400+ mile day--Sure sign of a GREAT "Real World" bike.
400 miles is a true amount of miles that will establish whether a bike is pleasing to own. The other important requisite is that it and you are ready to climb aboard day after day. The 1290 sounds like it is leaps and bounds better in this function than the 990 SD
I had an appointment in SF (250 miles away) and took the SD there and back in one day and it dam near ended with a for sale sign stuck to it.

Lets be fair here, an unfaired bike that is geared like a dirt bike is hardly a distance bike. Having said that, I find my SD comfier than my old RRS FireBlade, supposed all-round sportsbike that you can tour on.

Anyway, buy something cheap and replaceable like a Honda* for boring stuff, the SD is a bike that brings back the fizz to my veins.










* I have a 68000 mile Yamaha XJ900 that cost me £271 and I plan to do roughly 2000 miles on it next weekend, see my sig for details

As long as we're being fair here, let's be fair: the 1290 is hardly geared like a dirt bike: minimum clutch slip to 10-15 mph and don't even think about 6th til 90+ = NOT short gearing, in my book anyway.
Having said that, the unfaired thing does make it less-than-ideal for distances at speed. But if you're not spending a lot of time north of 75 mph (i.e. really twisty), you can be quite happy all day long.
THAT being said, I'd really like to find a nice smallish fairing cuz everything else about it wants to go fast for a long time.
The "Touring Screen" that was on the official KTM site a while back but mysteriously disappeared looked like it would have been close to perfect. DId anyone actually get a hold of one of those before they vanished?
Is there anything else out there for the 1290 (or adaptable?) that anyone likes???

Get a Guzzi,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Reading comprehension would tell you that he's talking about the 990 SD which he currently owns.

I believe that the heritage of the 1290 is built to add to the 990 version without subtracting from the items that make the 990 such a stand out performer. For me if the 990 had a bit more, should I say plushness in its higher miles per day stint capability, It would be closer to my "real world" It is now at the cost of ownership that I would want want it to be more multifaceted, and from all the reviews it appears to hit the check list very well. There have been many members on here that feel they can remove a few motorcycles from their stalls without much detrimant to their needs. I think that is a true testament to "real world". Based on membership response to the new 1290 I could travel well on the 1290 and I, being a bit of a rode hard put away wet 40 year broke carpenter can see that once the reliability in long term ownership is determined. This bike could serve my needs well. I have tracked my 990 on five occasions and plan on at least five more in the same time frame. I doubt the 1290 would have me wishing for the 990 back.
Bassagent has superior reading comprehension, I did my SF stint on a 990