8S Heads makes it the 1999 to 2001 model, so standard gearing on the road would have been 15/46 on the Monster, they didn't do a faired SS version with that engine but if they had the gearing would have been 15/44 as standard

Thats interesting as I am running a 15 front 48 rear set and its still slow. Just have to accept that "not being shy at a buffet" has finally caught up with me. This is where I need to say "its not all about the winning; but the taking part that counts". It won't stop me from enjoying myself and gives me a plausible excuse when I lose to Stafford. Thanks for everones help, see you at Snetterton.

48T rear is going to be way to big for Snetterton

Go for a smaller rear and get more out of each gear

I am not racing at Snetterton due to my family holiday a week later. But from the track day I day there about 2 weeks ago I didn't manage to grab 5th gear on the straights unless I short shifted and Mark No 81was making at least 30 meters on both straights on standard gearing on a 1995 600SS.

Jeez Lee. Have you actually got around to setting up/dyno-ing the engine yet? A simple dyno run would/will reveal if all is well. Count the teeth on the primary gears to check what ratio you have. You can't re-bore Ducatis in the conventional sense! If the original honing marks have disappeared, then the bore is probably shagged (technical term).

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I original said to myself that I would run the bike on a dyno and that would prove if the acceleration problem was the engine or me. But the logistics of the dyno test against having a compression tester at hand in my garage didn't equal out.
I suppose this is where it all started to go wrong. Patients is a virtue and I went "bull headed" into stripping down the engine on the back of the compression test instead of running a dyno.
Lesson learnt.

Here's another lesson.
Don't let a mint, proven, Ghostie fettled engine slip your grasp at the end of this season!

I wouldn't beat yourself up over that- if you did the comp test right and there was nearly no compression you know what the dyno would say without having to run it!

So to recap I have stripped the top end, lapped in and reshimmed the valves. Checked the piston rings and bores, reassembled again carrying out a soft solder squash and setting the base gasket..... well today I took it for a dyno test, changed a faulty ignition coil which was causing a misfire
The read out was just got over 47bhp but was set to 46.7bhp to get a better torque curve.
Uhm.....what 4 bhp between friends when your a fat lad.

Mark No81 who has a standard 600 ss produced 46.8bhp.

Roll on Mallory!

What's the cam timing set to Lee