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Photo by Marc Gibaud, Clouds on Tres Cerros and Mount Fitzroy, Argentinian Patagonia

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Photo by Marc Gibaud,
Clouds on Tres Cerros and
Mount Fitzroy, Argentinian Patagonia



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  #15  
Old 20 Nov 2009
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Depends what you mean by 'excellent' condition. Very rarely you can find new ones, but at the price (>6000 EUR) I'm not sure if they are a good deal. BUT you can find some in excellent mechanical condition, with some mileage and scratches on the tank, which are great value.

Check this site: mil Suchergebnisse: Motorräder bei mobile.de

You will have to check back every couple of weeks or so. Most places that sell them are large vehicle dealers that buy them in containers of 20. They sell them off and when they're gone they might get another container. So depending on your timing you get to pick a nice one or be stuffed with left-overs. Or you could try to buy from a civilian owner, hoping that pre-selection has already occurred ;-) The merchant in Neumuenster had pretty shitty ones last time I looked (car merchant, not interested in keeping them in good condition). The one in Niebuell (currently offering 7 KTM mils) however is a bike dealer, so chances are that they've been given a service before you buy, but I haven't been there myself.

But one very important note for anyone interested in this bike:


I know two people on this site who had engine failures with this bike. The rocker arm rollers are a weak spot, especially the small bearing. Make sure you check it before your trip, or at least when you are approaching 25.000km, and replace it asap if it is showing signs of wear. I had mine checked before departure, and it needed a new bearing. No big deal, but if you miss this chance and the bearing goes, the cam bearings and cam shaft will follow, and that will be costly. Apart from that, take maintenance seriously (change oil and lube air filter every 5000km, check valve lash (tell-tale of rocker arm problem at least every 5000km). If you do that, then you have gotten yourself an extremely sweet and robust ride for very little money (starting from 2000 EUR if you are lucky). The WP suspension on this little machine is absolutely awesome!

In addition, tyres, chains, etc last an absolute eternity on this bike. Things that I would consider essential to modify or to take on a trip are as follows:

- add neoprene fork gaiters (~25 EUR) if you are going to dusty places (applies to any USD fork)
- put on a hand adjustable fuel mixture screw (~20 EUR) if you are going to go to high altitudes.
- take a bottle of magura blood (hydraulic clutch fluid) (~5 EUR)!!!
- take a carb needle jet and jet needle as spare (~20 EUR)
- take some oil filters, they can be hard to find
- consider converting to or adding HIDs, the standard head-lamp is pretty shitty.

Other than that, it's a great overlander right off the shelve! More infos/experiences PM me if you like or have a look at Moto Eurasia

Oh and one more thing: not sure if it's true, but I am told that KTM Mils are used for three purposes by the German military: 1) Escort vehicle - high milage, but usually in very good condition; 2) driving school - can be good, can be bad; if you are lucky then excellent mechanical condition, low milage but enough scratches on the tank to bring the price down; 3) physical exercise for members of the special forces (KSK) - you really don't want one of these! If you have frame numbers of potential bikes, then any KTM dealer can tell you where the bike was based, what it was used for and what maintenance/repairs have been done on it. The army has a maintenance contract with KTM, so it's all in the KTM database.

Good luck :-)
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