Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

some and old to other KTM owners, as the A500s were released mid-year in 1980. The assembly is designed to get stiffer with the degree of compression, and comes standard with five weight oil. Oil weight is changed' to stiffen or soften the front end, instead of changing the spring. No air caps are provided. A big plus in '81 will be that all KTM's, with the exception of the 175cc, will have primary kick staning. No longer will a KTM rider have to find neutral before bringing the bike to life. Pulling in the clutch will be the only requirement before stabbing at the kick-staner. The bottom end will use 420 components, but different gears--five wide ones--fit into the housing. A new cylinder and head are used on the 590. The pipe has been restyled from the early 590s and tucks in a bit tighter. Plastic items on the 590 will be molded in a different manner in '81 and stronger plastic will be the result. Instead of the accessory Petty headlight / number plate, KTM will have their own mold, one which looks more a part of the bike. The 590 comes stock with a 2.7 gallon tank. A 5.5 gallon model is available. Power to the back wheel will come from a 520 chain instead of last year's larger 550. Metzeler tires on Sun rims, 3.00 x 21 on the front and 4.50 x 18 on the rear, deliver traction to the ground. Hefty eight gauge spokes, 56 in front and 40 in back, hold everything together with strength to spare.. The ~ometrical difference between the 590 and the 420 comes from a rake and trail alteration. A sharper angle is achieved for tighter turning radius and quicker turns, and KTM leaves the fork length up to the rider. They can be moved in the triple clamps, with the forks lower in the clamps for desen/MX use and higher for woods riding. Roller bearings are used in the steering head which have proved to be dependable. To keep track of your progress, KTM fits a 590 with either a VDO speedometer or pace unit, depending on purchaser preference. The right combo of air and fuel is ixed through a Bing 58 millimeter carburetor, same as last year . This ear, however, the 590 will feature a choke control on the bars by the clutch ever. KTM felt a woods rider would be better off with the adjustment at hand. Riders below the six foot tall mark will appreciate that tbe seat height of the 590 is 55.8 inches, one inch lower than the 420. Again considering the plight of the woods rider, KTM will include Magura short levers, though our test bike was not equipped with them. In the odds and ends department, KTM has added a screw at the bottom of the clutch release cover which eliminates oil weeping. New decals, old orange lines on white, add a cosmetic appeal. A screw was added so that the transmission fluid level can be checked. A new chain guard and sprocket cover has been fitted. A folding shift lever again comes standard. Though our test model sows the seat with "RV" on it, 390s will come with an unmarked seat. The 'RV stands for reed-valved and reed valves will only come on KTM's 125cc 'bike. Early 1980 KTM's didn't have kill buttons. Now all KTMs have them. x Snug up all the bolts and we had a 229 pound package (dry weight) that was begging to be ridden. We started to suit up for a powe! line run. Climbing on ISDT Gold Medalist Barry Higgins had barely prodded the 590 to life when he took a slow speed spill and slapped his back across a stump. Granted, Higgins had taken worse shots than that through the years, but this fall kept him down for awhile. "If you jump off it, it still feels the same; it has absolutely no effect on how you hit the ground," grunted Higgins. The point is that while we were waiting for Higgins to come back to life the KTM laid on its side. After five minutes we picked it up, straightened a few bent parts and.gave it a kick. Only a few prods were needed to fire the 590 up. A plus for any woods rider who knows what a flooded engine after a crash can mean. In fact, the 590 was virtually impossible to load up. The Bing carb worked as well as any. Third gear would pull from five to 55 mph, and second gear was almost trials oriented. The bike would idle over logs and around trees in second, but pull into a useable power range at will. Top