I’m not sure if I want to label this as a “saga” but in my continuing saga here’s what has transpired. I knew my clutch was slipping a little back in 2022 so right before LAB2V 2022 I replaced the clutch with a Rekluse manual. It bumped the discs from 7 to 11 and used the same space to do it (thinner discs).
From the start with the Rekluse, if you were sitting in neutral at a stop light with the clutch all the way in, there was a visible jump when you clicked it into 1st gear. I thought I might just need a bleed. I ran out of time and just rode the LAB2V with it the way it was. I don’t use my clutch much in the dirt anyways.
Almost a year later, in prepping for the LAB2V 2023, I finally got around to bleeding the clutch. There was little change in the action that I had been feeling since day 1. When I got home from LAB2V 2023, since I also had a small oil leak, I decided to replace the slave unit with an Oberon, just in case. Still no change in feel, but I did notice that my aftermarket levers had a ton of play and so I went looking and found what most people thought were the best, and that was ASV.
ASV Inventions had a few different options available ranging from super PRO stuff, down to Billet, and then down to Forged. They might even have gone lower in strength but I figured forged was going to be the perfect happy place for me. I ordered the F3 for my bike.
They arrived pretty quickly. The box had been beaten up a little – but really, who cares. These are going to go through far worse on the bike.
I’m so bothered by the sport bike specific reference but I can’t blame them. When looking at the parts fiche on any site the KTM is usually not under dirt bikes, not under dual sports, not under adventure bikes – it’s usually found under street bikes.
Inside the box, the lever was nicely protected from anything outside by cut out foam. Had I ordered the matching brake lever, there was space in the foam for that too.
I ordered blue levers with an orange adjustment knob and that’s exactly what came. They look really sharp!
Certainly too nice for my bike, right?
Inside the box was a QR code to scan for Installation Instructions. I’d rather read instructions on my laptop or tablet so I went to the site instead. https://asvinventions.com/installation/
From there I looked under Street/Sport and they said next to look for my model code or what they called a Knee Part Number.
It was stamped into the part. Mine was easy enough to find. CR44B
Then going back to the Install screen I found that the instructions for my particular number were not available. No link, no click. There was a thin little crossed out line running through them.
Oh well. In picking up the lever, I also noticed they felt heavier than what I had so I decided to weigh it.
148 Grams for the unit. When I took off the old one I had I also weighed it.
133 Grams. I’m not a weight weenie so that difference is zero to me. Besides if I really wanted to make a big difference instead of this 15 gram difference I could lose 20 pounds of body weight. That would actually make a difference. They do feel a whole lot smoother and more precise.
As for the missing instructions, you really don’t need them. I removed the old lever, had already cleaned everything up, reinstalled the new lever and then adjusted the knob for what I thought was the best feel. I think I was done in under a minute. Really.
I like to use 2 fingers on both my clutch and brake and even though these are shorty, they can still come back and hit the knuckles of the other fingers on a full pull. This is where I ended up with adjustment. The lever is all the way in, hitting the end of the master cylinder. You cannot pull it any more than this.
And that is just about perfect for leaving just enough space for my other fingers that would be wrapped around the grip. Here’s a shot looking up at that.
Riding the bike around the block, the clutch is just a little better dis engaged. There’s still a noticeable jump when you click into 1st gear and neutral is still hard to find but it’s marginally better.
I like the lever a lot. It has a very nice feel to it. If I ever get paid again, I might buy myself the matching brake lever. I still don’t think I need a billet lever but this level of engineering and finish is absolutely fabulous! Look at the beefy return spring!
The lever itself feels great on bare hands and has all the right curves. My old levers had a much sharper corner that you could feel with gloves on. I might add a small strip of grip tape to the front side – but we’ll see.
UPDATE: Tomm happened to pop by and I had him ride the bike and see what he thought. He said my sticky clutch felt just fine. A little sticky but fine. So I might just give it one more good bleed and call it a day and ride it like it is.
He's an avid hockey fan, rides a mountain bike, sometimes rides a road bike, has a few motorcycles (he had a really fast one, had a big cool orange one, rode a really slow one, and is currently building a perfect "BDR Weapon"). If that isn't enough, he makes cheese and sourdough bread, loves strong beer and good red wine, and poorly plays the Mandolin.
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