Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127654
ATK605CCES his share of the company to Wilkes, it was not what you' d call a friendly parting of the ways. Wilkes controlled ATK until Dale White, who alo ng with son Frank had been producing the promotional videos for ATK, offered to buy the company. On February 6, 1993, Wilkes sold out to the Whites, bu t again , it was not exactly a n amicable tra nsaction. Wilkes has now started another company, America n Dir t Bikes, whose first bike - the Avenger - uses a Rotax mo tor, WP suspension (with no linkage), a countershaft disc brake with a backwards lever, and a chain torque eliminator. Sound familiar? For the past year or so, the Whites, both long -time motorcycle enthusiasts, have concentrated on moving the company from southern California to their home in Boun tiful , Utah. True, Utah is n ' t exac tly known as the hea rt of motorcycling, but with the current economy of the Golden State many com pa nies in other industries are also relocating. As Frank puts it, "It's just easier to get things done in Utah." Confused yet? Well, don't worry. Compr ehendin g the finer points of business takeovers is not nearly as important as understand ing the updates to the motorcycle itself. STAR-SPANGLED CHA NGES ~ 0'\ 0'\ ~ By Chris Jonnum Photos by Kinney Jones or the pas t year or so, ATK has not exactly been the most visible motorcycle co mpany in the industry. After entering the thir d phase of the American m anufact urer ' s turbulent existence, the new owners opted to keep a low profile for a year while they relocated corporate headquarters and F 8 worked on upda ting the motorcycl es. The extended hiatus is now over, however, and ATK is back - and if the new 606CCES is any indica ti on, th ey're stronger than ever. For those not in the know , a brief histor y lesson is probably in order. ATK was originally started in the mid '80s by Aus tri an-turn ed -American Ho rst Leitner, who is well known for his innovative designs. At the time, ATK was the o n ly Am erican d i rt bike compa ny aroun d, and the Rotax-powered, WPsuspended bike included suc h novel features as a linkage-less rear suspe nsion, a coun tershaft-moun ted disc brake wi th a backwa rds lev er, and a chain tor qu e elimina tor. Eventually . rl.eitner was joi ned by business partner Ke n Wilkes but, as it turned out, the matchup d idn't ha ve the greatest chemistry. Suffice it to say that when Leitner sold The new ATK 605CCES, like the rest of the ATK line-up, is much different than before. In fact, an A TK has never seen so many upda tes in a single model year. "When w e bought the co mpany, our main goal was to make the bikes simple," explains Frank. "We wanted to eliminate some of the gimmicks and make it more of a conventional motorcycle - less of a novelty. It was also important that the motorcycles be easy to build ." To achieve their goal, the Whites hired Swede Bjorn El vin, who had played a major role in the development of both Husqvarna's and Husaberg's awesome four-strok es. Elvin has since returned home to Sweden, but his input is evident on the ATK. The Whites also hired Ron Griewe, a former Cycle World magazine editor best known fo r his developmental skills. The ne w owner s im med iatel y d id away with the chain torque elimina tor, cou ntershaft-moun ted d isc brake an d backwards-fa cing brake lever. While the linkage-less WP rear shock was re tained, it was updated to the latest full -bleed mo d el, le ngthened, a nd mounted at a diffe rent angle. The aim here wa s to reduce fading ca used by heat build-up, a chronic p roblem o n older ATKs. Up front , WP's newest fullbleed 54/57 inverted fork (the same one used on ' 94 KTMs) was utilized. Of course, the shock and for k both sport externally adjustable compression and rebound damping , and the shock has adjustable preload. Another important update is the allnew 4130 chromoly steel frame, which boasts a steeper steering head angle and lo nger tr ail. ATK was hoping these changes would yield quicker steering and more stability - a tall order to fill. Also, a removable subframe is now standa rd, and the frame's nickel-plati ng was ditched in favor of powder-coating. The heat-trea ted chromoly swi ngarm is longer, an d h as an al umin um axlead juste r block with increased ad ju stment range. The chromoly footpegs are larger and have p rotected re turn springs. In the engine department, the 605 is now fed through a 40mm Dell'Orto carburetor, which takes the place of the old Mikuni 38mm unit. Gases are exhausted through nickel-plated steel header pipes