Back with a M900 series I

[Albie]

I got another 2 pieces for the bike and the frame swatch in Satin finish today.

My sprocket washer was decidedly toothless so this was £2,25 ebay and cheaper than new.



Also the piece de resistance in mocking up the LOOK with the rubber cup. A pair of hoses going nowhere will connect just for show and as these are £16 each I will retain usage of the £6 ones fitted under the tank.




The colour plate confirms to me powdercoat is happening in a few weeks time. It feels right and looks good and still has that metallic shine in it. Its actually very hard to photograph against the original tube and that paint has had white primer removed and lost some colour sheen over the years. At £110 its a no brainer to me.





So let me be the guinea pig on this one.

[Albie]

Plating is going away end of the week. I just had to quickly make a bracket I noticed on the interweb which isn't in my box of bits so a check on Stein-dinse manual shows it rarely available and a good pic to copy.



Tin snips a vice a drill and hey presto !





That's now in the huge box of overdone stuff to be plated but you pay for a batch. Was hoping to get the exhaust ring clamp to do but not yet arrived. That will go later on in another lot instead.

Picked up some Monster paddock stands today purchased from Sven in Belgium. really decent too and look very stable indeed. I like the idea of the front one too where it goes in through the bottom holes in the front forks. Narrow too so no wasted space there. I am thinking of getting them powdercoated again with the frame the same colour but need a price first or just leave them red.










Very little to get now and just done a deal on the bar ends from QBA so sorts that one out. I may try and get a spare fuel lid machined with the elephant one I am looking out for. Seems like its my only option other than Lukas swapping.

I was going to buy an early Yellow tank I saw but then the pics underneath put me right off. Would need a lot of work to undo the work it looked like it had had. Poor indeed.

[Albie]

Switchgear now better after using the top half of a 748 unit which is the same. Other unit now back on ebay . I was 100 % about keeping the yellow horn button and kept the complete bottom end . Elephant on it.

[Albie]

Another part found and being replaced is I got a very nice looking early tank cap from sadly the USA but at a very reasonable price of $35 plus post so albeit £40 I have at least got a decent one for sale. I know its being anorak but I reckon the tank got replaced with another as well as the fuel cap. Its right now and all that matters. As much as I possibly could have got the one or two I have engraved it wont be an original one and may have needed coating too.



Tonight I dropped all the plating off nr Heathrow and should be done by next weekend all shiney and coloured zinc. My mate was glad I said as he was thinking it was bright zinc plate colour ie silver. Luckily he wasn't shocked by the amount I had for him and said its better to do more than little.

[Albie]

Had a week off to chill and on return some parts arrived and parts refurbished. Thanks to Lukas for sending me the exhaust system to be cleaned up and that important missing rubber filter holder.





I have a pair of gloss black wheels and that yellow hoop is done. New rose joints and replated fittings.





The plating is done other than some I need to do when engine returns and the exhaust clamp some time.



Started some assembling of parts and putting relevant bolts together with components.

[Albie]

following on

Indicators original with new rubber dampers and plated bolts with fixed pins.



Rear sprocket needs a fresh bearing along with wheels but have 6 plated correct nuts fitted.











Correct tank clip fitted and the fuel cap swapped over with an elephant and my lock. Just the tank is technically wrong as in from a newer bike with no seam around the clip area.



Headlight is a Bosch H4







More to come as frame is due to be done this Wednesday.

[Albie]

Got up really early this morning at 6.00 and cracked on with stuff as needed to make a bracket or at this time try and see if the bracket would work, to mount the fuel tap that's on the bike. Its off an ss by the look and has so far come in handy when removing the tank so if it looks ok and not so out of place I can use it . At first I was considering getting BigOz to weld the bracket on the filter bracket but thinking long term I think better if removable so I drilled and tapped an m5 hole in the other bracket and will use a better functional and in keeping bolt and not the one shown. The tap is then screwed on to the bracket with M5 screws. The tap turns towards the front on so will be clear at 90 degrees.
I think it looks ok even trying to keep the bike looking purist but will be powdercoated the same as the frame to blend in.





Next whilst the weather was throwing it down I started doing the ex-Lukas header system to bring it back to decent condition. What started as looking down right dirty started to show some areas that wont clean up without serious work. I am pleased so far and very very grateful to have another system without the bad grounding but even this one has had what looks like at least one but nowhere near as bad.
It started like this



A bit of elbow grease and wire wheel and looking respectable






The worst is at the front down pipe but was also similar on my other one where stones throw up and I literally had to file off the surface as was like charcoal .



The nastiest bit is that someone actually has welded a set of exhaust to these headers in its past in 4 places per outlet. I am going to try and fix this with some help hopefully from BigOz as to whether the areas can be welded across and re dressed or I get some rings made to cover tightly and just tack to the underneath and rear. I dressed them a little around an exhaust but again not a major issue.

One on left is old headers exit and the left is one I am using.







The clamps cleaned up nicely but will have to use a Nut and Bolt to clamp as thread has gone. Not paying £27 for a new one.

The finish on exhaust will only get better and this is stage 1 so I will persevere best I can.

[Albie]

Big Oz came to my rescue tonight welding 2 minor cracks about 5mm long on the tank mount plate . Just in case really before powder coat tomorrow. Also did a weld on the fuel tap bracket with captive nuts for ease of fixing.







