Bikesure_adrianflux

Selling my late-father's Unique Monster

Caposdaughter

Caposdaughter

Registered
Joined
Oct 31, 2025
Messages
3
Location
Wisbech
Bike
S4r
My late-father, Stewart Willis, was a active member of this community until he sadly passed away a few years ago. I inherited his pride and joy and have decided now is the time to sell the bike so it can be enjoyed properly by someone else. It's a 2004 Monster S4R, which Stewart owned from NEW, and underwent a programme of extensive modifications and improvements including an upgraded frame made by Ducati (we also have the original frame). The bike has just been serviced including a new timing belt and MOT. The garage said it was such a special bike that they didn't really know how to value it, but recommended I advertised it at £12.5k.

Any help or comments would be greatly appreciated especially from any of you who knew my dad and the bike.

20250916_122133(1).webp
 
Well, well.
Its good to see the old girl again.
For those who don't know the bike, this is probably the most special Monster you will ever come across.
Titanium and carbon everything, apart from the mag alloy wheels and alloy frame.
Engine by JHP Ducati Coventry.
It weighs just 153kg wet (minus fuel). I know this because I weighed it myself.
Absolutely NO expense was spared in its creation. I'm guessing that the cost to build it was probably three times the current asking price.
Its built to ride and its good to know that it might be destined for the road once more.
It will require a special owner though .. this is no ordinary machine.
 
Will be a nice buy for someone.

If I hadn't already got enough bikes/projects, plus not enough space or time to fit it all in, I'd definitely be on this.

Good luck with the sale and I hope it ends up with someone who properly appreciates it. (y)
 
I met your father a couple of times at the World Ducati Week. We even stayed in the same villa. I enjoyed his company and his knowledge.

Most Ducatisti won't pay much for a very modified bike. It won't be "theirs". It should become a show bike of some sort, but that won't bring you money. Not a good feeling, I know, but maybe it has to be sold in parts?

WDW 2010 067.webp
 
I don't think there's many on the forum that know absolutely all the details of just how special this bike is, (some have a good idea) but to say no part went unmodified / replaced with something better or lighter, mostly both, is an understatement. It is a very special bike.

If I had the money I'd buy it in an instant, wouldn't change a thing. Personally I think £12,500 is a steal for what it is but that's only my opinion.

Your father was without doubt a very highly skilled craftsman, this bike is a fine testament to him. Good luck with the sale.
 
Wrong time of year for selling a bike of any description. But shame to sell that one at all really.
 
Wrong time of year for selling a bike of any description. But shame to sell that one at all really and just because it has 12k worth of bits on it sadly doesnt make it suddenly worth 12.k. My own S4 has about 7 or 8k worth of bits on it but sadly they are only worth about 4k for one of those so Im not gonna sell it anytime soon.
 
You will never get back all that went into making something special be it customisation, restoration etc. I've found that out the hard way on more than one occasion.

I built my Monster from parts. The 'project' started out because I was offered a cheap frame and I had some parts that I could add to it (suspension, brakes etc.) so thought, 'why not build a bike' but the overall cost came to well over what it will ever be worth, in fact I could have bought a new one (or Capo's) with some change, and whilst I'm happy with my 'special' Monster, it's certainly not as special as Capo's which, I'll wager cost several times the asking price to build.

I'm going through it all again at the moment with my current project, a Land Rover 'restomod' which is already +100% over my initial budget and nowhere near finished and, of course it'll never even be worth what it's cost me so far, let alone what it will ultimately have cost, but we don't do these things to make a profit (or if we do, I'm doing it wrong!), we do it because we can and because we want to.

That said, I still think Capo's Monster is a bargain and if I were in a different position, I'd buy it.

It would be nice if someone on here that fully appreciates what went into this bike bought it and enjoyed it and I'm sure Stewart would appreciate that.
 
Exactly what I did, if you're not gonna ride it then you can at least admire it. Prices are in a slump I think even for those iconic bikes. Classic clunkers club that we are.
 
I have just discovered some build threads that Capo posted, right from when he first got the S4R.
I didn't see these before as I didn't join up till 2013.
They go up to 5, but I don't think they fully document all the mods up to date. For instance the aluminium frame is not mentioned, so I'm pretty sure there should be some more threads relating to this still to be found?

