The friendly "dumb" bike questions thread

[NNH]

Cbull said:

Hi. I have a KTM Duke 790. Yesterday on the way home the screen was shouting at me, it said the ABS & WTS (I think WTS) had failed. A quick look and the ABS cable somehow managed to move itself over to the tyre and burned through the cable to the metal strands. Got home then cut and soldered the 1 cable 2 cores back together which appears to have fixed it.

Question is, how do I turn the Engine Management light off? It's still on but not coming up with the initial error message so I assume all good with the ABS cable.

Thanks

I'm no expert, but have you tried disconnecting the battery for 10 minutes to reset the light?

[the cueball]

HybridTheory said:

This is a 2 pronged question

1st is how do I tell without removing the brake pads whether they need replacing or is there a way

2nd one is looking at the photo is it a case of removing the pins and sliding out the old pads and putting new ones in without having to take off the whole brake system.

Cheers !

Yamaha Blue dots - Awesome brakes!

1) look at the caliper from the front of the bike, you'll be able to see the pad material from there.

2)

a) Remove both "R" clips... watch where they ping off too...
b) Get a small punch and hammer to get the pad retaining pin out - push it though
c) you can then slide the pads out.

Now, depending on your level of OCD and wanting to do a decent job:

d) give the brake leaver a few pumps to get the pistons out (or more likely see what ones are stuck)
e) get in there with a decent cleaner and toothbrush to get all the crap off the pistons.
f) push them back gently when clean
g) insert new pads and pad clip/pin/R clips.

OR

Just push the dirty, manky pistons back and go straight to G above.

Here is a good wee guide I found online many years ago, they remove the caliper from the bike to make it easier, but you don't have to disconnect any hoses etc from the system..:

https://bikesandtravels.com/biker.aspx?ride=156

[RizzoTheRat]

Cbull said:

Hi. I have a KTM Duke 790. Yesterday on the way home the screen was shouting at me, it said the ABS & WTS (I think WTS) had failed. A quick look and the ABS cable somehow managed to move itself over to the tyre and burned through the cable to the metal strands. Got home then cut and soldered the 1 cable 2 cores back together which appears to have fixed it.

Question is, how do I turn the Engine Management light off? It's still on but not coming up with the initial error message so I assume all good with the ABS cable.

Thanks

On my Yamaha you can access error codes and reset them via the buttons on the dash, have you had a google for resetting error codes on a KTM?

[RizzoTheRat]

the cueball said:

HybridTheory said:

This is a 2 pronged question

1st is how do I tell without removing the brake pads whether they need replacing or is there a way

2nd one is looking at the photo is it a case of removing the pins and sliding out the old pads and putting new ones in without having to take off the whole brake system.

Cheers !

Yamaha Blue dots - Awesome brakes!

1) look at the caliper from the front of the bike, you'll be able to see the pad material from there.

2)

a) Remove both "R" clips... watch where they ping off too...
b) Get a small punch and hammer to get the pad retaining pin out - push it though
c) you can then slide the pads out.

Now, depending on your level of OCD and wanting to do a decent job:

d) give the brake leaver a few pumps to get the pistons out (or more likely see what ones are stuck)
e) get in there with a decent cleaner and toothbrush to get all the crap off the pistons.
f) push them back gently when clean
g) insert new pads and pad clip/pin/R clips.

OR

Just push the dirty, manky pistons back and go straight to G above.

Here is a good wee guide I found online many years ago, they remove the caliper from the bike to make it easier, but you don't have to disconnect any hoses etc from the system..:

https://bikesandtravels.com/biker.aspx?ride=156

Easiest to remove the caliper before step 2 it's only 2 bolts, and you should have plenty of flex in the brake lines. I took mine off the other week to give them a bit of a clean up. You should be able to find the torque setting for putting the caliper bolts back in online but it's probably going to be 40NM the same as the blue spots on my TDM.

[the cueball]

40 NM on my Box Eye Fazer too

[Cbull]

Thanks chaps. You sound like an expert to me NNH, the answer to that question would be nope. Will try that when I get home ha ha.

Yeah I've had a quick Googling Rizzo but nothing popped up, well, nothing popped up on the first page. Will have to research a little if the battery reset doesn't work I guess.

Cheers.

[Cbull]

Just to update. Left work and the light was off. A little random but I'll consider that a job well done with some dodgy soldering

[A500leroy]

Motorcycle accidents

Do most of them happen because someone in another vehicle was expecting a bike to be in the way, or because the motorcycle was travelling to fast for the conditions?

[Speed addicted]

A500leroy said:

Motorcycle accidents

Do most of them happen because someone in another vehicle was expecting a bike to be in the way, or because the motorcycle was travelling to fast for the conditions?

A lot happen around junctions and involve interaction with other vehicles, with single bike crashes it's usually misjudging corner speed.
Apparently nearly half of motorcycle accidents in the UK happen in London.

Google knows the answers!

Just buy one, it'll (probably) be fine!

[bogie]

A500leroy said:

Motorcycle accidents

Do most of them happen because someone in another vehicle was expecting a bike to be in the way, or because the motorcycle was travelling to fast for the conditions?

All the stats are available from RoSPA or government websites, few highlights I can remember (used to be in RoSPA and pay attention to newsletters!)

Only a small proportion are the SMIDSY kind of accidents, although everyone would like to blame *something* else for what is often their own avoidable mistake.

Majority of single vehicle accidents involve cornering. So Its you and the road ...who can be at fault ?

High risk groups are inexperienced riders, getting past the first 2 years without incident is the challenge, both new riders and born agains. Hence insurance premiums go down by half with a couple of years NCB.

Nearly half all accidents in London area ...once you are living in the country away from other people its much safer...which is kind of common sense really. Driving between lanes of traffic daily, you put your life into other drivers hands....they twiddle with the stereo/phone/kid in the back and you end up in hospital.

The risk profile between say 3000 miles commuting daily into a city versus 3000 pleasure miles on country roads and abroad are vastly different.

[petrolbloke]

Noob moment today... locked my one and only key in my topbox - it's a Givi V47. Any suggestions?! Preserving the box and lock mechanism is preferable!

Assuming I can get into it, how straightforward is it to get extra keys cut?

[black-k1]

A500leroy said:

Motorcycle accidents

Do most of them happen because someone in another vehicle was expecting a bike to be in the way, or because the motorcycle was travelling to fast for the conditions?

Way more complicated than that. Look at the stats on line and read some of the scientific papers.

[TheInternet]

petrolbloke said:

Noob moment today... locked my one and only key in my topbox - it's a Givi V47.

Don't you need the key in the lock to lock it?

[petrolbloke]

TheInternet said:

petrolbloke said:

Noob moment today... locked my one and only key in my topbox - it's a Givi V47.

Don't you need the key in the lock to lock it?

Nope! Just turn it to the locked position with the lid open, close the lid et voila...

[NNH]

petrolbloke said:

TheInternet said:

petrolbloke said:

Noob moment today... locked my one and only key in my topbox - it's a Givi V47.

Don't you need the key in the lock to lock it?

Nope! Just turn it to the locked position with the lid open, close the lid et voila...

If you bought it new and kept the paperwork, I guess you might be able to order a key from Givi. Otherwise, I'd say your best shot is to cut a small hole in the "front" of the box, then glue it back and put a pillion backrest on it to hide the weak spot.

[SamR380]

petrolbloke said:

Noob moment today... locked my one and only key in my topbox - it's a Givi V47. Any suggestions?! Preserving the box and lock mechanism is preferable!

Assuming I can get into it, how straightforward is it to get extra keys cut?

If it's not urgent you could order a replacement key:

https://www.replacementkeys.co.uk/givi-luggage-key...

[Salted_Peanut]

A500leroy said:

Motorcycle accidents

Do most of them happen because someone in another vehicle was expecting a bike to be in the way, or because the motorcycle was travelling to fast for the conditions?

Devitt Insurance wrote an excellent explanation with helpful advice: https://www.devittinsurance.com/guides/motorcycle-...

Also, I highly recommend reading Kevin Williams’ well-researched advice: https://scienceofbeingseen.org/conclusion-what-cou...

[petrolbloke]

SamR380 said:

If it's not urgent you could order a replacement key:

https://www.replacementkeys.co.uk/givi-luggage-key...

Thanks. My key looks more like this one -

https://www.replacementkeys.co.uk/images/products/...
https://www.replacementkeys.co.uk/givi-sl-series-k...

But they need a photo of the key to be able to do it.

I'm going to take the bike to a nearby locksmith this afternoon - hopefully he will be able to open it without damage then I'll definitely get another key cut(!).

[vindaloo79]

Hi sorry for lazy post wanting to take breakdown cover out today for myself to be covered on any of my bikes, possibly a bonus if anyone else’s. And my car or wife’s.

From recent googling and searching it seems life isn’t as simple as AA and RAC anymore, can anyone recommend a one size fits all solution?

Should the worst happen whilst on a bike I value a quick response time over penny pinching.

[KTMsm]

petrolbloke said:

Noob moment today... locked my one and only key in my topbox - it's a Givi V47. Any suggestions?! Preserving the box and lock mechanism is preferable!

Assuming I can get into it, how straightforward is it to get extra keys cut?

Have a Google for a suitable local locksmith I found a fantastic one in Coventry who made me a key to fit the locks on my BMW panniers (they didn't come with any keys) for £8 !

Admittedly mine were unlocked but they are easy enough for a pro to pick

Once you have a key and need more - I used "keys in the post" you email them a picture and they send you a key I needed a BMW specific one that no one locally could cut- they did it for £12 !!! Fantastic service IME

Edited by KTMsm on Friday 5th August 16:58