We have a plan to restore the header outlet shields by slipping some 42mm copper pipe between and then welding the stainless to a suitable repair and dressing it neatly. Have to repair the clamp too with some new stainless bar drilled to take an M8 bolt and be re-welded on. He is an absolute star that man and is going to try also and salvage my original lower yoke as the lock stop thread is baggy as hell and needs more metal in it. He is going to attempt that one at his leisure. I left him with a nice jug of Scrumpy to try.

Taking the Ducati weighted bar ends I got from QBA last week to get a fresh coat too as had grazes on one. I did drill the bottom out and tapped M8 so they could hang them up rather than thread them through a hole.



Powder coat journey tomorrow so wish me luck on the colour match and finish.

[Albie]

Well a 3 day away from home getting the frame done at Redditch and whilst I was there I got the rear wheel done again because somehow it got chipped in 3 places .
How pleased am I ?
Very pleased tbh as it was an unknown other than a sample but having picked it up and getting it home its great and the finish is great. Masked up properly and frame number still visible but I have to decide on how I finish that bit. Masked also on bearings and frame bolt exits.
When you put the cut off frame piece its close so that's all that matters. Price was £90 plus the VAT so if your interested give Porl or David a call.







The rear wheel was acid dipped and shotblasted again and masked properly in cush drives and bearings.







I got the bar ends done too.





I was unsure but did the footrest hangers in silver as were blacked. If I want can go back to natural but were only £20 to do and will stop the weather. Look nice with fittings though.





Found another elephant under the rubber when I removed it all from footrests for those who are counting .



Got lots to get on with now.

Got to order some wheel bearings.
Cush drive inserts
1 hanger rubber insert and 6 new damper washers for airbox parts and 4 new E clips for footrest pivot pins.

[Darkness]

Hi Albie: you're making steady progress, so keep up the good work.

I'm especially interested in the powder coat on the frame as I haven't decided whether to do mine yet (I may keep the "patina")?

I haven't seen an elefant on the underside of a footpeg before, but it's not an easy spot on the bike.

Was that one of the rubber coated ones?

[Albie]

Originally Posted by Darkness

Hi Albie: you're making steady progress, so keep up the good work.

I'm especially interested in the powder coat on the frame as I haven't decided whether to do mine yet (I may keep the "patina")?

I haven't seen an elefant on the underside of a footpeg before, but it's not an easy spot on the bike.

Was that one of the rubber coated ones?

Yes I since found out they are and we're original fitment and could have left them be. Yesterday I sat a picked the remaining rubber off as shot blasting and burning wouldn't. Took about another hour. Had my frame gold I may have lived with it. Mines nice now and all will look nice but without much patina. Leave yours be if you can and wait to see how mine is viewed. It's bound to cause comment but you know me I would instantly get it altered now I know how easy they come apart. Had someone not dithered giving me a ballpark figure for paint it would have been painted.

[Darren69]

In Practical Sportbikes this months article on the early M900 it says that they had elephants stamped everywhere because the bike was originally going to be a Cagiva, I don't know how true that is, my Supersport had the Elephants too. I can't remember if my 748 did, I don't know where the original fuel cap is but by '97 TPG had taken over from Cagiva anyway but some bikes may have gone out with the Cagiva logos? Who knows.

[Flip]

Originally Posted by Darren69

In Practical Sportbikes this months article on the early M900 it says that they had elephants stamped everywhere because the bike was originally going to be a Cagiva, I don't know how true that is, my Supersport had the Elephants too. I can't remember if my 748 did, I don't know where the original fuel cap is but by '97 TPG had taken over from Cagiva anyway but some bikes may have gone out with the Cagiva logos? Who knows.

No bikes went out badged as Cagiva and although TGP invested in Ducati at the end of '96 they didn't fully take over until '99/2000 when the logo officially changed to the one used now.

They had to have a complete re-branding as the Castiglioni brothers held (and still hold)the copyright to the old font which is why you won't get very much official Ducati merchandise using it- I presume they came up with a deal to use it on the 20th Anniversary bikes and a few items of clothing but the majority of it all dates back to the '70's and earlier.

My '97 900 has a generous smattering of Elephants (which must be a trademark of Cagiva) over it although not as many as the very early bikes.

[Mr Gazza]

Re the seam on the tank...Not sure if you have painted the tank yet, nor whether you intend to. But I am thinking it should be possible to "fake" the seam in question by tacking a carefully made one on (BigOz springs to mind)....A bit of crafty blending with filler and you'ld never know..

HA ha ha I've put the idea in your head now.....Bad Gazza...

[Albie]

Originally Posted by Mr Gazza

Re the seam on the tank...Not sure if you have painted the tank yet, nor whether you intend to. But I am thinking it should be possible to "fake" the seam in question by tacking a carefully made one on (BigOz springs to mind)....A bit of crafty blending with filler and you'ld never know..

HA ha ha I've put the idea in your head now.....Bad Gazza...

No will leave the tank alone. Its fine and technically wrong. Maybe one day will replace. Seen a yellow one that needs work on bottom for £125 but need penny's for engine building.

Flip I reckon about 98 on as my 97 had the seam as I recall. Yes will try and de-fog the light sometime.

Did some work today. Quite a bit really and purely a test of bolt fitment to places and getting parts together to stay complete. Nothing loctited or tight as yet.



Tea tray fitted as Ducati intended...



Seat lock and catch fitted.



Under seat tray and fuse box holder fitted.



Airbox fitted to see how brackets for starter solenoid fit. And ignition switch.