Building a KTM 690 Enduro R Travel Bike, Part 1: Powerparts

[advrider]

In 2021, when I had a Husqvarna 701 Enduro on loan, I kept wishing I had a travel bike based on that platform. Alas, the Husqvarna 701 Enduro LR is no longer sold in North America, so I was out of luck. But, in 2022, when KTM offered up a 690 Enduro R for a test ride this summer, I started thinking: Why not build a travel bike off the 690, as it’s basically the same machine as the 701?

It would have to be a quick project, as I only had the bike for a month, but I thought it was worth trying, especially as I planned to take the bike to Newfoundland on a mid-summer tour.

On its part, KTM sweetened the deal by putting a couple of key bolt-ons on the bike, before I picked it up. I didn’t ask them to do this, but it did make the job much easier.

This is the style of handguards you want on your dual sport. Not only do you protect your knuckles, but your levers are also protected from potentially trip-derailing drops. Photo: KTM

KTM Powerparts Handguard Kit

Plain, simple handguards, wraparound style, plastic spoiler over an aluminum bar. Every dual sport should come with these, but none do, far as I know. They’re always more expensive than they should be, but so are levers, and the first time these save your levers in a tip-over, they’ve paid for themselves. They also provide a bit of weather protection in rain and wind.

Because these are official KTM parts, they fit without any trimming needed on your levers. Really, nothing too glamorous here, but a solid upgrade that should be one of the first things any dual sport owner bolts on.

Simple roll-top luggage, easy to use and not much to go wrong unless you burn a hole with your exhaust. Photo: KTM

KTM Powerparts Side Bag Set

A no-nonsense set of soft bags. These remind me of the old Ortlieb Moto saddlebags, but with a more “enduro” shape, very similar to Enduristan’s medium Blizzard saddlebags… very, very similar. Hmmmm.

Anyway, with 12-liter capacity and a bit of a “kidney” shape, you can’t load them down too much, but you can haul enough clothes and gear for a weekend ride, if you’re a hero of The Art Of Packing Light or The Art Of Packing Ultralight. If you add a rack, you can stay on the road a lot longer—more on that in the next installment.

One problem with these bags, as with all soft luggage, is that it’s all too easy burn a hole in one of these bags if it gets stuck on your hot exhaust pipe. And, that’s what happened to me. You can install them on a rack, but then you’ve added a whole bunch of weight. My suggestion is to just add a proper exhaust shield; I bolted on one from Giant Loop Moto. You can probably jerry-rig your own if you’re cheap; otherwise, this sort of guard is easy to find online.

Otherwise, these are excellent bags, if you just have realistic expectations. They hold your gear, they keep it dry, if you roll the top tightly. Yes, they could be stolen off the bike by a crim with a sharp knife. Yes, they’ll flop around a bit off-road. No, neither of those things were a problem for me.

Would I recommend them? They do the job; so does lots of other soft luggage. Pay your money and make your choice, but if I had no issues with them, except for the hole from the exhaust.

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