My bikes, part five.

[mickj]

As I have more than one bike and they are all different (but similar) I thought I might write a little review of each of them, so here is the fifth oldest (newest).
Ducati M1200s Monster.
When looking for the BMW I tried it head to head with the Ducati Monster and picked the BMW as it was a more sophisticated bike and better two up bike but a year on I still had a hankering for the Monster so went for another test ride and was hooked. I liked the price of the standard bike better but also liked most of the extras on the ”S” model so my wife said just buy the bike you want so the “s” it was, better (lighter) wheels, ohlins suspension, led indicators and DRL and a quick shifter. The bike is just brilliant, it has a lot of electronics on it with power modes, cornering ABS, traction control, anti-wheelie and a quick shifter. I had a higher seat and grab rails fitted as part of the deal and bought a single can for it straight away, having the cat in the silencer made it get very hot and it was burning my wife’s foot at it was very close to the foot peg, a lower single straight through can fixed that. This is great fun to ride and the sound is bloody fantastic although I have fitted the baffle which has reduced the noise a little but improved the drive, it pulls better with the baffle fitted. So far I have had no problems with the bike except a recall for the gear lever which has failed on a couple of panigales, mine was fine so nothing changed. I does seem very lazy on the starter but always starts first prod, (just wish it would spin up a bit) but they “all do that sir”. It is better on my own but is acceptable two up and just pulls, not as good as the Suzuki or BMW lower down but higher up the rev range its bloody nuts with nearly 160 BHP on tap and superb handling and when it’s time to slow the Brembo M50 brakes make stopping very easy. The riding experience is much rawer than my other bikes as I am constantly reminded that it is a big twin but the vibration is not intrusive, it’s like being massaged as you go along and the sound it makes is lovely. I am now shopping for the right bits such as tail tidy, radiator and oil cooler guard and of course crash bobbins, I’m also looking into some bar end mirrors as the standard mirrors are crap, not only because they mostly show my elbows but they also rotate on their axis if I start to make any progress. I’ve only had this bike for a year and it’s obvious why this bike has a cult following, especially the earlier air cooled bikes, it’s raw, it vibrates, its full of character and just so much fun to ride and I am getting over 50mpg, I love it. I think the biggest downside for me is that most of the power is only made up the top end of the rev range so the bike has to be revved hard to get the benefit which I don’t like doing (I have a high degree of mechanical sympathy), I buy big bikes so I don’t have to rev the nuts off them to get a move on. In a head to head below 6000 the Beemer and the Suzuki will easily blow the monster into the weeds.

So which bike is best? They all do something for me so it’s a difficult question. For a solo ride my Speed Triple or the Monster will always be my first choice, two up it will be a choice between the BMW and the Suzuki although longer distances will favor the BMW. And the MZ is just very different, rare, has a lot of character and is very satisfying to ride, the induction roar at 3500 rpm is addictive. I ride all year round but only if it’s dry and they all give me a buzz. Next will almost certainly be a bike with some character so that rules out most UJMs so that means it will most likely be another European bike, maybe Moto guzzi will make a big bike soon.