Why Does My KTM 1290 Super Duke Run Wide on Corner Exit and Headshake?

The Gen 3 and Gen 4 Super Dukes are notorious for sagging in the rear under hard acceleration. KTM calls it the Beast due to its motor, but I call it the Beast because the stock chassis makes it almost impossible to ride super fast without wrestling it like an alligator. When the rear squats under power, it makes the bike steer wide exiting turns, slows your roll speed way down, makes it harder to change direction, and causes headshake. Your chassis attitude simply changes too much as the bike transitions from off the gas to on the gas.

One of the things the Super Duke benefits from most in the rear is increased anti-squat. Increasing rear ride height increases your swingarm angle, which directly increases anti-squat. But increasing rear ride height is not the only way to achieve this. You can also improve anti-squat by using larger rear sprockets (the bigger the rear sprocket, the more it helps).

Adding a Superlink or Sportlink is the most effective modification you can make to address this. It provides a trifecta of changes: it increases your swingarm angle (adding anti-squat), it alters the linearity of the rear spring rate, and by raising the rear, it reduces trail up front.