'97 M900 long-term refurb'

[Andy B]

well, i've got a week to go until Annabel's birthday, and since the bike was her early birthday present, i thought i'd better get some proper exhausts for it for the actual day

and so far i've managed to keep it a total secret from her! (something i've yet to pull off)

Actually had the exhausts a while now, but getting round to fitting them wasnt a rush, and doing it without her knowledge also slowed things down...

Got it into work for a trial fit...



and they were a tad on the long side



Nothing a hacksaw wouldn't fix!



second trial fix and looks a whole lot better



No hanging brackets came with them so had to throw together a couple of pieces of ali... think they've turned out ok... my curiosity will have to wait until next weekend though



The only downside to the cans, is they're marked not for road use.... Now, the original cans i have are Remus too, and the ends measure up (as best i can without butchering them) pretty well, so im hoping to get the ends off the standard cans and fit them to the carbon cans so they're nice and legal (as possible)... we will be riding into N.Wales a fair bit and the last thing i want to do is give the Heddlu a reason to stop us...

Last thing (until winter now at least) was to make a case saver...i'm a cheap so having the expense of a new engine if the chain ever does give doesn't appeal, so bit of stainless of ebay and half a dozen cutting discs (stainless doesn't half eat through em!) and my mind is at rest!



She's getting there bless her

[Dirty]

Nice work. I wouldn't worry too much about the exhaust markings, I'd bet a good % of exhausts on the road are marked like that.

That's OK as long as your MOT inspector can,t read.

[Darren69]

An MOT inspector told me to cover them up with something, he's not allowed to remove anything, so if he can't see them you're fine.

[Flip]

Mine just laughs saying if the clutch wasn't so loud he'd know how loud the race pipes are.
Mind you, he has only just started asking me to fit a legal number plate instead of my letter box one I normally have fitted.

[Dukedesmo]

Originally Posted by Dirty

Nice work. I wouldn't worry too much about the exhaust markings, I'd bet a good % of exhausts on the road are marked like that.

If they're like Termis then they're marked on the straps; some say that if you polish them that wording comes off...

[Darren69]

Yea, I'm fortunate to have a Ducatisti MOT guy, so he was like well I didn't see so next time put a sticker over the words :0

[Andy B]

im tempted to use the ones that came with them now i did try a bit of wire wool and the wording went very faint... but it is obvious there's no baffle... and they are quite fruity sounding.... (very nice and deep infact).... hmm... perhaps i'll fit them as is so she can hear them and will decide in the future about baffles.... just dont want any on the spot fines - or worse, a guy in work said he was stopped a coupleo f years back in north wales and they slapped him with a prohibition notice for having race cans on his bike.... cannot be arsed with that hassle....

will see....

[Andy B]

Feeling up for a bit of thread revival now

Following Albie's '93 900 rebuild inspired me to get off my bum and start with my Annabel's 900 rebuild afterall, we got it back in February, and the original plan was to just enjoy it over summer.... ok, I did a couple of small improvements in the meantime, but the priority was rebuilding my Moto Guzzi, and then come winter i'd have a go at getting it stripped down, cleaned and sorted ready for the riding season next year...

so since the Guzzi has been finished



and it now feels like its well and truly winter, i've started stripping the ol' girl down ready..



Wasn't long before finding more PO Bodges.... seen it far too often, stripped wires just twisted around each other with a bit of tape to seal it....come on! it's a Ducati FFS

Luckily this was just the indicator wiring and nothing too serious...



Ended up bidding on a spare fuel tank and got it for 30 odd quid....



needs a new paint job mind, but my old man's into his classic cars and does his own paint and has some white and grey thats sat there doing nowt so said he'd do them for me once the weather gets a little better...

Only really went for it since it's got the old elephant on the cap....



got a thing for the logo, although i'm not sure why... but there's a fair few kicking around on the bike considering it was registered in '97... thought they were only on the earlier ones - it's even got the cagiva brake/shifter rubbers....

[Andy B]

axle stands and jack in position....



precariously balanced



and frame successfully lifted...



18years of elements and crud later....





Could be worse though i'm sure.... but wasn't looking forward to the clean up...

3 hours of degreasing, and it came up ok..



Looking at the engine now after a good wire brush, I'd love to get it vapour blasted, but i'm really reluctant to take the heads off.... how much of a job is it really to do? i've had previous experience of engine work - although mostly car stuff, an old suzuki 400 engine, and a little 125 single engine... nothing ducati related - i think its the thought of head bolts snapping, and desmo valves putting me off....? (although i will be checking clearances before the engine goes back in..)

noticed the needle roller bearings were looking a little worse for wear - swingarm and shock pivot...... one of the swingarm and two of the shock bearings were pretty much just rust....

i opted for the die grinder followed by some gentle persuasion of the blind bearing puller option... worked a treat!

[Andy B]

removed all the wheel bearings too whilst I was at it...



Frame off to the powder coaters - wasn't too impressed with the way they had masked off the VIN when I got it back, but i guess it's still pretty good for 60 quid... cheapest i've ever had a frame done so far...



swingarm shock and hoop all prepped and painted too... not sure how the yellow hoop will go with the red frame, but I like the story/history behind it so thought i'd give it a go


Now the spare room is getting a little full, I guess it's time to start looking at putting it all back to one piece...



Tomorrows job, get the engine masked up ready for paint... if it ends up looking ok, i'll probably save the vapour blasting idea until next winter... if not... i guess i'll be stripping another engine....

[Albie]

Actually heads off is really simple but I paid ProTeam Ducati to remove the valve gear and cams etc. I will also get him to rebuild it up once all is painted by me.

Glad I seem to influence peeps. Always a pleasure to see guys projects.

[Davy]

Interesting write up with good pics.... Great it looks great to.

[Albie]

Originally Posted by Andy B

removed all the wheel bearings too whilst I was at it...



Frame off to the powder coaters - wasn't too impressed with the way they had masked off the VIN when I got it back, but i guess it's still pretty good for 60 quid... cheapest i've ever had a frame done so far...



swingarm shock and hoop all prepped and painted too... not sure how the yellow hoop will go with the red frame, but I like the story/history behind it so thought i'd give it a go


Now the spare room is getting a little full, I guess it's time to start looking at putting it all back to one piece...



Tomorrows job, get the engine masked up ready for paint... if it ends up looking ok, i'll probably save the vapour blasting idea until next winter... if not... i guess i'll be stripping another engine....

Interesting new seat you have there. Should be hard but comfy but no idea about where the space ball is going unless its a safety device.

[Andy B]

thats the only reason i've gotten away with dumping all the bits in the spare room - if everyone else can dump their stuff up there so can i