The KTM 500 XC-W Thread.

[HickOnACrick]

Originally Posted by crankshaft

Picking up my brand new 500 XC-W this afternoon and trail riding tonight with some friends Very excited!

[theantipaul]

Originally Posted by crankshaft

Picking up my brand new 500 XC-W this afternoon and trail riding tonight with some friends Very excited!

Well, so how'd it go Aaron? Is that bike any good?

[crankshaft]

Originally Posted by theantipaul

Well, so how'd it go Aaron? Is that bike any good?

It's even better than I thought! Picked it up at 4 pm and was trail riding it in the dark by 7 We rode some two track covered in leaves, which meant slimy roots underneath and the occasional rock that waits to throw you in the woods.
I'm amazed how good it is right out of the box, I haven't adjusted the sag yet or even touched a clicker..... I'm almost afraid to

My KTM dealer told me that a good trail ride is perfect for breaking the motor in, with the variable throttle and of course, the terrain we rode wasn't good for WOT anyway. I did get into the power just a bit to see how it liked to wheelie.. 1-5 seemed to work

I'm like an excited puppy, I might accidentally piss on the floor I'm so happy!


I have a set of .49 springs for the front, I'm sure it probably has .42's in it

[Too Tall]

Just picked up a '13 500EXC yesterday and guess what, no owner's manual came with the bike. Apparently "backordered".

Plan to change the oil frequently the first few rides. What is the oil change amount/volume for an oil w/filter change? Drain plug torque? What is the stock spring rate for the front forks?

Thanks in advance. Let the fun begin!

[guns_equal_freedom]

Originally Posted by crankshaft

Picked it up at 4 pm and was trail riding it in the dark by 7 We rode some two track covered in leaves, which meant slimy roots underneath and the occasional rock that waits to throw you in the woods.

Put a 15 tooth front sprocket on it.
If you have a friend with a 2012 or 2013 EXC trade him.

I put a 15 tooth front sprocket on my XC-W, it works great.

[crankshaft]

Originally Posted by guns_equal_freedom

Put a 15 tooth front sprocket on it.
If you have a friend with a 2012 or 2013 EXC trade him.

I put a 15 tooth front sprocket on my XC-W, it works great.

I really liked the gearing, it was plenty low enough and I could cruise at 50.
The 500 will be my Enduro and Hare scramble bike, not for DS riding. My 690 is my hard core DS bike. Will the 15 be better for my uses?

[crankshaft]

Here is the video from last night...



Zimzooma was filming on his 500 EXC and I'm the wookie in the blue jacket on the 500 XC-W. This is actually a little more open than I normally ride.

[CamelBill]

Originally Posted by crankshaft

I really liked the gearing, it was plenty low enough and I could cruise at 50.
The 500 will be my Enduro and Hare scramble bike, not for DS riding. My 690 is my hard core DS bike. Will the 15 be better for my uses?

I just got back from my first dirt (mostly single track, fire road, two track, and this bike is absolutely awesome! It handles like a 250, feels very light, and wheelies in the first 5, like you said. I would not even consider a 15 tooth CS sprocket on the bike. I think it is geared perfectly for off road with the stock 13. You would have to slip the clutch alot with a 15; it would not work for endure/hare scramble. A 14 might be doable if you did a lot of really fast fire-roads and dual sports, but a 15 would be just wrong for this bike IMHO.

Love it, love it!!

[crankshaft]

Originally Posted by CamelBill

I just got back from my first dirt (mostly single track, fire road, two track, and this bike is absolutely awesome! It handles like a 250, feels very light, and wheelies in the first 5, like you said. I would not even consider a 15 tooth CS sprocket on the bike. I think it is geared perfectly for off road with the stock 13. You would have to slip the clutch alot with a 15; it would not work for endure/hare scramble. A 14 might be doable if you did a lot of really fast fire-roads and dual sports, but a 15 would be just wrong for this bike IMHO.

Love it, love it!!

That's what I was hoping to hear, thank you for taking the time!

[Wentjo]

I have a 13 48 ratio on mine and I love it! Bike will cruise around 65 or 70 on the road comfortably.

[guns_equal_freedom]

Originally Posted by crankshaft

I really liked the gearing, it was plenty low enough and I could cruise at 50.
The 500 will be my Enduro and Hare scramble bike, not for DS riding. My 690 is my hard core DS bike. Will the 15 be better for my uses?

