KTM 1290 SUPER ADVENTURE R - Set Up

[@Vlerkies]

Keep on truckin dude, you are a huge inspiration to many.

[@67daltonknox]

I notice there is a different shock compared to the previous model and the rear header is insulated. There were many complaints about the earlier 1290 having an inadequate shock and excessive heat. By insulating mine with exhaust insulation tape, I found it not only improved heat on my legs, it dramatically improved the rear shock, so I think the shock deficiencies were at least partly due to the oil thinning from excessive heat.

[@minime423]

hey, how did you tape off the heat?? right on the head? or around the frame?

[@67daltonknox]

@@minime423 Remove the rear header. Wrap it in exhaust insulating tape (I used Design Engineering), then reinsert.

[@minime423]

@@67daltonknox thank you! its my one complaint about my new to me 1290. doing this for sure.

[@LifeofSmokey]

Good video Chris! Placed an order for the SAR as well. I thought that the gps bracket was gonna be down on the handlebar so didn’t order it. Good to see it’s all the way up top. So ordered that one also. Thx for the tip 😎

[@psycodriver]

Finally you did it mate, everyone that tries this beast ends ordering one 😁 This Chanel is the ktm’s sanctuary 🤗

[@nigellove-lovebigbikeadven4783]

Thank you chris Always value your opinion

[@toddbenfield6546]

Best looking KTM Adventure bike for sure👍

[@TR850]

I really like your setup vids and the pro hints!

[@rodrigofabregas7756]

Looks great Chris!...awesome setup

[@bartdecroo5823]

@Chris Birch With the DID dirt star Rims, did you change the size of the rear tire? I'd think you would run a 140 80 18? or do you run the 150 70 18? cheers

[@miguelmaia9668]

Wondering the same

[@zeez9053]

What’s the name of the quick release front wheel spindle thing again could not hear it properly and subtitles confused things? 🤘👍🇬🇧❕

[@11ferret]

hi what model garmin is that on you 1290 r .many thanks garry.great vids.

[@shanemcdonald3191]

Great review. Love the seat,Love the bike. 🍻

[@mikescott9213]

Awesome bike I would love to have one. For touring I want shaft drive. That keeps me from buying one. That and the warranty. Warranty isn't very good.

[@cummomoto]

Chris did you leave the rear shock settings stock and the spring rate stock?

[@robertomariscal]

What a legend!

[@Rufus-OG]

Nice video Chris … now get out and ride it and post that video 👍🏻

[@ADVRaiderKTM]

Chris, can you tell the KTM guys to bring it to the US plz? One of the biggest motorcycle markets and they are delaying it by a whole year!

[@dionmarriott]

Hi. Thanks for video. I am interested in fitting the brake lever 614.13.902.044 and clutch lever 607.02.931.044 to my 2021 1290 Super Adventure R. However these are not listed compatible with this bike. Did you have to modify the levers or the mating parts to make them fit? Thanks Dion

[@ChrisBirchNZ]

I had to do a little fiddling but it was nothing difficult. You need to press the Bush out of the brake side to use the original mount.

[@dionmarriott]

@@ChrisBirchNZ Hi Chris Super- thanks for answering my question. So just press out the bush in the brake lever and they're good to go? They do look pretty on you bike. Again great information videos - they inspire me.

[@fersbk]

@@ChrisBirchNZ Hello, when you talk about the clicks, is it about the standard base, or the sport setting? As for the shock absorber you didn't say anything.....

[@jonasdavidsson9216]

Great review! I'm aiming for a similar set-up for my '21 SAR. About halfway there now.

[@Kaegis]

KTM designers need a good slap around the head when it comes to rider ergonomics. Foot peg location, especially.

[@karlgriffiths2232]

So... are the Rally pegs physically lower? Or just slightly thinner? Definitely feeling a little cramped even with the rally seat. Thanks for being the most chill superhero on the internet.

[@ChrisBirchNZ]

Yes they are lower, 10mm maybe?

[@exothermal.sprocket]

Hope you're doing well in your country. Fight tooth and nail to maintain civil freedoms there.