end wise the KTM was a rocket. Up around the 90-100 mph mark one wonders if knobbies are the thing to have on pavement, but the 590 will put you there. While the 420 served MX purposes, - the 590 excels with useable power in the realm of the woods rider's demands. The low decibel buzz the 590 emits is in contrast .to the strong power the bike will put to the ground in varied terrain. In only a few minutes an experienced rider is able to determine the relationship of throttle and traction. For Higgins, clicking it up a gear and using one quaner throttle on slick stuff would help him hold a straight line.. The 590 did have a flat spot at about 5000 rpm, but a woods rider doesn't need acceleration beyond that level. A fast-paced rider can spend about 90 percent of his/her time in third gear on the trail and get the job done. . The KTM clutch of yesteryear has gone away. No longer are two hands needed to pull the lever in--one strong finger will do the job. Performance wise, no problem. The clutch was slipped through miles of tight trees and stabbed at in emergency use, but never got hot and was always ready for more. The brakes did their thing. They were watered through creeks and mud, but never even hinted they were planning to go away. They stayed progressively strong. The front brake was adjusted after 50 miles of riding with little adjustment needed for the rear. Tight steering, predictable in nature, was well received by test riders. Suspension was dialed in for all but the, "Gee, I didn't know that four foot drop-off was therel" rype riding. For cross country or Two-Day type use, we felt the rear end could be stiffened up. The Fox Shox came stock with 200 p.s.i. of pressure, extra firm small springs and firm progressive main springs. We left them that way, but many options from Fox are readily available. With the old style KTM fork assembly, the first few inches of travel were harsh. The new Marzocchis wouldn't bottom,- yet weren't harsh. For the everyday rider, suspension as it is should be fine. Gas consumption was average, and getting to the next gas stop should pose no crisis. Our 2.7 gallon tank was still one third full after 46 miles had been logged. The test sounds pretty one sided, huh? You're right, it does. We could find very little wrong with the 590. The gas cap is hard to get on and off and turns into a two-handed affair at times, which could cost a Two-Day or hare scrambles rider precious seconds. We would change the grips for personal use. The pipe came close to the plug, and could cause a blister if care isn't taken when plugs are o 00 0') .-4 A front Metzeler and Marzocchi fork assembly did the trick. Rear rubber is also Metzeler. The fender kept slop off rider. Fox reservoirs tucked in behind the air box. A foam filter is stock. KTM's 390cc motor packs all the punch an Open rider needs. changed. In summary, the KTM of old is gone, displaced by a new era woods machine that won't scare the crap out of you, won't come on when you don't want it to, won't pitch you sideways over unknown terrain, and won't run out of power when needed. It will stop you when you want to stop, will get you through tight woods like a 250, and will take you to many a winning ride if you can ride it to its potential. KTM has produced an Open class woods option that warrants the attention of anyone in the market in '81. • Specifications Engine .,.mn-port Type Two-Strok• DilIpIecetnent ••••.•••.•••..•••••••••...••.••••••••••••••• Sec Bore 8nd strok ' 82x 74rnm ConIpr• •lon ~ ••.• 12:1 c.buretIon 38rnIn MotopIBt CD LubtIcetion ..•....•..•••..•.•...••...•..•.••••....••.•.• PI'" AIr 0Ied fa8In ~ T,.. I••llN'I PrImal., Idck ata lillg wide rIIdo II ['on Ja1 PrImal., Clutch 17 WIet FInIII cIrIw•••••••••••••••.••••••••••• &18 x (no.!I2DI chlIIn.l2I1fi = "'Iidon 1,.. Ch...I. ~ 3lknnt. 12 In. travtlI ~X Fox r••• rvaIr. 12 In. . . . . M_.IIf~x21 Fork Shocks. Fronttlre ..... tire WI' 1.11:1 Ground el , "" .. ".. "" . " """" "" Fuel csplCilty Dry IIht """ "10" 2.7"" s..t heItht c.or. "" . " "" " SUIl. .tMI .............. II. ~ """ " " "" x 1I4-p1y """ 17'.".... 11 In. In. as Mel 221... " " " "WlJ~... (apdalil" : price (plus freight end d Nt. ._ ••.• ez._ 13

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