Next bike might not be a Ducati! Sad but true.
 

I've been thinking about this more and more lately after I almost traded in my 900SS and shoe-string trackbike for an RSV.

My next bike in all probability will not be a Duke. Maybe a test ride on an 888 or older 9 series would prove me wrong (but I'm realistic to know that as a family man with next to no money available) no matter how much I might like a 996 or a good ST4 etc (which I I think I'd really like) - it would be finacially beyond my reach....

At least for the next 20 years anyway.

I know the 916's are a fraction of their original cost now but if I dont just hold onto my 900 the best I think I could hope for would be to trade her in (or more likely considering she's 11 years old already - sell her privately) sometime during 2006 !!! and see whats on the market then.

To get a good performance increase I'd probably be looking for an RSV or Falco for staying with twins.
A sneaking part of me would like to be a bit loyal and buy a Triumph (as long as it was a Daytona 600) :devil:

In the meantime the trackday bug has bitten, so I'll just keep on putting my ikle 600 IL4 together and do as many TD's and schools as I can in 2005 and see how things go on the basis that improving my riding skill (erm...reducing the lack of) - is the best pay-off in the short term.

Regards - Frank

T8
 

Frank
If you lived nearer you could have a go on my 888 and I think you would get one once youv'ed had a taste.
no tarmac stripper but faster than 748 and much more fun a little heavier than a SL but you dont notice it much.
power is not the B-all if it was we'd all be riding the new crescent suzuki gsxr 1000 with 168bhp at the rear wheel.
if you should come down this way give me a bell and have a go.
ian
:)

Cheers Ian...

Thanks for the ride offer...you never know, I might just do a TD at Brands, if I'm ever feeling barking mad :D

Outright performance is not going to matter to me that much (but I was surprised at how much I liked some of the IL4 Jap stuff I've ridden during 2004) - however, chassis technology has moved on ALOT in 11 years.

Still - my baby will be classis status in a few more years !!!

Frank

Don't do it Frank!

As your username implies - your bike is 'Iconic'!

Frank! Put your hands in the air and step AWAY from the Biketrader! We have a code-red air-cooled defection.......

Don't worry, you're just suffering a little mid-winter madness. Go and buy the 944 a little xmas pressie. Nice bit of billet, or a bag of stainless screws. Maybe stretch the budget a bit and get a carbon single seat or a little something in a Cyclecat bag (our Tiffanys). :)

Whatever you do, don't sell her before spring, when you've had chance to go out and remember how much you love her.

Cheers,

Ali

I have to agree keep her...and hold out until in this time next year...
You could find that that the 2006 Ducati's are more to your liking then...
Patience is the key! ;)

MMMMmmmmm Cyclecat.........

Good job this post is in the SS forum (so only a few of us SS / SL owners will read it !)

However, the considered move to an RSV (and the many that have already done so) marks in my opinion the sad decline of Ducati into mediocrity. Other than the iconic (!) but now itself somewhat outdated Monster, the current Ducati range consists of :-

ST - capable, but plain
999 - capable, but ugly
MS - capable, but the Elephant Man of the bike world.

Yes I know I'm stuck in the past, but in Ducati-world the past is preferable to the present !


[Edited on 20-12-2004 by beancounter]

Sorry beancounter, you forgot one:-
"ST4S - capable, but plain-and mad as a box of frogs.:lol:

John

Frank have you seen the 996 Jim at Bike Enders has on Ebay at under £4k sounds like a bargain considering how little damage is on it.
Was talking to a mate yesterday who has had his 900SS 8 years now, he was saying that as the bike didn't owe him anything after this amount of time he would rather spend money on improving it than upgrading to a newer bike.
His bike is fairly well sorted, it came from Baines with Dynojet kit, K&N and Bora converted exhausts, front forks and rear shock have WP internals. But as the shock has done a lot of work over the last 8 years he is thinking of getting a Ohlins shock, getting the forks serviced and would like Keihin FCR carbs.

Monty, we all know you love your ST4S but I don't see how a standard 996 engine in an ST frame qualifies a bike as 'mad as a box of frogs'

Quite the opposite - great 'all-rounder' I would have thought.

LOL - good call guys - bad case of midwinter blues I reckon.

I do have a funny feeling that more and more resources (time, more than money) will go on my trackbike and less on my Duke, even if she was nicely sorted before the sprage clutch/regulator problems came to light.

If I ever made a full list of all the work I've done etc I just scare myself straight away and never consider selling her anyway!!!

But the current Duke lineup is an interesting debate and might be relavent to me in about erm.....11 years time :devil:

Cheers - Frank

Depends what you want the bike to do Frank.. Road or track?

I've been doing a lot of thinking about what I would like to stand in the shed alongside the ST when I finally get enough dosh. Fortunately, my kids are grown up now and I've only got to pay for my daughters wedding and my sons final year at Uni this year and then I should have more disposable income to spend on...well...Me!

