Ha, I was going to say I don't know where Chas is finding these 300lb Wisconsin broads, those are the skinny ones! Mark
I've been riding for 42+ years and after attending the Kevin Schwantz school at Barber Motorsports Park last year, I realized how much I still need to learn.
I love 748s. I used to own a 748R (the angry version of the 748) and just loved it. It had amazing midcorner stability. Alas, it was because of this, that one wet morning I decided to take the 748R out on a mountain ride instead of my R6 and had my one and only ever road crash after hitting a wet patch of spilled oil and completely totalted her. I broke a bunch of stuff, but bones heal and steel doesn't.
Congrats, 748's are stunning bikes! My buddy had a yellow one in college. Hope to see it at Road America in July at the annual Brian Redman Historic weekend!
I'm fairly certain I will be at the BRIC (I'm there every year), and that does seem like a excellent ride so odds you will see it/me there! Mark
Good for you! You won't regret it. Get a hold of Chris at Cyclecat for rearsets, bar risers, pressure plates, all kinds of billet goodies. They are works of art and more adjustable than a very adjustable, adjustable thing. . PitBull front and reversible rear stand are a huge help too. Enjoy your new obsession!
If you plan to ride on the street, and the bike doesn't already have it, find a low temp fan switch. Typically when the coolant temp goes over 100C, the fan will kick on to help cool the bike while sitting in traffic. The low temp switch opens at 85C, so while it runs more often, it also keeps the bike from getting too hot in traffic. It will still creep above 85C even with the fan on if you are not moving. One of the cheapest and easiest modifications to make, but has a big difference in the way the bike works in the real world. Just make sure you have a strong battery, as the fan will run even with the bike off until it reaches the 85C lower limit. This can be a few minutes if the bike is really hot (probably less of a problem in WI than MO)
Most of my riding (day near all of it) is going to be highway or open back roads. I do not intend on sitting in traffic with it. Thank you for the tip though, I'll keep an eye on the temps and upgrade the switch should it look like it's necessary. Just realized I never posted pics so here are two from the morning after I picked her up. I'm working on name for her, any ideas??? Mark Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
That chassis is, to me, the most beautiful motorcycle ever (in 748, 916, and 998 form). I miss mine. I still have a massive poster of a 916 in a crate in one of my garages and lots of diecast models of them in my other garage, including Bostrom's, Bayliss', and Fogarty's rides as well as paintings of them. Congrats!
i agree with you. it is a very important design in the world of two wheels. i had just bought my first 888 spo when the 916 arrived at the dealer and i was like..."oh *****"! it was off the chart sexy...and still is to me! i have my 916 w/ my eraldo built motor and i will not sell it for anything else as there is not another bike i find sexier and it still rips! advice...if you want your 748 to look even better, get some marchesini's (mags or aluminum) and have them powder coated gloss black. they look so wicked and will compliment that front fender!! oh...and get some good DOT race tires on there and you will really enjoy it!! pcb
That is why I was looking at Ducs. Since I was a teenager, the 916/996/998/748 has been the Holy Grail of bikes; I've been lusting after one for a long time. Nothing else on the market looks nearly as good and nothing else sounds like it. After the test ride, I said to myself, I have to have one, NOW! With reagrd to the wheels, I agree. There is a set on 748S wheels on ebay powder coated black that I have been looking at, but they have a red strip along the outer rim. I don't know how that would look on my yellow bike. http://www.ebay.com/itm/DUCATI-OEM-5-SPOKE-BLACK-MARCHESINNI-REAR-WHEEL-748-916-996-998-S2R-S4R-/120895948138?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr&hash=item1c25f5c56a If that stripe was removeable, I'd jump on the set. Mark
In that case on the highway, expect normal temps of 80C. If it is above 90C while normally moving start looking for the problem. These bike run hot, but many owners ignore an issue thinking it is just typical. When in traffic though, the bike can go from 80C to 100C in just a couple of minutes.
Thank you, I really appreciate the tip. We are having cooler weather right now, so would it be more advisable to wait until the weather gets hotter to truly evaluate the the temps, or is ambient temp not really too much of a factor? Thank you again, Mark
My 851 and my old 999 both would get very warm in traffic regardless of outside temps. Funny thing on the 999 (underseat exhaist like the 748) it was actually fairly comfortable in cool temps because it manages the air very well and you had a built-in seat heater. Cool days it does take longer to heat up, but not by much. The low-temp fan switch also is nice on cooler mornings, when the fan kicks on you gets this whoosh of warm air from the fairings. Not so great though when it is 95 outside and you are already sweating like crazy, then it is like someone just opened an oven door I would suggest you lurk or join Ducati.ms and if you are brave, Speedzilla. There are lots of knowledgable people, even some Ducati techs on both forums. Ducati.ms is similar to this place in moderation. Speedzilla is basically the wild west without much external moderation, but is far more entertaining. Ironically there are few squidly/troll types on Speedzilla, they seem to get weeded out pretty quickly. Almost everyone there is over 30 and understands this is for fun. Ducati.ms has all types, some that take themselves way too seriously. But good info is available both places.
After reading this thread, it's safe to say if everything checks out with the 748 (IDENTICAL to yours Joker) that I'm hopefully looking at this weekend.. I'll be buying it on the spot as well. I'm graduating from a 750 SS that I owned 2 years ago so this feels to be a good evolutionary bike.
Good for man. I love mine, I cannot get enough of it. I'm inventing places the ride for no other reason than it's blast. Mark
I'm excited. Waiting on the guy to call me (local realtor based upon a search of his email address) so I can set up a time tomorrow to have a look at the bike. It apparently has low 20K mileage on it at the moment.
joker out of curiosity how tall are you? I'm on the shorter side and am just curious how easy the bike will be to adjust for my riding height.