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First off guys - where's your ride reports? Did you sell your bikes for a used Lazyboy?

I decided it had been a month, might as well test the knee to see if I could ride. I plotted a route through southern Geary county, Morris county, Wabaunsee county, and back into Riley county.
Great day for a ride, good temps., low wind, no mud, and the hills bright green from the spring burns. My southern destination was a two-street town, Parkerville. I stumbled across this town last summer as I free lanced my way back home. Parkerville is a small hamlet nestled in a valley with no paved roads leading to it. Seems like their pride and joy is a one block city park they maintain in great shape.

From Parkerville, I rode east past Council Grove lake taking a few roads covered during the Flint Hills Stampede. Came to a place that had a really neat low water crossing. One problem, Mr. Ass Wipe decided this should be his own private drive now. Interesting...the road was obviously being maintained by the county. Flew by the "Road Closed" sign half buried in the brush, and the 6"X8" no trespassing sign. Turned around to make sure I really saw the signs. Just another example of a land owner taking road ownership into his own hands. I have a mind to.........

Anyway headed on north into Wabaunsee county. Roads were in great shape, and the hills are at their best right now. We need to get some rides planned while the weather is good.
Oh yeah, better call the Doc, pretty sure I have another knee surgery in my future.

http://picasaweb.google.com/MacWildcat/ ... sWabaunsee#

Very nice photos and ride report.

I hadn't been on a mc from mid-Oct to March 30 or so. That first day the temps were nice and it wasn't raining I got out the KTM and did wheelies up and down my back yard. I don't hooligan on the street, but I felt the need for the front wheel to be in the air. So it was.

Oh yeah, I live in Overland Park. Good thing it is in the old part of town with no homeowners' associations to ruin my fun.

My grandfather worked for the moble home manufacture in newton. When I was little he purchased one and moved it to parkerville. This was a weekend/ hunting destination for us through my whole childhood and into my teens and twenties. Prairie chicken hunting was great in the area. Many a day I played in the vault of the old bank that had been robbed way before my time. There was still a hole in the roof where they broke in. There used to be a town picnic every year in the park. We never missed a year. Rode out a tornado in the moble home one time too. The park lost many big trees.

Yeah?! This is PRIME riding time and weather. My theory is that folks are too busy riding to come post about it here!

Really nice photos! That was a perfect day to ride. The Saturday before your ride, Kyle, Hayden, & I were on the road returning from a week-long adventure in the Moab area!

It was my first time out there, and Wow! Kyle is working on the Picasa photo album. We have hours and hours of video, too, that may get boiled down to a few highlights.

One of the "highlights" features my superman leap (fall) off a small cliff where I knocked the wind out of my lungs and cracked a rib or 2. Lucky for me, I did this on our last day of riding instead of the first. We had a wonderful time out there--some very different riding compared to what I do in Colorado and Arkansas. "Slick" rock is just amazing to ride on.

On a semi-related note, my 2008 Husqvarna TE450 will be for sale soon. I'm telling this community first, of course. First $10,000 takes her home. I may be willing to sell her 50% off!

Troy if you sell the Husky for a Harley, I'll never talk to you again........

What you next bike gonna be?

MacWildcat wrote:Troy if you sell the Husky for a Harley, I'll never talk to you again........

What you next bike gonna be?

Although I plan to keep the forum around, I'm getting out of the motorcycle thing. I just don't have time for it anymore between my scrap-booking, knitting, and belly-dancing.



I will be going the way just about everyone I know has--orange. I've never seen anyone "upgrade" away from KTM. I've seen at least a dozen riders upgrade to KTM, and then rave. I've seen riders either through age or injury decide to tame things down a bit with a Yamaha 250 or the like, but I have yet to see a "hard-core" trail rider move away from KTM. When I show up at a trail ride with a group of trail veterans and I'm the only one not on a KTM, it kind of makes me go, "hmmmmmm".

I don't want to bash my TE too much since I'll soon be telling everyone how great it is when I try to sell it....but, let's just say I was not missing my TE too much when I was riding a borrowed EXC 400 and 450 in Moab last week. I was on a borrowed bike because the TE has a damaged sensor or something that prevents it from running for more than about 10 seconds. That is getting fixed of course.

Ok, the mental image of Troy scrap-booking and quilting I can handle The belly dancing is gonna haunt me for awhile.

The love/hate balance is swinging towards love for my EXC 400. Love the low weight, nimble handling and Hp. Still hate the eccentric fluids, maintenance, and the messiest oil changes I have ever experienced. I'm finding I don't put enough time on it to make the frequency of maintenance any worse than the Kawa. Still trying to get used to the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang sounds from a KTM.

So Hayden, is the brick building in Parkerville the old bank? Looked like the only remaining building from past boom.

