Got a chance to ride a Vstrom 1000 the other day

Thanks Don, I kinda figured it could be clutch related, I have a few to look at so I can compare. also the new vstrom 1000 has just appeared on the market here.It would be great to get a test ride on it, be a while though before they are available for that.

Many of the liter Strom riders find swapping the sprockets to 16/43 make the bike more rider friendly. If that doesn't resolve the problem you may be facing the dreaded "clutch chudder" ($300 fix). IMO the Strom and ST make excellent stable mates.

I use a 17/43 and to me that's ideal. (17/41 is stock) I can use the 6th gear without lugging at a little over 60 mph, and the fuel economy doesn't seem to suffer a bit. It has a bit more grunt on takeoff as well.

A lot of people mistake a worn chain and sprockets for the infamous "chudder." The chudder is more of an annoyance than a problem, assuming the bike actually has it. If it does actually have it, there's a guy that takes in your clutch basket for about 150-250, depending on the problem, and fixes it. Here's everything you wanted to know about the chudder and fixing it; http://www.vstrom.info/Smf/index.php/topic,12325.0.html