By Lukas Eddy
Modern beauty standards. Unrealistic, but inspirational. Daydream fodder. They tease mere mortals with a hint at what could be, but isn’t. For many of us, such is the world of modern dirt bikes, dual-sports and enduros- whatever you may call them. Their retail prices have been climbing as steadily as their capability, but at what point do you get what you pay for? And is it what you need?
Let’s back up for a moment, because those questions helped spur this 2007 KTM 400XC-W project bike. When looking for a new dual-sport, there are three main categories of options for getting a “modern” bike: buy a new bike for more than $10,000; spend maybe $6,000 on a nice used bike; spend $2,500 or less on a bike that needs love, with the understanding you’ll spend more money in smaller increments along the way. I chose the latter. My thought process informed me I could buy a $2,500 bike, spend some more cash over a period of time, and end up with a personally tailored bike “worth” five grand, but where I had personally confirmed the condition of every component.
For the sake of this discussion, the exact bike model is secondary. I chose the ‘07 KTM in this case, but the concept remains the same no matter what you buy. Instead of buying a completely ready bike up front, you spread the money out over time. It’s almost like a loan except you don’t owe anyone money, you just spend time getting familiar with the machine.
Back in 2007, that KTM 400 was the four stroke to have for technical riding. Nowadays, 12 years later, I’m writing this while people debate how much better than sliced bread the new 300cc injected two strokes are. I paid roughly $2,500 for the KTM with the knowledge that it needed a bit of love, but the bones were good. The goal was to tailor it for everything from singletrack to light moto-camping.
Before long, there was half a motor and the frame sitting in my shop.
I cleaned and greased every electrical connector, greased or replaced every chassis bearing, cleaned up the wiring harness, rebuilt the carb, loctited or anti-seized almost every bolt, replaced every leaking or cracked seal, had the cylinder head overhauled, rebuilt the top end, had the suspension rebuilt, the list goes on. Fortunately, plenty of companies exist to make a comprehensive overhaul like this a fairly painless process, even for a 12-year old bike with a fairly short KTM-styled production run.
The usual suspects in this refresh build were: new tires (Shinko 216MX Fat Tire front and 505 Cheater rear), a swap to Nitromousses for flat protection, and a new chain and shorter sprocket set from DDC. That rear sprocket will last forever. To prepare the 400 for the abuse I’d be dishing out on Idaho singletrack, various protective measures had to be taken. New protective bits from Enduro Engineering and Devol met the requirements for hard parts. Another significant bolt-on was an IMS 2.9-gal tank. I don’t like to carry auxiliary fuel unless critical, so the slightly larger fuel tank makes life just a bit easier when pushing 100+ mile singletrack days. Of course, being a project bike, it wouldn’t be fair to leave the scuffed up plastics, so some new Acerbis pieces bolted up with new graphics. Major projects were the motor and suspension work.
After I sent the cylinder head out for a full rebuild with new +1mm valves, Thumper Racing proved to be the one-stop-shop for all engine upgrades and replacement parts. I knew I needed a new top end, and they had the solution I was seeking. For basically the same price as a new OEM piston and a fresh Nikasil cylinder coating, you can get Thumper Racing’s 453cc big bore kit for the 398cc RFS motor. With this kit, the torquey 400 RFS motor gets a bit more top end power. Not that it needed the extra power but riding at higher elevations means we might as well take a few more ponies while the motor was apart. Following Travis’s advice, we ended up with a new “8/33” cam as well, giving the motor very smooth, electric power that just keeps building where the stock KTM 400 “595/0121” cam falls off.
The plan was to do a simple rebuild, polish, and re-spring on the suspension. Upon disassembling the shock, I found a broken rebound damping adjuster. It would turn, giving the indication it worked, but wasn’t actually adjusting anything. To replace it, you have to replace the whole clevis… for almost $700. To avoid that cost, I shipped it to a buddy of his with a machine shop, where they carefully drilled out the broken adjuster and reinstalled a new one. This is the beauty of working with people who care.
How does it ride? Surprisingly well for a chassis and motor design that’s more than a decade old. We can’t expect the suspension to be at the level of cone valve forks, but these older 48mm WP forks are not bad. Sprung for my weight, they resist bottoming out quite well without feeling excessively harsh in rough rocks and roots. The motor, too, is pleasantly powerful. We were able to maintain excellent tractability at low rpms and it resists stalling surprisingly well, which is not a common compliment given to most modern four strokes. In the open desert, the power keeps building up in a confident, smooth manner that’s deceptively quick. There are always more upgrades that would further push this bike into “modern” territory, but this stage of the build is a very solid, capable platform for a wide variety of riding conditions.
You don’t need a new bike to have fun. With upgrades and replacement parts in mind, we must consider what we’re doing in the big picture.
When buying any used bike, there is a cornucopia of unanswered questions that we should settle with our own eyes. Even though I was concerned about some engine noise after rebuilding the motor and completely disassembled the top end a second time (it’s all ok) it’s still better than buying a more expensive used bike and facing potentially the same problem. That’s the thing with any used bike. Once a stranger has laid their grubby mitts on it, you don’t have any guarantees about the condition of critical components. However, in today’s world of aftermarket accessory companies, the resources exist to make cheaper used bikes an appealing option.
Riding a motorcycle is naturally a self-reliant activity, and servicing your own machine is a part of the entire experience. You can’t genuinely get the same comprehensive motorcycle ownership experience from a spotless new bike. Spending your nights wrenching is where you build the bond that makes the ride even more rewarding. Buying the cheaper used bike gets you more than what you paid for.
You’re reading Upshift Online right now. You care about motorcycling and the experiences you can only get from riding. Life is short, and the time we spend riding is even shorter, so what’s important is that we have the best experience possible every time we ride.
PARTS
- Thumper Racing 453cc Big Bore Kit including gaskets/seals, 8/33 Stage 2 cam www.thumperracing.net
- Shinko 505 Hybrid Cheater Rear, 216MX Fat Tire Front www.shinkotireusa.com
- Nitro Mousse Front/Rear 10-12 psi mousses www.nitromousse.com
- All Balls Racing Full chassis/shock/wheel bearing kits, full brake master cylinder/caliper rebuild kits, full carb/carb mid-body rebuild kits, countershaft seal kit, clutch master/slave rebuild kit www.allballsracing.com
- Enduro Engineering Skid plate, clutch slave cylinder guard, lever guards/plastics www.enduroeng.com
- Devol Racing Radiatorguards www.devolracing.com
- DDC Racing Front/rear sprockets, RK Gold XW-Ring chain, rear sprocket bolts www.ddcracing.net
- IMS Products 2.9 gallon fuel tank www.imsproducts.com
- Motion Pro Control levers, throttle cables www.motionpro.com
- Acerbis USA Full plastic kit www.acerbisusa.com
- CV4 Powersports/CV4.aspx - Radiator hoses www.wiseco.com
- ODI Grips Lock-on grips www.tmbrmoto.com
- Trail Tech Voyager GPS w/ aluminum housing, hour meter www.trailtech.net