Yes. That's the old bank. Our moble home was to the east 2 blocks on a lot that used to be the barber shop. There was a big limestone mill behind our place along the river. Spent many a hour in that thing too.

MacWildcat wrote:Still hate the eccentric fluids, maintenance, and the messiest oil changes I have ever experienced.

Huh? Eccentric fluids?

I run automotive Mobil 1 15-50 or Catrol Full Syn 5-50 with no issues. (I don't want to start an oil thread .. my point is that most any high vis range oil should work fine ... Rotella, Mobil 1, Castrol, etc. BTW, Mobil 1 15-50 has a very high level of ZDDP, which lubricates metal to metal contact surfaces like cam on lifter. BGG runs this in his Porsche 944 turbo track beast because of this. I prefer full synthetics because my oil testing shows higher levels of protective additives and better adherence to viscosity as the oil ages.)

I don't bother with the filters or screens until the 2nd or 3rd or so oil change. So with just an oil change, run the bike for a few minutes to make sure the crank sump is pumped dry, remove rear drain plug (Gear Wrench works great for this), drain, replace plug, fill. Quick, easy, no mess.

For the Full Monty (There's a visual for you) I do the same as above, but once the oil is drained I lay the bike on its right side (shut off fuel petcock, relocate fuel cap breather hose to left bar above tank level ... some fuel will probably leak out of carb so I do this outside on the grass) and remove the screens and filters. Clean screens and put in new filters. Pour in some oil to fill oil filter cavities, put on filter covers, lift bike upright. Continue as above. To clean I spray some brake clean on any spills and blast with the garden hose.

Checking valves is easy if you use the nut trick. One sixth turn of the bolt is the specified valve clearance. Loosen the lock nut, finger rotate the bolt until it contacts the valve stem, set the loose lock nut so a corner points at a reference, rotate the nut and bolt as one until the next corner points at that reference, hold bolt and tighten nut. You won't know if the vlaves are changing clearance unless you look at where the bolt is before and after, and then you won't have a number. I don't really care. When the intakes can't be adjusted, it is time for the head to be redone. Perhaps never how we ride these bikes.

Well, enough stealing this thread. Time to ride.

Enjoyed seeing the pictures. I may ride that area this Saturday.

Thanks for the tip on valve adjustment Mike! That was the next maintenance item I was ready to tackle - might rid a chitty or a bang from the KTM.

The eccentric fluids I was referring to was the clutch and brakes.

MacWildcat wrote:Thanks for the tip on valve adjustment Mike! That was the next maintenance item I was ready to tackle - might rid a chitty or a bang from the KTM.

The eccentric fluids I was referring to was the clutch and brakes.

My OM calls for DOT 5.1 in the brakes. 4.0 will probably work, as 5.1 will work in a 4 system. Don't use 5.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DOT_5.1


The clutch uses mineral oil (newer ones use brake fluid). Unscented baby oil from WalMart / Target / Etc. works just fine. (J&J baby oil equivalent) The scented may work, too.

I have never understood this and never read anything about it, but why mineral oil? Is there special seals in there that brake fluid would eat up? They went to brake fluid later on, right? Do you know the answer Mike? Wonder if anyone has just switched over to see what happens.

Hayden.

Hayden wrote:I have never understood this and never read anything about it, but why mineral oil? Is there special seals in there that brake fluid would eat up? They went to brake fluid later on, right? Do you know the answer Mike? Wonder if anyone has just switched over to see what happens.

Hayden.

DON'T SWITCH!

The seals in the newer clutch units (not Magura ... Brembo?) can handle alchohol based brake fluid and actually call for it, the older ones cannot. So yes, the seals did switch with the newer unit. (BTW, I find it amazing that the newer units use brake fluid ... no matter that Brembo made them ... the slave seal(s) are exposed to engine (mineral) oil, so the newer seals have to be resistant to both mineral oil and alcohol.)

So go buy some Baby Oil, or use some 5W fork oil, or transmission fluid or ... any mineral type oil, just NOT brake fluid which is not mineral oil.

http://www.thumpertalk.com/forum/thread ... n-2004-ktm

Thanks for the info on clutch fluid. If only I had known before I spent the $$ for Magura blood. At it's price, it must have been blessed by the pope.

About a year ago I was riding with a guy on a Sunday and he had clutch issues requiring clutch fluid. Could have easily found baby oil, no way to get "official" stuff.

Baby powder in the tires and baby oil in the clutch...... won't we be a bunch of fine smelling fellows when we do trail side repairs.

I'm envisioning the KTM office Christmas party. Things get a little out of control, and someone breaks out the clutch fluid. I'm definitely changing bikes if they start using KY as axle grease!