Speaking about hand grips, yes they are really hard and pointy. Anyone over here replaced them with after market ones?
Usually wearing gloves solves the problem but i cant wear gloves all the time.

you have to wear gloves or else.. i think ktm has some grips (clean grip set - not sure if they are used only during servicing to prevent the orignal grips getting oily/dirty or if they can be used as regular grips) in their 'powerparts' (not sure if they are available in india)
KTM Griffschoner-Set
Otherwise try some 'local' stuff which can be 'slipped' on to the existing grips.

I'll try to address your points in order:

1) Per this review: KTM 200 Duke first UK ride review - Road Tests: First Rides - Visordown of the Duke in the UK, the rider/reviewer found the Duke to be so maneuverable that it could U-turn inside the width of one traffic lane. That's a plenty-tight turning radius as far as I'm concerned. Lots of sport bikes, particularly those with clip-ons, have very wide turning radiuses at walking speed, but this can easily be overcome by learning how to use the clutch instead of the throttle to modulate engine power at low speeds.

2) You have something regarding the chain. Most riders have noted that it stretches quite a bit at first, leading to lots of swingarm-slapping. More recent updates have increased the size of the chain slider to reduce the sound, but you should probably be extra-anal about keeping up with the chain tension for the first 1000km or so.

3) Meh. It's only 25hp. What did you expect?

4) That's what an actual performance suspension feels like. You can adjust it a bit by reducing the preload on the rear shock, but since this is a budget bike for the rest of the world, suspension adjustability was nixed.

5) This is one of many reasons you should always wear gloves when riding. If you're not willing to don appropriate safety gear, don't whinge that the designers assumed you would be. It should be noted, though, that the review I posted above does take issue with the hardness of the grips, noting that they would be likely to last a long time. The texture was not an issue though, as they assumed the rider would wear gloves (and some comments even mention how little friction the grips have!)

6) I don't recall seeing a specific amount, but the manual mentions not to fill the tank above the bottom edge of the fuel neck, which is the same for any bike. Yes, it limits the capacity somewhat (though I personally feel that the fears about burned-out fuel pumps if the tank goes empty are overblown). In that respect, pity the VMAX owner, who only has 15 liters to feed that monster motor.

7) Again, meh. Call me when riding causes actual 1st-degree burns. Also, you *are* wearing long pants, at least jeans but preferably riding pants, aren't you? You should never wear thin slacks or, god forbid, shorts when riding a motorcycle. Not just to protect from exhaust heat, but also as armor. And, the restriction against slacks is double since they can melt if too close to a hot engine, causing injury.

Those are for transport only, and are used on off-road bikes which have very soft, sticky grips for use in wet, muddy conditions. Such bikes are often transported to and from races on open trailers, and those protectors keep the grips from being damaged by road debris.

hehe, ok i'll use gloves . Those powerparts will be quite costly and its not needed since they will be used , just to cover the grips for a while.

Hey Guys,My name is Neston,New on xbhp.
and i currently own a the Duke200
Just wanted to know about something i am now scared of,
and that is,
I rode the bike with no problems etc
and until i gave my friend to try the bike who is lil bit huge
I dnt know I din hear him Changing the gears badly and with full pressure but after i took the bike and went riding home i felt the gears got harder..
i dnt know I am shit scared about it, this is my love..I dnt know what to do..
please help me off with this and tell me what exactly it is..

Indeed i can understand how it feels. our Duke a dear to us ....yes bro it is. So make sure next time to handover the bike to d guy who is sensible enough to care. Being a 'biker' these days is in fashion...young guys claim themselves bikers and they do such stupid acts. A little knowledge and care along with your passion being a biker makes you so.We all have seen guys driving rash peeling off their engines running in redlines without helmets engine braking...desecrating the life from their bikes. Lend your bike with caution of you love her that much.I didnt lend it till 1000kms.(break-in)...and still i give to guys who are sensible like guys here having a lil knowledge about the thing.If your friend would have ridden it hard it might have affected a little. Might be a little psychological factor too. Keep up with the thread.Take care from now bro.