[@vikramsoni0008]

Big fan of you sir 🤗

[@ownyourworld]

Nice 👍🏻

[@paulbradshaw9046]

Maybe convince the higher-ups to push some bikes to the states!!!!!!

[@danielkammerbauer1691]

Hi Chris, I really like your videos 👍🏼 What is your set up of the fork and shock? Many greetings from Germany

[@javiersanz5111]

Hi Chris, what setting "clicks"do you have in the suspensions?? Thanks!!!

[@steveberente8419]

What type of Brake & Clutch levers have you fitted ? I cant seem to find any for my 2021 KTM 1290 SAR

[@11gimo]

Hi, thanks for very helpful video. I have just bought a 2018 1290SAR. I am 179-180 cm and can just reach ground by my both toes. Would really like to lower it 2-3 cm (not the seat). What do you think of the "Chinese" spacer witch can be put at bottom of the rear spring. Will this easy modification take away a LOT of the bikes maneuverability? I can live with a LITTLE loose of that though, better than falling 🙂. Would be nice to hear your opinion Chris. Love your videos!

[@ChrisBirchNZ]

Hi, I’ve never heard of this so can’t comment sorry. We do have a video lesson for shorter riders available at saynotoslow.Nz that could help you tame the beast!

[@callumbrown3357]

Hey Chris. Just found this video. You mention the flat seat but I cannot see it in the parts catalogue at KTM. Do you have a part number or link for it?

[@DukeOfPain88]

Hey i have the same bike and i like the seat. is it confi on long trips? also on the street? thanks mate :)

[@vitinostefano75]

Hi! Which difference between the Akra and the original? Just only a little sound and weight? And the performance...are the same? Thank you great C !

[@MrPaulo1400]

Hi Chris, I do have a question as I am in the search of a ktm sar and I am asking myself if I should go for the 2022 model or a 2020? Is there, in your opinion, a real difference in handling on street and dirt with the new fuel tank design? I haven’t tested a 2022 model and cannot find a 2020 model for test ride. I did ride a 1090 and found it great.

[@adamhrachowina9119]

Hi Chris, do you drop a tooth on the 890 or run stock gearing ?

[@michaelhutchinson1927]

Have you done a video on the 690 enduro r ?

[@pilotlang1]

I looked at a 2020 today and it is a MASSIVE bike. How tall are you?I'm 5'11"and I was on my tip toes. I am concerned about KTM reliability. I've seen and read many stories that make me think twice simply because of name alone.

[@Drj988]

2018 SAR 49k miles 38k file pump 49k stator pick up. Electronics have been a little quirky and the ktm navigation I've never used. But been a supper fun bike. 5'8" 160, definitely wanna be in shape to ride off road!

[@leanit5756]

What kind of pressure can you drop to with the stock TKC tires (riding solo, no luggage, fast / aggressive riding on rocky dirt roads, well under 200 pound on-the-bike rider weight)? Owner's manual does not list dirt settings, but the all-purpose recommended 36F/42R results in horrendous deflections off the rocks at both ends.

[@robsonenduro3316]

wonder what mitas R13 tyre is that, E13 F or E13 rally star...

[@SWFlowseeker]

Chris. Where can I buy the Rally seat? I can find it anywhere Thx for the help

[@ChrisBirchNZ]

Any KTM dealership will be able to order it for you.

[@oosung]

My 1090R runs very hot, I get a lot of heat rise from the engine... has that been addressed on the 1290? Thanks

[@randysavage1997]

Its pretty much the same on the 1290 too lol, my legs get cooked on mine. However, there are aftermarket heatshields you can buy to protect your legs from the heat of the engine.

[@TR850]

I actually have the impression that my 2018 1290 SAR runs cooler that my old 2014 1190 Adventure. The 2021 1290s have a different air flow and are supposed to be much cooler than the older bikes.

[@ChrisBirchNZ]

Yes they have improved this quite a lot. The split radiator makes a big difference. On a hot day I can hold my hand out and feel the heat going around my leg. That was all going in to me on the older bikes.

[@Abjure_0_]

What tyre size are you running with these rims?

[@Truemann45]

how did you lose your fingertip?

[@fabiomarconi6296]

Chris what model Garmin have you got there? Cheers mate!

