My 2015 KTM 500 EXC Build - Things are about to change!

Getting rid of a few bikes from the fleet this season to make way for a new project... building my ultimate KTM 500 EXC.

I've had a previous generation of this machine, the 2009 530 EXC-R, and they are great fun. It actually spent most of it's time set-up in supermoto trim, which is something I intend to do with this new one as well. However, with a trip to Moab coming up in May my focus right now is on getting this new 500 dual sport ready.

KTM have continued to improve this beastly machine, with chassis and motor improvements it's better than ever (unless you are a die-hard fan of carbs in this fuel injected world of dirt bikes we live in today). There is one big problem for these bikes though... in North America at least, they are built to comply with the onerous regulations that the state of California imposes on the manufacturers. While KTM's "ready to race" philosophy means that the 500 EXC comes well equipped component-wise, it is truly handicapped by it's emissions regulated garb and lean set-up from the factory. My first ride on this motorcycle didn't last long as the temperatures on the day I picked it up were right around the freezing point, but right away I was really disappointed with the way it performed. Luckily, I had done my research and I knew going into it that I would have some work to do to make it shine -- but had I not known that, I would have taken it back to the dealer right away. I actually think mine might be really poorly set-up as other peoples experiences with their 500's seem to range from "not too bad" to "complete shit" -- my experience certainly falls into the latter part of the spectrum. Overall the bike feels great, but as I push it into higher RPMs the grin on my face, which is supposed to grow as I go faster and the bike pulls harder and harder, actually turned down into sad face -- where did the power go 😞

Fortunately there are enough people out there who know and love these bikes and aren't satisfied until every bit of performance is gleaned from them. That performance is certainly there, so now I embark on my journey to find it for myself. I'll post more on my ultimate 500 EXC setup as it comes together, for now a few photos of it in stock form:

It didn't last long like that, a teaser of the beginnings of making it mine: