What’s the best none Norton Norton ?

Beauty, eyes, beholder n‘ all that! When the standard dustbin sized exhaust is removed KTM adventure bikes are a thing of beauty! An acquired taste though - took me a decade or so to fall in love with mine! All hail KTM. Not to mention 90,000km and never so much as a hiccup!

I’m guessing yours is a couple of years old at least? Yours actually looks good… (for a KTM ) but they’re just getting uglier and uglier each year!

I have a 2015 Triumph Bobber. One of the first 500 to come to the US. And a '17 Scrambler. Love them both. But still not a 961. Just me.......

Fast Eddie said:

I’m guessing yours is a couple of years old at least? Yours actually looks good… (for a KTM ) but they’re just getting uglier and uglier each year!

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Hey FE, 2009 - they stopped producing the 990 back in 2013. Must admit from that point they may have got more powerful and included (WAY) more tech, but KTM adventure bikes have got successively uglier as the years have gone by. Awesome machines though.

No 961 indeed although way more reliable and dare I say it, a better road bike!

The best none Norton, Norton, I know of is a TRX850. The engine feels like a Norton 961, in that its also a fairly large capacity 270° parallel twin. Also five speed box. Also a dry sump. But on carbs, with much better fueling than the 961. A joy to ride.

S. Bodycote said:

The best none Norton, Norton, I know of is a TRX850. The engine feels like a Norton 961, in that its also a fairly large capacity 270° parallel twin. Also five speed box. Also a dry sump. But on carbs, with much better fueling than the 961. A joy to ride.

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Funny you should say that but when I'm out on mine listening to the mechanical thrashing ( to put it mildly) I think to myself if this engine blows what could I put in it's place? Two things influence me, (1) - Yamaha have had a long standing relationship with Norton, so I have no aversion to fitting Yamaha parts. (2) - it must really be a twin. XS650 too old I suppose, so TDM 850, 900 or TRX are top of my list. I'm going to start another thread on this I think...

Only ever saw one TDM 850 , outside Canso Town on tip of eastern shore of NS …. Holger a German immigrant and his wife Gabbi plus a huge German Shepard had moved here after many years of Holger working in MotoGP , they bought some land (cheap) , bulldozed ‘bout an acre and built a bike shop middle of no-where Nova Scotia , mostly back then (10 yrs) he was working on ATV’s and chainsaws , but had a small display of bikes for sale he had brought over with him when he came , sadly the TDM was much too tall for me but a lovely sounding low mileage version for someone ….

Welshrugby said:

I find this tempting. Then I come to my senses and realise I only do £3K per year and would not use its potential

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www.ktm.com

But, I plan to retire in the next few years so, maybe some more tech added by then and synthetic fuel maybe

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I have a 2017 KTM 1290s and it’s awesome to use an Americanism.
Never used oil and it all stays on the inside.Performance,comfort it has everything.
It also consistently gets over 50mpg.
240 mile tank range.

I’ll admit. I’m a hypocrite. I’m not saying this is a better non Norton because it’s not. But it is a fairly good runner and I’ll be doing a S&S 128 build soon and a 2 into 1 fab28 exhaust. along with some suspension and other upgrades. The taste of crow isn’t so tasty.
2021 Harley FXLRS Low Rider S

Voodooo said:

I’ll admit. I’m a hypocrite. I’m not saying this is a better non Norton because it’s not. But it is a fairly good runner and I’ll be doing a S&S 128 build soon and a 2 into 1 fab28 exhaust. along with some suspension and other upgrades. The taste of crow isn’t so tasty.
2021 Harley FXLRS Low Rider S

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That’s a poor cousin to the original, classic, Dyna Low rider S my friend !

Voodooo said:

I’ll admit. I’m a hypocrite. I’m not saying this is a better non Norton because it’s not. But it is a fairly good runner and I’ll be doing a S&S 128 build soon and a 2 into 1 fab28 exhaust. along with some suspension and other upgrades. The taste of crow isn’t so tasty.
2021 Harley FXLRS Low Rider S

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OMG ! Your going nuts ! BUT , as they say : Go big or stay home. I know you know this , but there is no end to the Harley modifications available . Even Harley makes a 131 ., Are you getting the entire S&S Engine or a kit and staying with the M8 ?
They said Indian was taking over , 9 out of 10 bikes I see on the road are Harleys . I don't have an ax to grind , I like them and they are comfy Bro !

Fast Eddie said:

That’s a poor cousin to the original, classic, Dyna Low rider S my friend !View attachment 80869

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LMAO ! Am I at the corner bar or what ? Pub to you .

Fast Eddie said:

That’s a poor cousin to the original, classic, Dyna Low rider S my friend !View attachment 80869

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By poor you mean that the new softail is better in every way?
lighter, more power, Faster, better handling…
So I’m told by all the Harley guys.
I do like the dyna looks and the rear dual shock looks great. Just wasn’t interested in buying a used, beat on, oil leaker.

TonyA said:

OMG ! Your going nuts ! BUT , as they say : Go big or stay home. I know you know this , but there is no end to the Harley modifications available . Even Harley makes a 131 ., Are you getting the entire S&S Engine or a kit and staying with the M8 ?
They said Indian was taking over , 9 out of 10 bikes I see on the road are Harleys . I don't have an ax to grind , I like them and they are comfy Bro !

LMAO ! Am I at the corner bar or what ? Pub to you .

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I done lost my mind. I’ll admit I’m not a Harley fan and farthest from a cult follower. But I’m bored and wanted something different to build on. Like you said, the build possibilities are endless on a Hardly. I’ll be doing a S&S 128 build including heads and staying with the M8. Looking for 140-150 hp / tq
I’m going to go the west coast style and also add full ohlins suspension, Beringer brakes, Kraus triples, risers, mid controls etc.

Side by side, this harley towers my triumph bobber TFC. once I got the low rider home and parked it next to the bobber I was in shock.

Voodooo said:

I done lost my mind. I’ll admit I’m not a Harley fan and farthest from a cult follower. But I’m bored and wanted something different to build on. Like you said, the build possibilities are endless on a Hardly. I’ll be doing a S&S 128 build including heads and staying with the M8. Looking for 140-150 hp / tq
I’m going to go the west coast style and also add full ohlins suspension, Beringer brakes, Kraus triples, risers, mid controls etc.

Side by side, this harley towers my triumph bobber TFC. once I got the low rider home and parked it next to the bobber I was in shock.

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I caught the Hardly . Are the new S&S heads 4 valve like the M8 is ? OK, so you start with a 114 and is it just bigger bores and same stroke ? Do you raise the C.R. ? And cam?

Voodooo said:

By poor you mean that the new softail is better in every way?
lighter, more power, Faster, better handling…
So I’m told by all the Harley guys.
I do like the dyna looks and the rear dual shock looks great. Just wasn’t interested in buying a used, beat on, oil leaker.

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You’ve obviously not read the specs! There’s actually very little in it. Just that ones the original and ones a copy

Truth is, no one ever wins a Dyna vs Softail debate cos neither side wants to listen !!

I‘ve actually never ridden the softail LRS, so I don’t know what you’re gonna think. But I love mine. My mate has a Sport Glide which has the same Softail chassis as yours, (which a was gonna buy) and that’s fabulous.

My guess is you‘re gonna love it.

TonyA said:

I caught the Hardly . Are the new S&S heads 4 valve like the M8 is ? OK, so you start with a 114 and is it just bigger bores and same stroke ? Do you raise the C.R. ? And cam?

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Yep 4 valve heads
Bigger bore
Same stock stroke
Yep raised compression.
The screaming seagull Harley 131 keeps the stock 4.5” stroke and goes the bigger bore to get 131.

on the S&S 131, they go with the crank and bore.

I don’t want to split the bottom end apart and don’t want to use the screaming seagull 131.

I’ll go the S&S 128 bore kit, compression, ported heads, cam and get 150hp 150tq. Enough to run 10.50s on otherwise stock bike.

Fast Eddie said:

You’ve obviously not read the specs! There’s actually very little in it. Just that ones the original and ones a copy

Truth is, no one ever wins a Dyna vs Softail debate cos neither side wants to listen !!

I‘ve actually never ridden the softail LRS, so I don’t know what you’re gonna think. But I love mine. My mate has a Sport Glide which has the same Softail chassis as yours, (which a was gonna buy) and that’s fabulous.

My guess is you‘re gonna love it.