[@ChrisBirchNZ]

It's a zumo XT

[@KOBSAKICEMAN]

You had said you run pressures in the 20s. will this not trip the TPM alarm??

[@ChrisBirchNZ]

I disable the TPM system as I run tubes.

[@KOBSAKICEMAN]

@@ChrisBirchNZ cheers for the response...you are a great man being a gentleman

[@gasss35]

Hi … subtitles in italian pleeeeaseeeee!

[@marcusmichel84]

Why he dosent ride a 690 enduro ....its much easyier to ride offroad

[@Bouldertag]

No skid plate! What gives?

[@ChrisBirchNZ]

it comes with one!

[@Bouldertag]

@@ChrisBirchNZ Ughh sorry Birch I did not see it. Thanks for your very patient reply! Love your work!

[@jamesbenic]

Is the stock skid plate adequate for aggressive off-road riding? Are you concerned about having the kickstand mounted to the engine cases?

[@ljuborajictt]

👀😃🖐👍👍

[@laryangel4082]

Y

[@librepensador6800]

I have 2021 1290 SAS and i think R model is too big for OFF, 890 R is most racional OFF bike.

[@wfodavid]

Chris could ride a Gold Wing off road and make it look easy. Not the bike its the rider.

[@librepensador6800]

@@wfodavid Prize for the most stupid comment of the day, we all know who Chris Birch is and what he is capable of doing, we admire him, I comment on it for yokels like you, do not make the mistake of buying this model for offroad because they will not enjoy it like the 890R, even Chris himself comments it in a kind of comparison, another thing is that by contract now he has to promote the 1290 SAR.

[@k_plax]

OFFROAD is a broad term and every adventure bike is designed for a different level of offroad... a 1290 would be great and more comfortable than my 790 if travelling long days on gravel or dirt fire trails and carrying a pillion or luggage.

[@wfodavid]

@@librepensador6800 Thank god people like you aren't in my world.I own both 1290/790. Nice try princess.

[@wfodavid]

@@k_plax Agreed. I have both. The 1290 gets interesting in single track nd the 790/890 is definitely more fun on single track.

[@syntaxmsi]

Still can't buy this bike in North America.Stop teasing us!

[@wheatdevon]

