that expensive and should help in smoother and correct idle.

Cheers!
VJ

[utkarshshukla92]

Originally Posted by Dhruv Shetty

[b] So 90% of the engine is new except for the gearbox, all the parts which went into this build are from the BS6 engine.

If you don't mind sharing, how much did you pay for the parts and labour?
Was it easy sourcing the parts?
You have mentioned bike has done around 37000 Kms, isnt it too early for an engine to fail, considering you have used new centercase, crank, block, piston etc?

[svsantosh]

Originally Posted by Dhruv Shetty

The issue which still hasn’t gotten resolved because of time constraints is the idle issue at neutral and 1st,2nd gear at low R.P.Ms where the bike just shuts off randomly...

Did you check the full fuel system.

1) Tank flush/fuel mesh (replace if any)
2) Primary fuel filter
3) Throttle body
4) Fuel Nozzle

Electronics
1) ECU - hope no visible corrosion on connector pics/circuit
2) CPS/CPS - crank/cam position sensor, if any?
3) Change Plug(s)/ Coil(s) - plug wire(s)
4) MAF/MAP - check that too
5) Clutch sensor check

Let us know how it goes.

[Dhruv Shetty]

Originally Posted by svsantosh

Did you check the full fuel system.

1) Tank flush/fuel mesh (replace if any)
2) Primary fuel filter
3) Throttle body
4) Fuel Nozzle

Electronics
1) ECU - hope no visible corrosion on connector pics/circuit
2) CPS/CPS - crank/cam position sensor, if any?
3) Change Plug(s)/ Coil(s) - plug wire(s)
4) MAF/MAP - check that too
5) Clutch sensor check

Let us know how it goes.

The fuel system is functioning properly, as the tank always had fresh fuel in it and good quality fuel. I used to clean the throttle body every 10k interval and during the rebuild it had been fully serviced, so the fuel system is good.

On the electronics side, there maybe some corrosion on the wires somewhere as it is an old harness, so there could be some breaks in the connection, so will keep an eye out on it, by keeping a tab on the guys back in India.

Will update the thread with the details of what caused the random stalling.

Originally Posted by utkarshshukla92

If you don't mind sharing, how much did you pay for the parts and labour?
Was it easy sourcing the parts?
You have mentioned bike has done around 37000 Kms, isnt it too early for an engine to fail, considering you have used new centercase, crank, block, piston etc?

Including the parts and labour, i have spent around 80 thousand on the rebuild.

Well some engines die out as early as 15k with very care, around 40k which was my case or the highest which i have witnessed is close to 80k. So it depends on how the bike taken care of. Plus my bike had 2 previous owners who combined put 13800kms in 6 years.

Originally Posted by VijayAnand1

The bike sincerely looks proud and handsome. Considering the age of your motorcycle, If may, I would suggest a work-around with the stalling, especially it's pronounced at idle and neutral, I'd strongly recommend you to replace your IACV, or the stepper motor. A finicky stepper motor would almost always end up with idling and especially idling with the clutch pulled in when coasting, this is where it's job matters, and if it's finicky it would stall when cruising and the clutch pulled in. Try replacing the stepper motor, it's not that expensive and should help in smoother and correct idle.

Cheers!
VJ

Thank you Vijay sir for the compliments , yes now the bike looks very proud and handsome. The bike had gone back to shop for 4 days for diagnostics, they did change the idle control valve and KTM doesn't sell the idle control valve separately, one has to buy the entire throttle body. But now I'm back to work in Saudi and the bike back at Zenngine for babysitting, they will be doing a proper diagnostics of the issues and fix the leaky forks.

Cheers,
Dhruv Shetty