"Service not reset" is up on the MFD. I have to go to the SVC or is there a way to do it myself. Wondering why the guy didnt reset it.ECU diagnostic tool is by Bajaj at KTM service. I doubt its functionality.

4) Well, sort of. But it's not a sports bike. It's a street bike. Street bikes are supposed to be good on the streets.

5) Again, if you make this argument for a 600/1000 sports bike, i would agree with you, but (i'm just repeating now) this is a street bike. Street riders can't be expected to wear full riding gear all the time. Being said that i haven't even ridden 10 meters without a helmet on, but counting gloves as essential for city rides is a bit much.

6) As i said, the KTM dealer told me "9 liters" when i took the delivery. No number is mentioned in the manual.

7) Of course i'm wearing long pants and shoes all the time but it gets uncomfortable, so it goes to the "cons" list anyways. I don't see why i should just not mention it all and completely ignore it.


Engine braking is a good practice. Gives you more control while decelerating. (of course this doesn't mean you should jam it into 2nd at 80kph)
Yes, it wears out the clutch plate a bit faster, but i treat clutch plates as commodities, just like tyres. They wear out with usage and you need to replace them anyways. And just for the record, it does absolutely ZERO harm to the engine/gearbox itself.

Correct bro it helps in handlind entering high speeds into corners and leaving gives you stability and manuverability. But It puts load on the valvetrain .Also timing chain tends to loosen up. Anyways its upto ones driving style. And also i guess Duke being a bruff street bike might be able to go through that mild engine breaking. But yaah theres a lil harm in doing that which shows up after several kms.

Cracked Rim

Ok, so I managed to crack my rear rim, after hitting a pothole at about 60ish... Did anyone else have an issue with cracked rims? If so, could you help me with the procedure and cost involved. Also is this covered by the insurance that we got from the dealer?

Any source for "load on the valvetrain" and "timing chain tends to loosen up" ?

As far as my understanding goes, it does nothing of that sort.... the only effect is that the clutch is made to work a bit harder (not even that if you do perfect rev matching). I've used engine braking as a routine practice forever and it didn't show any ill effects at all.

hello dukers.... IS DUKE 200 CAN BE A DUAL PURPOSE BIke????
interm of seat hieht,, ground clearance is it almost same with pulsar 220 or fz16?

Duke is Short stroke Hight Rev Characterized Street fighter.
The closest eg will be the RX, it has almost all the characteristics of the RX but everything in an advanced way.
It can do Touring but not how the ZMA does it.
It can do Commuting but not how the splendor does it.

Ya this will surely be a lesson for me from now on.
thanks man.
and Ya will the bike be alright after the first service?

It does so. Ive seen my colleagues come with such problems as they do engine breaking a lot. The guy here he does a lot of engine braking performs powerslides entering into corners etc stuff. Often i chat with him disscuss about the replacements he went through. He has changed 3 pulsars in 2 years well he has a lot of money anyways what the thing is all had the common cylinder head problems. Bent valve stems has been witnessed in such cases too..further following up with tappets wearing off head sounds and consequently the whole timing of a 4stroke engine. you know how timing faults even can sieze the engine.As far as timing chain loosening goes when we put the gear down suddenly the rpm goes up and thus consequently the camshaft has to rotate quickly too...and it is driven via timing chain. That sudden surge of high rpm gets transferred through chain to camshaft which gives the timing chain a JERK thus everytime a sudden drop in gear would increase rpms and thus the timing chain will recieve a jerk and with time it will loosen up.Same way our drive chain loosens up. More rash u drive it will loose more. Thats why Stunters witness quick loosening of drive chains. same is the thing with timing chains.

Credible source please? As i said, i have been engine braking for 8 years as a routine practice. None of the engines have shown slightest of ill effects. This is another thing like clutchless shifting, where people don't know how to do it right and then blame it on the technique being bad itself, if and when anything goes wrong, when in fact it's just them who can't do it right. Ignorance is bliss.

Also, for the second part. Engines aren't made of rubber. It isn't as drastic (or drastic at all) as you make it sound. Sudden drops/increase in rpm are a regular part of any engines life. And for a one word reply to the entire second part of your argument : rev match!