I ride in Western Washington snotty roots, rocks, mud and muck.
The 13 tooth front sprocket has the bike geared way too low.

I can chug along in first or second gear with the 15 tooth front sprocket on most of the trails I ride on with no problems.

My buddy who has an XCW 500 rode it with the 13 tooth sprocket and he was in third most of the time, first and second were all but unusable.

He also owns an EXC 500, that thing is geared so high it's all but unrideable on the trails.
He swapped front sprockets and now the bikes are about perfect.

I am also running a Rekluse and a LHRB as does my friend on his bikes.

Both have the same primary transmission ratio of 32:76

Stock XC-W gearing
13T
50T
3.85

Stock EXC gearing
15T
45T
3.00

Swapping the front sprocket

XCW
15T
50T
3.33

EXC
13T
45T
3.46

[crankshaft]

I'm not a fan of the Rekluse clutches, I'm pretty good with the stock clutch. I rode my friends 500 EXC in the single track last week with stock gearing and it was very ridable. Maybe I'm doing it wrong?

[empedrado]

Originally Posted by crankshaft

I'm not a fan of the Rekluse clutches, I'm pretty good with the stock clutch. I rode my friends 500 EXC in the single track last week with stock gearing and it was very ridable. Maybe I'm doing it wrong?

Same experience with the clutch. I agree with the gearing I ride trails in the mountains of NM and S CO and am very happy with the stock clutch and 15/50 gearing on my EXC. But I have friends who certainly prefer lower gearing. I do think I would have trouble with the stock 15/45 gearing however when things get really tight and steep.

[theantipaul]

Originally Posted by crankshaft

I'm not a fan of the Rekluse clutches, I'm pretty good with the stock clutch. I rode my friends 500 EXC in the single track last week with stock gearing and it was very ridable. Maybe I'm doing it wrong?

Aaron, I think you'll love this bike! Can't believe your first ride on the bike was a night ride too, classic!

I replaced a clutch a year in my YZ's and only one in my CRF. The kid and I did some of the singletrack in Moab last weekend and with stock 13/50 gearing I'm in 2nd most the time on harder singletrack and 1st only when I need it. Very little clutching even though it's a hard habit to break. My bike has never had an issue with flame outs either.

We also did White Rim, 140mi gas to gas stop with a 13l tank, was a bit sketchy on whether or not I'd be making it w/o a tow. This bike has no problem riding a gear up, so I was really easy on the throttle and coasted down the long hills motor off, if I told you the mileage I got with it you'd call bull, but easily made it, even took a side trip into town before returning to fill up at the same gas station north of town.

I'm looking at moving to a 14 tooth up front for longer rides just to see how it does.

I've had this bike almost a year now and for me, hands down, this is the best bike I've ever had!

[crankshaft]

Originally Posted by theantipaul

Aaron, I think you'll love this bike! Can't believe your first ride on the bike was a night ride too, classic!

I replaced a clutch a year in my YZ's and only one in my CRF. The kid and I did some of the singletrack in Moab last weekend and with stock 13/50 gearing I'm in 2nd most the time on harder singletrack and 1st only when I need it. Very little clutching even though it's a hard habit to break. My bike has never had an issue with flame outs either.

We also did White Rim, 140mi gas to gas stop with a 13l tank, was a bit sketchy on whether or not I'd be making it w/o a tow. This bike has no problem riding a gear up, so I was really easy on the throttle and coasted down the long hills motor off, if I told you the mileage I got with it you'd call bull, but easily made it, even took a side trip into town before returning to fill up at the same gas station north of town.

I'm looking at moving to a 14 tooth up front for longer rides just to see how it does.

I've had this bike almost a year now and for me, hands down, this is the best bike I've ever had!

I basically jumped on it for the first time, rode from my van 100' right into the trails! I never touched the sag, or the clickers and I was on the pace all night and wanting to go faster This week I'm going to put the .49 springs in the fork and my shock spring from the 390 into the 500 to get the spring rates right. I'll ride it a bit on Saturday and then adjust the sag and then start playing with the clickers. looks like a Hare Scramble on Sunday for me, can't wait

I can only imagine how great it's going to be after a get it sprung for my 250# and get a tall seat and some bar risers on it. I could not ride standing up, I had to sit most of the night and I still loved it. The rebound was a bit too fast in the shock but I'll see what's up after the springs get changed.