Tallin to Dakar
The goal was to ride from Tallinn to Dakar… it became a bit longer!
Romet Aida's plan was to ride from Estonia to Dakar. That in itself is already a worthwhile trip but Romet had better ideas: Take the TET through Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal! He had covered 15.000 km by the time he arrived in Portugal, 70-80% of which on TET tracks. In March he arrived in Morocco and continued through Mauritania, Senegal, Guinea Bissau and at the time of writing he is in Guinea. He didn't take a big heavy adv bike, and he didn't stop at Dakar either… the trip is 25,000 km so far (or 500 hrs) and his bike of choice, a 2018 KTM EXC450 Six Days, is still going strong. Who says KTM EXCs can't go the distance? When will the trip end? Who knows. Romet puts it nicely when he writes 'I'm actually heading for home now… just not via the most direct route'. |
We've asked Romet a few questions about the trip, see his reply below:
- Why did you decided to do the trip on an Enduro? Logical choice would have been KTM 690 or Husqvarna 701 Enduro, but as I have 701 Supermoto and did my last trip around Europe with this, I wanted to start with something new. I was waiting for KTM Adventure 790 R or Yamaha T7 as everyone else, but their release took too long. I have been long time admirer of Rolling Hobo, Braaping Kiwi adventures and Adam Riemann MotoNomad movies and at one point I came upon nomad-adv.com site and started to fancy starting with my own EXC based build. So when previous year KTM 450 EXC Six-Days came available with very good deal, I decided to pull the trigger. - Have you had any mechanical issues? No major issues, engine still works great and burns no oil. One of the fork oil seals blew in Romania and I had to change my route to Cluj Napoca to get this fixed. Now I carry spare seals and fork cap wrench so I can change them myself. The engine has been great, haven't had any problems with it. The piston was changed in Spain at 15475km, 370h, as a precaution. As I found out there was really no need for it yet, but just for peace of mind I decided to do that before entering Africa. Two valve clearances are a little bit on the loose side now, so will adjust these in Ivory Coast. Valves have not needed any adjusting before. The only issue I've had has been a broken kickstand. The stud, which is part of the frame and goes inside the kickstand, broke off in Spain. For some weird reason KTM decided to use a shorter bolt that goes only into the stud part and not all the way into the frame. As a temporary fix, I just bolted the kickstand back with a longer bolt. But because the stud was broken off, it was not as strong anymore and as expected the bolt also broke when I just arrived at the Mauritania border-crossing. I've been using the old kickstand with a tennis ball in one end for grip and Giant Loop luggage hooks in other end, which connects to bike's foot peg. I bought a Pro Moto Billet kickstand and will try to install it when I get back to Africa in July, so I should not have to mess with the kickstand every time I stop! - Where do you plan to go from here? I fly back to Ivory Coast, Abidjan on 10th July, hopefully my bike and gear is still in hotel parking lot and then I'll continue further south. Current plan is to ride to South Africa, but you never know how visa situation will go in countries like Nigeria and DRC, maybe I have to ride back through Western Africa. What happens after South Africa is uncertain, one option would be to ship the bike home, second option is to ride back home through East Africa. But I have been also thinking about shipping the bike to South America or Asia and continue from there, but will decide when I get there. |
What modifications have you done to the bike?1. IMS 17L gas tank
Obvious choice, biggest tank available for 2017-2019 year models. Very strong, no sign of damage after numerous falls. Also helps to protect radiator. I also run Twin Air fuel sock inside it to avoid dirt when filling up from bottles or canisters in Africa. 2. Haan Wheels with cush hub I contemplated long whether to do this modification or not, as it is quite expensive. I'm really happy I decided to go with them as the ride is a lot smoother and there is less stress on other parts of the bike like the chain, sprockets and countershaft. If you want to or not, there will always be long stretches of tarmac and both you and the bike are happier with a cush hub. 3. Standard/regular tubes over Ultra Heavy Duty ones I run regular tubes and carry extra for both front and rear. I started with UHD tubes as the bike came with these, but I don't see much benefit when travelling and they take a lot more luggage space. No punctures in the last 15k kilometres. I also have Motion Pro rimlocks. Front is probably not needed, but don't see much disadvantage having it. Wheels have never been balanced, but they are quite vibration free even without it, so haven't seen much reason to balance them. 4. BRP rubber sub mount with steering damper I went with BRP rubber sub mount because it solved two problems for me: they reduce vibration in the handlebars and raise them a little so the standing up riding position is more comfortable. I also wanted a steering damper to reduce the chance of the odd rock causing an adventure ending fall. They also help to decrease fatigue. Only problem with the BRP rubber mount is that it obstructs the fork preload adjusters, you have only 2 positions available, to get the third one the forks have to be turned. 5. Nomad ADV rear and side rack A KTM EXC has a very minimal aluminium subframe where the plastics ad strength to the rear end. In the beginning I was quite sceptical of the lightweight aluminium rack as it does not connect onto a steel subframe, as there isn't one. It only weighs 900 gramms and bolts both to the aluminium frame and the plastics and combines them together. But after installing it, I could immediately feel that the whole subframe got sturdier. It has held up very well, no problems so far, even when they have been quite overloaded at times. Would definitely recommend it. 5. Luggage I already had GiantLoop Coyote saddlebags and a Fandango tank bag from a previous trip, so I just added a Tillamook to increase luggage volume. I also have a Kriega fender bag, which I use to carry my spare tubes and tire levers, and a Kriega R20 backbag. |
6. Gearing 14/44
I have mostly run 14/44 gearing. For slow sections some clutch slipping is needed, it cruises easily at 90-100kmh on highways. Most people like 15/48 which is very similar to 14/44, but there is not enough clearance to run a 15 tooth front sprocket with KTM Powerparts clutch slave cylinder protector! I tried this, when a 44 tooth sprocket was not available in Spain, I modified the plastic chain guard to get more clearance but noticed the chain started to eat into the billet clutch cylinder guard. I changed to a 14 sprocket, so I'm currently running 14/48, which is good if you're ok with cruising 80-90kmh. I'll probably go back to 14/44 with my next change.
