Ducati Sporting Club UK > General > Idle Chat > At long last.......

[dave w]

I have finally managed to get out on my bike....

After much badgering from Helen, I eventually went out on the bike today and had a good 2 1/2 hour blast. Got chatting with 2 people, one of whom I met in a petrol station who was driving an AMG Merc ( anyone here ? ) who also owns a 996... ended up gassing about bike for about 20 mins.

Had my faith restored in human beings when the bloke tried to give me a fiver for petrol ! I had mentioned to him that I had 3 squid to get back home on and thats when he tried to give me the money ( I naturally refused, but what a nice offer ! )

Got held up at road work traffic lights and got gassing to yet another 996 rider !

Had a few good scratches with some jap bikes... nearly got wiped out by a myopic Seat driver who pulled into my lane on a dual carriageway ( I was doing 120mph and it was a very brown trousers moment )

But... most of all was my disappointment at the top end since I have fiddled with my gearing. Have now got a 14 tooth front sprocket and a 38 tooth rear, done so that I can do monster wheelies and have good acceleration low down.. Only managed to get 165 ( on the speedo ) best

Still managed to come back smiling and in one piece, which is what it's all about.

[Edited on 13-3-2004 by dave w]

[Nigel C]

ONLY 165mph !!!!

[mike916]

You did better than me . I managed half an hour out in the dry and then got bombarded by hailstones and had to take the short route back home then two hours in the garage cleaning a filthy 916

[dave w]

Mike916..........It's no fun when that happens is it ??? Thats why I really only go out when I am pretty sure that it will stay dry ! Bad luck mate !

Nigel C...... Is 165 fast in your book then ??????? ( my fastest ever was 187 on my Busa with Helen on the back ! )

[Nigel C]

if you must know 155 on an h reg fj1200 on a belgium motorway .(140mph on my duke) .i'm don't really care if thats not fast enough it's the getting there thats the best bit
I am surprised you were disappointed as you said you changed the gearing to make it better fun at lower speeds top speed is going to drop doing this.

[dave w]

Hey, please don't get defensive about top speed, I wasn't trying to have a ' my balls are bigger than yours' arguement !!!

I realised that I was going to have lost top speed, but I didn't realise that it would have been that much, hence my disappointment. That 165 was also on the speedo, so in real terms it was probably even slower !

Lets face it.... How often am I going to get to do 165 ( or even anywhere near that on a day to day basis on our roads )

I totally agree with you though... it's not about straight line top speed, more how quickly it gets there !

Hope you haven't taken offense

[Henners]

Dave - is you speedo electronic? If so it may be driven from the gearbox so your gearing change may have fooled it, you could be going a lot slower than 165.

I down geared my 998 - mechanical speedo driven from the front wheel - and saw the top speed drop to 160 on the clock compared to 175 before. Still felt just as fast though and the drive out of corners was stunning

[Nigel C]

Taken Offence ??? not at all Dave

i think henners may be right about your electronic speedo

[dave w]

Ducati have been a bit clever with the 999, they have put the speed sensor on the rear caliper hanger, It picks up on the rotating disc bolts and then calculates the speed, technically changing my gearing should not have affected my true measured speed, however, changing my disc bolts to titanium ones really caused confusion... My orange light came on and I had no speedo !!! Needless to say the standard bolts went straight back on..

[AK]

Dave the only bolts you can use are ones that will be magnetic - as it is a magnetic pick up on the 999/749/multistrada & the new monsters. The MH900E (which clock I have on the monster creation) has a digi pick up off the front sprocket bolts

Alan

[Edited on 14-3-2004 by CK and AK]