950 SM Woes

[Sylvester]

Hi, Ive just bought a 2006 950 SM. After a week the starter clutch started clicking, any ideas on the fix as I've heard that KTM have an upgrade kit? I also want to get some slip on muffflers and was thinking about Leo Vince. Are they any good and would I have to re jet? Last question, I've heard I will have water pump problems. Should I get a spare line up in case?
I love the bike its the exact opposite to the air head I normally ride around on. Its the first bike I've bought without massive research, bit of an impulse buy.

Many thanks

Sylvester

 

[IainMac]

When I had my old 950Adv the mod of the time was to lift the carb needles a notch or so (maybe an extra washer) and mod the one of the airbox triangle covers to be open with a foam screen (as found by KTM Sommer) . Water pumps were a wear and tear item, I would expect new kits to last longer than the original stuff , mine was gone at 10Kmiles, had the tell tale slow to pressurise cam tensioner chain rattle at start up, replace oil filters while your at it in case they're water logged. Exhausts? anything is better than stock, Do Wings do cans for the SM?

 

[doyle]

Leo Vince are ok,good enough quality.Not as cool as Akrapovic but a lot cheaper.They run much cooler and shouldn't need any fiddling with the jets.I stuck a set of akrapovics cans on two different 950sm and they ran fine without any adjustment.
One thing when starting any of the 950-990 is to use no throttle,this I have been told damages the sprag clutch starter.

 

[Sylvester]

Leo Vince are ok,good enough quality.Not as cool as Akrapovic but a lot cheaper.They run much cooler and shouldn't need any fiddling with the jets.I stuck a set of akrapovics cans on two different 950sm and they ran fine without any adjustment.
One thing when starting any of the 950-990 is to use no throttle,this I have been told damages the sprag clutch starter.

Cheers, its the first bike I have bought without extensive research likewise the first bike I have without a workshop manual so feeling a bit lost. I know my old airhead and Triumph Sprint like the back of my hand, hate not knowing anything. At least it has carbs to play with, no more EFI and lap tops for me!!!!!! I also discovered a weld repair to the swinging arm area on the left hand side. It doesn't look like the chain has been thrown or the bike has been down the road. At some stage the swinging arm was repainted black to match the frame so I wonder if they over tightened the swinging arm pivot and shagged the case? The rear spindle was also incorrectly assembled so was only half way through the nut threads. You couldn't see it because it has the crash protectors fitted through the axle.
It came with a full comprehensive service history from a KTM dealer!!!!!!!! Strangely I had the same problem with the Trumph. I bought it as it has very low milage and looks as if it has never seen rain.

 

[Nice 'n' Fat]

A good modification (if it hasn't already been done?) is the SAS/EPC mod

http://www.ktm950.info/how/Orange Garage/Emissions Equipment/epc/sas_epc_removal.htm

It had already been done on my own SMR before I bought the bike. It had previously been owned by a guy who worked for KTM UK at Brackley

He had adjusted the carburation although I'm not sure of exactly what was done? I do know it started from cold on part choke and ran an even tickover within 5 seconds of start-up. It would run through the gear without hesitation and no flat spots. The cans are Beowulf and I ran them with the baffles in

It was a fantastic bike which I wish I still had

 

[doyle]

They can use a bit of oil and need to be run up to temp then left to settle ,then checked when the bike is vertical to get an accurate reading.Also the two 950SM I had ,didn't like petrol being left in them and not run otherwise the carbs gummed up.
Absolutely brilliant bikes,not just for a quick blast but can easily do big miles ,once you get the seat altered!
The rear brakes can squeak at times,I just cleaned the discs with brake cleaner and roughened the pads to cure it.
Oil changes are easy once you discover where all the screens are.Loads of info onhttp://advrider.com/index.php?forums/orange-crush.90/

 

[Robbo1200ADV]

