Hey all
Short review on what the last 100 hours has been like on the Berg.
First off a little update on the rider. 40+ A rider. 30 years in the dirt.
First 4 stroke ever is the 390 FE.
Coming off a long line of KTM 2 strokes. Most recently a 08 250 XC
Terrain I ride in is tight west coast rain forest.
Engine & Transmission
The one part of the bike that has consistently impressed me is the motor. It just plain rips. It is one of the most fun motors that I have ever had in a bike. It can be tuned to be super smooth or arm stretching wild.
The fuel injection is perfect in all conditions and allows the motor to throttle down to 10 rpm and still not need clutch when throwing a mitt full of throttle at it.
The fuel injection is a lot like an auto clutch in that it lets you get away with things that you shouldn't.
Much of the pop and stall stuff you hear about is related to people not having the idle turned up enough. It took me a while to figure that out. I just had to keep adding idle screw until it stopped happening.
The motor has been trouble free and the valves where barely out of spec at 60 hours. I have run Rotella T non synthetic from the beginning and had ZERO problems.
The only mods I have done are an FmF pipe and a mapping switch.
For me the pipe made the bike a little snapper down low and a whole lot louder. Not really worth it in my opinion. The map switch is great and I would recommend it to all.
The transmission gearing is perfect. You are never hunting for the right cog. I dropped to a 12 on the front to slow first down in the tight stuff, but other then that it is a dream box.
Starter and Battery
This is a major area of concern for me and one of the big trouble points.
In every dead engine race situation, be prepared to come from the back of the pack. It takes about two or three seconds to start and in a race situation that’s last place most of the time.
For trail riding the battery/starter has been rock solid with no charging and reliability problems.
Suspension.
As every one now knows, the factory valving and springs that come on the berg are super plush. I ended up going one step stiffer on springs and that made a great deal of difference. The suspension does work great in the slow speed chop and rocks, but not at race pace.
The bike also tends to wallow in the whoops and drive in the corners under braking.
In summary the suspension is great for trail riding but needs serious work as a race platform.
Mass Centralization.
Much has been said about this and in my opinion it is mostly marketing hype.
The bike is heavy, period… and no amount of centralization is going to change that.
It takes a ton of brake input to stop it coming into turns and down hills. It takes enormous effort compared to a two stroke at race pace in the tight single track.
Yes it does feel light once moving, however when you light the fuse and are going all out you feel the girth.
If I lived in an area that had more open terrain, I am sure I would have a different opinion, but I don't.
Conclusions.
Great trail bike. Well built, outstanding motor. But not ready to race...
Looki
Short review on what the last 100 hours has been like on the Berg.
First off a little update on the rider. 40+ A rider. 30 years in the dirt.
First 4 stroke ever is the 390 FE.
Coming off a long line of KTM 2 strokes. Most recently a 08 250 XC
Terrain I ride in is tight west coast rain forest.
Engine & Transmission
The one part of the bike that has consistently impressed me is the motor. It just plain rips. It is one of the most fun motors that I have ever had in a bike. It can be tuned to be super smooth or arm stretching wild.
The fuel injection is perfect in all conditions and allows the motor to throttle down to 10 rpm and still not need clutch when throwing a mitt full of throttle at it.
The fuel injection is a lot like an auto clutch in that it lets you get away with things that you shouldn't.
Much of the pop and stall stuff you hear about is related to people not having the idle turned up enough. It took me a while to figure that out. I just had to keep adding idle screw until it stopped happening.
The motor has been trouble free and the valves where barely out of spec at 60 hours. I have run Rotella T non synthetic from the beginning and had ZERO problems.
The only mods I have done are an FmF pipe and a mapping switch.
For me the pipe made the bike a little snapper down low and a whole lot louder. Not really worth it in my opinion. The map switch is great and I would recommend it to all.
The transmission gearing is perfect. You are never hunting for the right cog. I dropped to a 12 on the front to slow first down in the tight stuff, but other then that it is a dream box.
Starter and Battery
This is a major area of concern for me and one of the big trouble points.
In every dead engine race situation, be prepared to come from the back of the pack. It takes about two or three seconds to start and in a race situation that’s last place most of the time.
For trail riding the battery/starter has been rock solid with no charging and reliability problems.
Suspension.
As every one now knows, the factory valving and springs that come on the berg are super plush. I ended up going one step stiffer on springs and that made a great deal of difference. The suspension does work great in the slow speed chop and rocks, but not at race pace.
The bike also tends to wallow in the whoops and drive in the corners under braking.
In summary the suspension is great for trail riding but needs serious work as a race platform.
Mass Centralization.
Much has been said about this and in my opinion it is mostly marketing hype.
The bike is heavy, period… and no amount of centralization is going to change that.
It takes a ton of brake input to stop it coming into turns and down hills. It takes enormous effort compared to a two stroke at race pace in the tight single track.
Yes it does feel light once moving, however when you light the fuse and are going all out you feel the girth.
If I lived in an area that had more open terrain, I am sure I would have a different opinion, but I don't.
Conclusions.
Great trail bike. Well built, outstanding motor. But not ready to race...
Looki
