Ducati Sporting Club UK > DesmoDue Race Series > DesmoDue - General Questions and Chat > Conversion cost

[antonye]

Originally Posted by Spjallen

Its without doubt cheaper to buy a pre prepared bike, but just think of the fun you are missing out on preparing your own. I thought this was part of the atraction?!

Maybe for some, but not everyone. In the first race in 2005 there were quite a few brand new bikes (bought specifically to race in DD!) which had been "shop prepared"!

[Jolley]

Originally Posted by steeevvvooo

Dynojet + dyno set up £150
Fairings £200
Tyres £150 (would need a new set regardless of buy/build really?
Cheap shock recon + fork set up £200
TOTAL £900

Obviously other bits such as rear sets, clip ons, race pads, master cylinders etc but in terms of the main bits, does the above seem sensible? Do I need anything else?

Seriously considering the conversion route at the moment…

I would say you are looking at:
Dyno run £50 - if it is upwards of 47bhp, why waste any more money?
Fairings £150 off of ebay, plus £50 on bits and pieces to make up the brackets
Tyres £50 for a set of scrubs from last year if you really wanted to save
shock/fork £????? I personally think this is where money should be spent..... and one of the things that makes an already (well) prepped bike a bargain by comparison. For instance, my relatively cheap set-up of wilbers fork springs and bottom of the range wilbers shock was still probably in the region of £600
clipons/rearsets/sharkfin/crashbungs/pads £500
levers £up to you how flashy you want to be, from leave as they are to top of the range Brembo.
So a total (which I think is a realistic, achievable one) of around £1,500. Any less than that and I really don't think you'll be happy with the result.

So, with bikes either on the market (or will be in the next few weeks) from Craig/Bradders/Neal/KevP/Phil/Hugh, plus the ones in the classifieds from prices of £1,500+, I know what I would do. Look at it this way, you can buy a prepped bike for the cost of converting a road bike.... so you have the cash you saved from not buying a donor bike to spend on upgrades to the bike you bought (most racers would tell you what they would change to make their own bike better - so you would know exactly what to do). However, just be careful that the bike you are buying is the bike that was raced, and not a frankenstien of bits.

Originally Posted by Cranker V2

Crash protection is something I never really considered during the rebuild of mine last season. It has cost me a fair few quid this year and DNS's.

I'm not quite sure how that works. I only tended to bend levers/clipons/pegs, which you would do with or without crash protection?

[bradders]

Originally Posted by Jolley

However, just be careful that the bike you are buying is the bike that was raced, and not a frankenstien of bits.

this actually is a fantastic point; many have bits removed, sold one whatever and they are not as they finished the season

[Cranker V2]

Ron,

it was my two offs at oulton that hurt the bike really, front wheels besnt, 2 discs bent, 2 throttle assemblies , 2 brake levers, 1 brake master cyclinder, 2 rear sets, 1 can, 1 link pipe, 1 upper fairing, 1 side fairing...............Ouch..

[Jolley]

Originally Posted by Cranker V2

Ron,

it was my two offs at oulton that hurt the bike really, front wheels besnt, 2 discs bent, 2 throttle assemblies , 2 brake levers, 1 brake master cyclinder, 2 rear sets, 1 can, 1 link pipe, 1 upper fairing, 1 side fairing...............Ouch..

I'm not sure crash protection can prevent bending a wheel

I do run crash bungs, but not the front wheel mushrooms. I have lowsided mine three times this year, flipped it once, and ran over Neal/Neil, and the worst I have done is smash a screen, bend some bars and levers, and smash the lid off the brake reservoir. I have scraped the front wheel nut (3 times now - this year and last), but it still works fine. I think crash protection or not, it is as much about the luck of where you fall and what the bike hits...

[steeevvvooo]

Originally Posted by bradders

this actually is a fantastic point; many have bits removed, sold one whatever and they are not as they finished the season

decision made... buy it is! (unless yours is a frankenstein?! )

[bradders]

ha ha nope mine is EXACTLY as it finished Castle Doom...nothing fancy here; just functional

[Bionicle]

Originally Posted by Jolley

I'm not quite sure how that works. I only tended to bend levers/clipons/pegs, which you would do with or without crash protection?

Crash protection did not help me much when i had my Snetterton off in 2010

[Ghost]

Originally Posted by Bionicle

Crash protection did not help me much when i had my Snetterton off in 2010

Oooh that still makes me go cold.

[Gbyte666]

You just have to hit the Giant Castle Coombe airbag wall and land on your feet like I did while my bike stayed upright. Wasted money my bungs

Craig