RUST magazine: Rust#7
RUST magazine: We’ve a heartfelt – and revealing – report direct from David Knight on the end of his pro career, and where does he go from here…? We take a long and thorough look at KTM and their mid-capacity adventure bikes, the 640 and the 690, and ask (again) where’s the 690 Adventure? Staying with adventure, Michelin have sprung on us a new rugged adventure tyre – we like the look. And our man in France, Chris Evans, finds life after Dakar is actually rather busy…
RUST magazine: We’ve a heartfelt – and revealing – report direct from David Knight on the end of his pro career, and where does he go from here…? We take a long and thorough look at KTM and their mid-capacity adventure bikes, the 640 and the 690, and ask (again) where’s the 690 Adventure? Staying with adventure, Michelin have sprung on us a new rugged adventure tyre – we like the look. And our man in France, Chris Evans, finds life after Dakar is actually rather busy…
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igger bike and the 640 feels<br />
better than a 250 or 450. I’d<br />
have had a 690, perhaps, but<br />
the math makes my eyes<br />
water - £7k for the bike, that’s<br />
okay, but to prep it to the<br />
standard of the 640<br />
Adventure (tanks, fairing,<br />
suspension etc) that’s<br />
another £3-4000. This ’03<br />
640 Adventure is barely<br />
costing £3000 when everything<br />
is done and fully sorted<br />
- and it’s still a solid reliable<br />
bike, built to do big miles.<br />
There’s nothing I’ve found to<br />
look out for with the 640<br />
motor, just do the oil changes<br />
and keep an eye on the valve<br />
clearances. It vibrates so you must keep an eye on the<br />
fasteners, and use thread-lock everywhere. And of course<br />
there’s that vibration you feel when you try going faster on<br />
the roads - do 80mph and it’s really not pleasant, but at a<br />
steady 65-70mph it isn’t so bad.<br />
I’m no Marc Coma, I’m not even up to the standard of some<br />
of the clubman rally riders in this country, but I like the idea of<br />
riding the 640 in rallies, the bigger bike makes it more interesting<br />
and challenging than on a 450. And I like the versatility<br />
the 640 Adventure brings - I’m seriously looking at a holiday<br />
ride into Spain to watch a MotoGP later this year.
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