I would like something sportier than the 'capable but plain' ST2, and a little more power than the quoted 83 bhp. But why? What am I looking for? I shall keep the ST because it's bought and paid for, doesn't owe me anything and is a great all rounder for longer rides, wet days, touring and a bit of scratching. I guess I want a single seat something or other that has a sporting edge, more firmly set up than the ST, a bit sharper and less of a compromise. A bike that I can keep for dry days, and treat to a lot of fettling and bling to keep it as an object of desire.

I can't see myself doing loads of trackdays. I like doing them, but can't afford to do loads of them. So my riding will remain 90% on the road, 10% track or thereabouts. So what to get. Big power is not an issue, I don't really need something with power that I can't use on the road, so I reckon around 100-ish bhp is plenty, after all, even the 83bhp I've got has never seen me get severely embarrased and left behind on a rideout, and it's enough to see me in the fast group on trackdays.

The easiest thing I could do would be to take out a 10K loan and go and get a new 749S, some new leathers and a new lid or a low mileage 999 (even seen some new imports for £8.5K). But, I'm a contrary old git that likes to be a bit different to the pack. This contrary nature also applies to going down the 748 or 996/8 route.

What I keep coming back to is the notion of trying to find a two or three year old 1000DS for about 4-5 K and spending my dosh on a bit of tuning and a few bling bits that save as much weight as possible. Quoted weight for a 1000DS is about 180Kg, if I could shave 10 to 15 Kg off of that in the right places (wheels could save 5Kg for example), we'd be talking. Spending money on suspension and brakes would be the next thing to make it stop quick and go round corners really well...and I'm quite intrigued by Neil Spalding's 1080cc conversion for the DS. There we would have it, a shade over 100 bhp, thumping great lumps of two valve torque and a good handling bike weighing about 165 Kg.

More than enough for the road and enough to stop me getting blasted away on trackdays except down the straights - which ain't where it's at for me anyhow, if it was I'd just get a Gixer thou and join the point and squirt brigade.

[Edited on 20-12-2004 by Jools]

Nice thinking Jools - a lot of which sounds along the lines of a Bimota DB4 to me :devil::devil::devil::devil::devil::devil::devil:: devil::devil:

yeah, the DB5 with the ds engine ('though the DB2 and DB4 also have looks that kill).

I have gone the RSV route myself though I still have both Dukes for the time being. The 748 is definitely going though, once the new season starts and people are actually looking for bikes again. The RSV was just too good a deal to miss, £6500 on the road end of season stock, and all 3 bikes on policy for £25 more than last year!

Keeping the SS forever though. Just spent too much money on it and want to get some FCRs on it next year and maybe a bit more carbon. So still going to be Ducatisti whatever happens.

Keep your SS Frank. You will be kicking yourself if you ever let it go!

Tell me your joking Frank:o:o, why not try a 748 of some description, I have seen how fast even a standard one can be pedalled around Croft and they can be picked up cheapish (Iknow all things are relative). You will get bored of the Suzuki by the end of next year, promise:lol::lol:. If you ever want a go of a 996 to keep your mind off this 4 cylinder malarkey, get in touch.

Cheers Ian - but a hi-rise kit would be first on the shopping list for a 748 etc!

I've made an early resolution not to worry about it anymore - sort out my naff little Suz and just ride it as much as poss.

After all, can I ride my 900 to its limit yet? - NO
Is she still fun after all this time? - YES
Once shes mechanically sorted I think I'll be in Luv again.......NELLY !!!!!!!!!

Happy New Year - Dukes and Owners :D

Frank,

I'll never get rid of my Duke, for the same reasons as the parts on it are worth more than bike cost!!!

Its so much fun and quite capable of keeping up with anything on the public roads, plus it'll ensure you keep your licence and if its as moded as mine it'll turn heads everywhere.

Ok mines a bit slow on some tracks like Donnington which is why i've bought a R1 track bike, but will this turn heads on the roads or be rewarding to ride on them at less than 100mph, naaa!, Air-Cooled Dukes rule, and the noise !!

Happy New Year to all

Andy;)

Why not think of getting an ST3 to supplement your air cooler. I would imagine dealers would cut a better deal on them than on an ST4, but you would get that kind of snazzy 3 valve 1000 engine. I rode one around here (in bicycling togs, which turned a few heads:o) and it felt both flexible and fast. Maintanence should be cheaper as well. Shocks and stuff can come later, but everything is much more modern than what you have now.
Anyway, after getting my ST4, I have a similar problem with my 750SS....what do I do with it (space is at a premium in Japan). Hate to part with it though.

Frank As an ex Aprillia owner I can assure you that if you have ever been frustrated by the wait for Ducati parts then you will think that they are ultra fast compared with Aprillia. It wasn't a case of one dealer being better than other as I bought my Aprillia from the same shop as my Ducati. They dropped Aprillia because of the diabolical after sales service from the importer. This was a pity because I really fancied a CapoNord

I did wonder how the spares situation was going at Aprillia after the problems the factory seem to have had recently.
Nevermind, seems a 'cunning plan' is underway after I have managed to get my brother interested in a Falco - just have to make sure he finds a good one that I can 'test ride' occassionally :D

Cheers - Frank