Thank you for your tips and information. Because you talked about your COPROACH infestation in the down under. Allow me to share something. You can learn from an Americans who told a king to pack sand and who killed their slave masters. ;). Not really that you are a slave but that even your royalty and status doesn't make you immune to being attacked by coproaches. “Sic semper evello mortem tyrannis” (“Thus always I bring death to tyrants.") When plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men in a society, over the course of time they create for themselves a legal system that authorizes it and a moral code that glorifies it. Frédéric Bastiat “Those who are capable of tyranny are capable of perjury to sustain it.” “...only those who have the will and the power to shoot down their fellow men, are the real rulers in this, as in all other (so-called) civilized countries; for by no others will civilized men be robbed, or enslaved.” ― Lysander Spooner, No Treason: The Constitution of No Authority "So these villains, who call themselves governments, well understand that their power rests primarily upon stolen money. With money they can hire soldiers, and with soldiers extort money. And, when their authority is denied, the first use they always make of money, is to hire soldiers to kill or subdue all who refuse them more money." -Lysander Spooner. (1870) -The payment of taxes, being compulsory, of course furnishes no evidence that any one voluntarily supports the Constitution. It is true that the theory of our Constitution is, that all taxes are paid voluntarily; that our government is a mutual insurance company, voluntarily entered into by the people with each other; that each man makes a free and purely voluntary contract with all others who are parties to the Constitution, to pay so much money for so much protection, the same as he does with any other insurance company; and that he is just as free not to be protected, and not to pay any tax, as he is to pay a tax, and be protected. But this theory of our government is wholly different from the practical fact. The fact is that the government, like a highwayman, says to a man: Your money, or your life. And many, if not most, taxes are paid under the compulsion of that threat. The government does not, indeed, waylay a man in a lonely place, spring upon him from the road side, and, holding a pistol to his head, proceed to rifle his pockets. But the robbery is none the less a robbery on that account; and it is far more dastardly and shameful. The highwayman takes solely upon himself the responsibility, danger, and crime of his own act. He does not pretend that he has any rightful claim to your money, or that he intends to use it for your own benefit. He does not pretend to be anything but a robber. He has not acquired impudence enough to profess to be merely a “protector,” and that he takes men’s money against their will, merely to enable him to “protect” those infatuated travellers, who feel perfectly able to protect themselves, or do not appreciate his peculiar system of protection. He is too sensible a man to make such professions as these. Furthermore, having taken your money, he leaves you, as you wish him to do. He does not persist in following you on the road, against your will; assuming to be your rightful “sovereign,” on account of the “protection” he affords you. He does not keep “protecting” you, by commanding you to bow down and serve him; by requiring you to do this, and forbidding you to do that; by robbing you of more money as often as he finds it for his interest or pleasure to do so; and by branding you as a rebel, a traitor, and an enemy to your country, and shooting you down without mercy, if you dispute his authority, or resist his demands. He is too much of a gentleman to be guilty of such impostures, and insults, and villanies as these. In short, he does not, in addition to robbing you, attempt to make you either his dupe or his slave. The proceedings of those robbers and murderers, who call themselves “the government,” are directly the opposite of these of the single highwayman. In the first place, they do not, like him, make themselves individually known; or, consequently, take upon themselves personally the responsibility of their acts. On the contrary, they secretly (by secret ballot) designate some one of their number to commit the robbery in their behalf, while they keep themselves practically concealed. They say to the person thus designated: Go to A- B-, and say to him that “the government” has need of money to meet the expenses of protecting him and his property. If he presumes to say that he has never contracted with us to protect him, and that he wants none of our protection, say to him that that is our business, and not his; that we choose to protect him, whether he desires us to do so or not; and that we demand pay, too, for protecting him. If he dares to inquire who the individuals are, who have thus taken upon themselves the title of “the government,” and who assume to protect him, and demand payment of him, without his having ever made any contract with them, say to him that that, too, is our business, and not his; that we do not choose to make ourselves individually known to him; that we have secretly (by secret ballot) appointed you our agent to give him notice of our demands, and, if he complies with them, to give him, in our name, a receipt that will protect him against any similar demand for the present year. If he refuses to comply, seize and sell enough of his property to pay not only our demands, but all your own expenses and trouble beside. If he resists the seizure of his property, call upon the bystanders to help you (doubtless some of them will prove to be members of our band). If, in defending his property, he should kill any of our band who are assisting you, capture him at all hazards; charge him (in one of our courts) with murder, convict him, and hang him. If he should call upon his neighbors, or any others who, like him, may be disposed to resist our demands, and they should come in large numbers to his assistance, cry out that they are all rebels and traitors; that “our country” is in danger; call upon the commander of our hired murderers; tell him to quell the rebellion and “save the country,” cost what it may. Tell him to kill all who resist, though they should be hundreds of thousands; and thus strike terror into all others similarly disposed. See that the work of murder is thoroughly done, that we may have no further trouble of this kind hereafter. When these traitors shall have thus been taught our strength and our determination, they will be good loyal citizens for many years, and pay their taxes without a why or a wherefore. It is under such compulsion as this that taxes, so called, are paid. And how much proof the payment of taxes affords, that the people consent to support “the government,” it needs no further argument to show.

[@davypross]

OFFS…

[@glinleyt]

I've no doubt that is an awesome machine for Chris to ride and do his thing, but I'm sorry it's pig-ugly to look at!

[@ChrisBirchNZ]

Your the first person to say that, i guess It's in the eye of the beholder

[@glinleyt]

@@ChrisBirchNZ LOL don't get me wrong, this has to be the most rad machine with a 21" front wheel on the planet, I just find the latest KTM styling a little "off" but yeah, it's all in the eye! Great channel, love your tips and down to earth style...

[@TR850]

I love it. I have the previous generation 1290 SAR, but I find the 2021 absolutely gorgeous!

[@ktmtravels3727]

Bike's gorgeous👍, better looking than previous model. IMO🤗

[@zerotonine807]

This Exhaust is so ugly 🥲

[@mpeabody85]

What size rear tire are you running on that narrower DID Rim?