Still miss the old bugger, why do all good things have to end? 🥺

Capo

Thread 'Capo de Tutti Capo 1'

The bike was purchased new in 2004 from JHP Ducati Coventry, the intended use was as a fast B road point to point ‘scratcher.

The first mod iteration was the installation of a spareshack ‘cat eliminator’ pipe and ‘cored silencers’ sounded great, leaked at every joint and didn’t seem to improve the power.

By this time I had grown accustomed to the machine and found it wanting in many ways.
This led to the first major upgrade and involved the fitting of the DP ‘Race’ kit consisting of a full 50mm exhaust system with carbon termis, SPS camshafts open top airbox and a DP ECU. While the heads...
Capo

Thread 'Capo de Tutti Capi 2'

I had decided that I would also improve the look of the machine at this time, the large number of carbon fiber components could not just simply remain black.
I settled for a ‘traditional’ look, in my book motorcycle frames should be black and the Ducati is the first motorcycle I have owned that wasn’t.
For the bodywork I went through a series of design iterations, I wanted red (all Ducati’s should be red) but broken with another colour, I also wanted some carbon fibre to be seen. This resulted in the black and white checker stripe where the black is the carbon fiber of the underlying...
Capo

Thread 'Capo de Tuti Capi 3'

The powder coated castings were delivered to JHP and engine builder Dave Martin started the rebuild, lightweight RS gear selector drum, RS alternator and Bucci timing belt pulleys were installed. All fasteners were replaced with titanium items.
Dave really went the extra yard on this engine to get it spot on and involved two dry assemblies. I can not thank him and John Hackett enough for the quality time they spent on this engine.

P1000984.jpg


P1000987.jpg


I had...
Capo

Thread 'Capo de Tutti Capi 4'

The completed the engine, was collected and the rebuild commenced, I fabricated a stand that bolts to the engine and allows the complete bike to be built on it.

The frame is bolted to the engine using ARP high tensile steel bolts that are torqued 20% greater than the standard items. Taper roller headstock bearings were fitted after a problem with the seals contacting the races was sorted out by the inclusion of a spacer shim.

The wiring loom is secured to small tabs welded to the inside of the frame tubes keeping it mostly out of sight and avoiding visible tie wraps. An Anderson power...
Capo

Thread 'Capo de Tutti Capi 5'

Post Build

After seeing cylinder barrels from engines that had not been run in verses those that had, I decided to run the engine in 6K limit for 600 miles followed by 8K for a couple of hundred more, 6K was frustrating as the power starts to come on power about there, 8K was much better the power coming on strong from 6K you could ride it forever at the 8K limit such is the performance and speed.

As a result of the lightened engine components and high compression pistons, the engine runs rough off of the throttle below 4K, it will hold a constant throttle perfect but judders if any...
 
What’s missing from those bike specs is that capo subsequently had a replica frame built by one of Ducati Corse’s suppliers in Bologna, in aluminium, then powder coated so it looked exactly like the stock item. Weight saving was an overriding obsession for him. Not only does it look like a work of art, it goes like **** through a goose.
 
slob said:
What’s missing from those bike specs is that capo subsequently had a replica frame built by one of Ducati Corse’s suppliers in Bologna, in aluminium, then powder coated so it looked exactly like the stock item. Weight saving was an overriding obsession for him. Not only does it look like a work of art, it goes like **** through a goose.
Click to expand...
Didnt Cagiva do something similar in the nineties with an aluminium frame?
 
IIRC the frame was Pierobon, Max could confirm who it was, as he would translate to/from Italian for Stewart. Having it powder coated was almost his only weight compromise, I pointed out to him it would have looked bloody great in vapour blasted nakedness and saved a couple of kilos of powder coat but he wanted a ‘street sleeper’ that didn’t give the secret away.
 
I don't think the ally frame was Pierobon but couldn't say for certain.
I actually went with Stewart and Max to collect the frame.
It was built by a specialist frame builder but I don't recall the name, however I'm fairly sure I would have noted if it had been Pierobon.
Max would know though ... contact him at Vanoni Moto if there's a need to confirm.

Another of Max's Italian contacts made a custom, full titanium exhaust system for the bike too (a straight copy of the stainless one on the bike) but Stewart had trouble getting it to fit properly and tweeking it was still a work in progress.
 
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