Supersprox Stealth rear sprockets last forever, KTM front sprockets not so much (~5000km). My experience is that O/X ring chain lasts 2 front sprockets and Superprox Stealth rear lasts 2 chains. A couple of times I have not changed front sprocket in time which has probably reduced chain life. Probably will try some stronger front sprocket next time, but there is small chance of countershaft damage.
7. Tutoro chain oiler
I wanted a chain oiler because it supposedly increases chain and sprockets life, which would be great in Africa where supplies are scarce. I don't think I have achieved the increased lifespan so far and still struggle to find a good place for the oiling nozzle. Chain and sprockets can easily be covered in mud, which causes the nozzle to be wiped out by sprocket or chain. They can also create a mess near the countershaft and rear wheel when opened too much.
(Note from 'the editor': they can definitely increase chain life. We don't use the Tutoro nozzle as they get damaged too easily. What we do instead is run a short hose to just behind the front sprocket with a soldering wire inside it to help the hose keep it's shape and allow it to be strapped with a zip-tie without hampering the flow. The last 20 mm of the hose has no soldering wire in it. The hose drips onto the chain just after the front sprocket, out of harms way, and if the chain flicks up and hits the hose it will simply flex with the chain and back again. This setup has worked for over 80,000 km for us.)
I have mostly run 14/44 gearing. For slow sections some clutch slipping is needed, it cruises easily at 90-100kmh on highways. Most people like 15/48 which is very similar to 14/44, but there is not enough clearance to run a 15 tooth front sprocket with KTM Powerparts clutch slave cylinder protector! I tried this, when a 44 tooth sprocket was not available in Spain, I modified the plastic chain guard to get more clearance but noticed the chain started to eat into the billet clutch cylinder guard. I changed to a 14 sprocket, so I'm currently running 14/48, which is good if you're ok with cruising 80-90kmh. I'll probably go back to 14/44 with my next change.
Supersprox Stealth rear sprockets last forever, KTM front sprockets not so much (~5000km). My experience is that O/X ring chain lasts 2 front sprockets and Superprox Stealth rear lasts 2 chains. A couple of times I have not changed front sprocket in time which has probably reduced chain life. Probably will try some stronger front sprocket next time, but there is small chance of countershaft damage.
7. Tutoro chain oiler
I wanted a chain oiler because it supposedly increases chain and sprockets life, which would be great in Africa where supplies are scarce. I don't think I have achieved the increased lifespan so far and still struggle to find a good place for the oiling nozzle. Chain and sprockets can easily be covered in mud, which causes the nozzle to be wiped out by sprocket or chain. They can also create a mess near the countershaft and rear wheel when opened too much.
(Note from 'the editor': they can definitely increase chain life. We don't use the Tutoro nozzle as they get damaged too easily. What we do instead is run a short hose to just behind the front sprocket with a soldering wire inside it to help the hose keep it's shape and allow it to be strapped with a zip-tie without hampering the flow. The last 20 mm of the hose has no soldering wire in it. The hose drips onto the chain just after the front sprocket, out of harms way, and if the chain flicks up and hits the hose it will simply flex with the chain and back again. This setup has worked for over 80,000 km for us.)
10. SKF fork mud scrapers
I started with neoprene fork protectors, but I really didn't like not being able to see under them, so I removed them. After my seals blew in Romania, one repairshop recommended SKF mud scrapers and I'm still using them, no major oil leaks since.
11. Neoprene PDS shock protector
The only thing I really regret not upgrading is the notorious kickstand.
I started with neoprene fork protectors, but I really didn't like not being able to see under them, so I removed them. After my seals blew in Romania, one repairshop recommended SKF mud scrapers and I'm still using them, no major oil leaks since.
11. Neoprene PDS shock protector
The only thing I really regret not upgrading is the notorious kickstand.
2nd Update: Now in Angola!
Romet has just arrived in Angola and now has 40,000km on his EXC. The story above was done while he was in Guinea, since then he has continued on going south and has travelled though the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo and now Angola. Below are some images of the countries mentioned above.