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I never ridden a dyna low rider s. But
All the reviews and the people at the 3 Harley dealers I went to locally all said the same. They love the dyna but said the softail is better in every way.
The mechanic at the dealer I bought mine at has a dyna low rider s and he said he’ll never sell it but after ridding the softail low rider s he said he thinks it’s the better bike.

to me it doesn’t matter. It’s a Harley. It’s not a forward controls land yacht. But what Harley calls “mid controls” are not very mid in my opinion. More like forward mids. And the pegs are so wide apart.

Voodooo said:

I never ridden a dyna low rider s. But
All the reviews and the people at the 3 Harley dealers I went to locally all said the same. They love the dyna but said the softail is better in every way.
The mechanic at the dealer I bought mine at has a dyna low rider s and he said he’ll never sell it but after ridding the softail low rider s he said he thinks it’s the better bike.

to me it doesn’t matter. It’s a Harley. It’s not a forward controls land yacht. But what Harley calls “mid controls” are not very mid in my opinion. More like forward mids. And the pegs are so wide apart.

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Is it a coincidence that the bike they’re selling is the one they’re praising?? Jus’ sayin’ !!

Anyway… My money is on you lovin’ the HD Scott. This is my first ever HD after years of puttin’ ‘em down and I love it! They are nothing like their reputation, they are surprisingly capable. Me and a SG riding mate just spent 3 days riding around Wales here in U.K. A real mix of roads, from fast dual carriageway ways to tiny goat tracks, and the bikes were perfect.

The only negative is the weight, but you just gotta accept that and move on.

My strong advice is to put some miles on before you tear into it. The M8s are a really nice motor. I did R66 on a brand new, zero miles, 107 Road King and it never missed a beat or loosened a nut. The torque and power is surprisingly good. On the SG (similar chassis to yours) the handling and braking is really good. You’ll most likely find yourself scraping the footpegs though, and the seat will probably be crap on the LRS (mine was painful after 70 miles) so you’ll have to change that if you want to do any distance.

So I’d get to know it a bit first mate, you might realise that you don’t want a highly strung, race bred, hot rod motor after all.

That‘s what happened to me anyway, I was planning a high comp 117” kit, big cam, etc. But I’ve now totally changed my mind. I’ve got V&H slip ons and a Fuel Pack on already and I think I’m gonna leave it be.

Whichever way you decide to go Scott, please start a thread, perhaps in ‘Motorcycle related discussions’ so we can follow your build.

The new low riders are solid mounted with counterbalancer M8 engines , where the Dyna use rubber mounts and the twin cam engines. I think the current HD touring line may still employ rubber mounts to make them even smoother with the M8 engine.

Fast Eddie said:

Is it a coincidence that the bike they’re selling is the one they’re praising?? Jus’ sayin’ !!

Anyway… My money is on you lovin’ the HD Scott. This is my first ever HD after years of puttin’ ‘em down and I love it! They are nothing like their reputation, they are surprisingly capable. Me and a SG riding mate just spent 3 days riding around Wales here in U.K. A real mix of roads, from fast dual carriageway ways to tiny goat tracks, and the bikes were perfect.

The only negative is the weight, but you just gotta accept that and move on.

My strong advice is to put some miles on before you tear into it. The M8s are a really nice motor. I did R66 on a brand new, zero miles, 107 Road King and it never missed a beat or loosened a nut. The torque and power is surprisingly good. On the SG (similar chassis to yours) the handling and braking is really good. You’ll most likely find yourself scraping the footpegs though, and the seat will probably be crap on the LRS (mine was painful after 70 miles) so you’ll have to change that if you want to do any distance.

So I’d get to know it a bit first mate, you might realise that you don’t want a highly strung, race bred, hot rod motor after all.

That‘s what happened to me anyway, I was planning a high comp 117” kit, big cam, etc. But I’ve now totally changed my mind. I’ve got V&H slip ons and a Fuel Pack on already and I think I’m gonna leave it be.

Please start a thread in ’other motorcycles’ so we can follow your build.

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Wow , That is a glowing report . I have only sat on some these models : Low Rider S , Fat Bob and Sport Glide . Of these 3 , I thought the seating , pegs , and bars of the Sport Glide fit me best . Realizing this bike would be used for cruising and touring so comfort is top of list for me.