The starter problem was a recall , had mine done , like Mr Doyle mine used to gum up if fuel left in for a while , delamination of the tank , and used to mean a full carb strip . Later petrol tanks cured this I am told
Great bikes , had mine for 3 years then px' it for a 990 SM efi which was no where near as good . Still fancy an SMR

 

[Allan Davies]

Clutch clickin? or is it crabby? Grabby..... try this Bleed clutch and renew fluid (really do this twice and make sure the reservoir is spotless too) Also clean out the oil jet
http://ktm950.info/how/Orange Garage/Oil Change/Oil Jet/oil_jet_cleaning.html
Oberon do a clutch slave kit about £90

Note, I do this on my 990 ADV
if it still grabs too much, try getting a bigger oil jet http://www.zenoverland.com/ktm_950-adventure/ktm-lc8-clutch-oil-jet-05mm.html cure the grabby clutch in an instant but is slightly awkward to get into neutral at the lights etc. Even worse if you off road like me, but I find it a better trade off as its a matter of selecting neutral before you stop or blipping the throttle (which is no bad thing on open pipes )
HTHs

Water pump normally needs attention around 24K miles, so do it then at the major service,if its okay as a precation and while the bikes in bits doing the shims etc. Mine lasted till 30K miles

 

[Sylvester]

Clutch clickin? or is it crabby? Grabby..... try this Bleed clutch and renew fluid (really do this twice and make sure the reservoir is spotless too) Also clean out the oil jet
http://ktm950.info/how/Orange Garage/Oil Change/Oil Jet/oil_jet_cleaning.html
Oberon do a clutch slave kit about £90

Note, I do this on my 990 ADV
if it still grabs too much, try getting a bigger oil jet http://www.zenoverland.com/ktm_950-adventure/ktm-lc8-clutch-oil-jet-05mm.html cure the grabby clutch in an instant but is slightly awkward to get into neutral at the lights etc. Even worse if you off road like me, but I find it a better trade off as its a matter of selecting neutral before you stop or blipping the throttle (which is no bad thing on open pipes )
HTHs

Water pump normally needs attention around 24K miles, so do it then at the major service,if its okay as a precation and while the bikes in bits doing the shims etc. Mine lasted till 30K miles

I've looked through the history and the water pump was done at 15,000 km. The clutch is fine, almost too good after the Trumf. the starter is turning the motor fine but its making a clacking sound occasionally which is a bit alarming. I've read a thread where you can change the sprag rollers from the LC 4 and transfer them to the LC 8 basket ( or is it the other way round?) thus saving the cost of a new rotor. If its clacking though, surely that's the torque limiter? I have to order everything here so its not a good idea to strip and then order as I have waited 10 days for parts from main dealers. Is it possible that this could be fixed on a recall? I've also read that there is a kit from KTM that costs around 500 euros. FFS!!!!!!! I love the bike, it ticks all the boxes for me. My Air head is fine for pottering around, the Triumph is fine if you are in a hurry but I HATE the EFI the throttle lags behind the engine a split second that makes it annoying in stop start traffic and it makes my hands go to sleep after a while. The KTM is a great all-rounder, comfy with the Gel seat and it just fits my stumpy frame and no vibes!!! I was a bit paranoid about the case repair and spent nights pissed off with myself for not spotting it. Never mind, up and over, just got to get to the bottom of the starter problem.

 

[Greenman14]

I did some research before buying mine and chose the 950 as the later 990 was reported to have fuelling issues. I found the 950 fuelling wasn't perfect but after doing the mods it was close enough.

A good modification (if it hasn't already been done?) is the SAS/EPC mod

http://www.ktm950.info/how/Orange Garage/Emissions Equipment/epc/sas_epc_removal.htm

+1 for this mod, well worth doing, a big improvement on my 950 SMR. As far as I remember the carb mods were larger main jets and lifting the needles by one notch. I learnt it all from the KTM forum. The fuel pump is a known weak point on the KTM, mine failed and there was no work around, loads of good info on the KTM forum.

Nice bike Mr Fat.