But like I said there is too much hero worship going on here - if you have money to burn - follow the other lemmings to the usual suspects - they will be delighted to rip you off!
Otherwise, ask around, share your experiences good and bad - as a mere mortal you (like me) can ENJOY Ducati ownership without a MASSIVE race-spec bank account.
I look after my bike mate, had a 12K service with no rockers, I try and do what work I can on the bike to save money when the service is due, and no I don't have money to burn, but I do have peace of mind.
f*cking chill out - p8ss off you bar-steward - I am f8cking chilled!!!!
LOL!!!
What you do seems sensible and like you I do most of the work on my bike myself - the only bit I wont touch are the shims (until I learn to do em myself) other than that they are the only part of my bike that gets DONE by someone else!!!
I've owned 5 Ducatis and probably done more miles than most, and therefore had more servicing work done.
I've tried various Ducati main dealers and independants and got well and truely hacked off with poor service. Actually same story with Jap bike dealers as well.
I came across Nelly and Cornerspeed thru the DSC and didn't know him from Adam. The service i've had has always been absolutely first class and at a reasonable price.
This isn't a sycophantic hero worship, sheep following exercise. It a genuine opinion on my hard earnt money well spent. As Herb said i've had work come in under estimate rather than the story of "Sorry we found X Y and Z so the bill has doubled.
I'm a fussy whinging git who wants the job done right and no excuses. Therefore for the last 3 years i've happily made the 120 mile round trip to Nelly, and never felt ripped off.
As for the comment about give your money to thieves, if your implying that Nelly is a thief then you're a ****. Same about follow the lemmings comment. Many of the people here value bloody good service they've had from Nelly. I wouldn't feel so strongly about any of the other dealers i've used over the years.