S1K Custom Project

[GTRossi]

got a flat tire the other nite and figured it would be a good time to seal the wheels. once the wheels were off, i figured i might as well look at that bothersome oil cooler issue. next thing i knew i had the bike ripped down to an engine and frame and a full-on custom project had begun...

so i figured i'd post this as a thread and let you guys follow along with my madness. if you feel the need for an intervention, alert the authorities...

first pic is the starting point for this bike - already had custom paint, shark 2-1, 1000s wheels, crg barends, rizoma reservoirs. a nice bike, but i'm taking things a step further...

first off, i sealed the wheels using silicone sheet and industrial grade sealant so the spokes are free to be adjusted later if needed.

next i removed the oil cooler and looped the line for a by-pass while i test the bike without the cooler. with the cooler on i've only once seen the oil temp get above 200 (i think it hit 205 while i was stuck in traffic) and i'd like to keep the temps in the 200 - 275 range for optimal running. the front looks so much cleaner without that thing! if the bike runs fine through the summer without the cooler i'll remove the diverter plate under the oil filter and cap the lines to clean it up even more.

then i pulled the airbox to make room for beast intakes -ordered and on the way

next i removed the battery and battery box and stashed the chunk of lead and steel off to the side. i then pulled the rectifier to make space for lithium phosphate batteries, as posted here on the forum. i found tons of info on these batteries on hobby websites - seems the rc airplane guys are big into them. i took the cheap route and bought a dewalt 36v pack on ebay, cut it apart and used 8 of the 10 cells to make two 4-packs and wired them in parallel with 10ga wire and insulated disconnects. i made a couple of brass paddle leads to bolt onto the starter/ground leads to preserve the oem wiring. my wife tells me it now looks like i have a bomb under my seat - gotta admit she has a point there...

i then made a jumper out of 12ga wire and extra plugs so i could re-locate the rectifier without cutting up the stock loom. i mounted the rectifier up front behind the headstock on the crossmember that held the front of the airbox. it's unseen and gets plenty of airflow. i used the little clamps they have for attaching reflectors to the seat post on a kid's bicycle (don't tell my wife - the kids don't ride at night anyway). i added some rubber sheet to keep them tight and used some trim washers to act as spacers to keep the heat away from the clamps.

more to come: new front end, new wheels, custom exhaust, custom cafe tail, custom tank, new paint scheme...

[GTRossi]

pulled the light, guages, etc. and mounted up the fairing stay. the little red button in the custom aluminum plate on the top triple is for my garage remote which gets tucked in underneath - a silly creature comfort yes, but it's mighty handy when i come home and don't have to fumble around in my gloves!

[TheDucnutOfBevelville]

Can't wait to see the finished product Geoff.....

[RossaGT]

Ah, Geoff- you are a madman!

Wow, lots going on there. I like the new spot for the rectifier; good location for cooling. Any idea how much weight you've saved with the new 'Rossi Bomb Battery'? Interesting.

I'm with you on the oil cooler too, though I've seen over 200 degree temps many times in the summer. Got stuck in downtown Seattle traffic on an 80 degree day, and actually saw 295! Someone here said that the light comes on at around 320 or so. But, on most days and for sure this time of year, these bikes take farkin' forever to warm the oil just to 120 so the 'lo' stops flashing. Then if you get stuck in the rain it cools it off so much that it starts flashing again. It will look lots cleaner without for sure...

Aha! You are going to use the fairing from the GT, yes? That'll look great!

Keep them pics coming as it progresses. That castle dungeon has pretty good lighting, by the way...

[sport1000bip]

Your project looks very nice, though.... the oil cooler removal may cause you the well known problem that appeared to all monsters 695. Due to high temps (combination of euro3 emission regulations and lack of oil cooler) the cylinders were burning their color down. This ended up with ducati spa replacing many cylinders or having them sandblasted and repainted free of charge by the local ducati workshops/dealers.
In www.ducati.com you can see the oil cooler of our bikes being sold as an upgrade for monsters 620 and 695.
What I suggest to you is to relocate yours under the front fairing I assume you will fit.

Check this out as an example: http://www.ducatimonster.org/forums/...95-engine.html

Your paint scheme is awesome.....

[DucBeak]

Excellent project. By the way I like the Gulf paint scheme on the bike.

Secondly, you should do a tech tip on sealing the rims. I think that many of use could use the knowledge.

Keep it up, Geoff!

[Floundering]

Right on, I see you found some connectors. It was nice running into you on Saturday. Looking forward to following your project.

[weazoe]

"Secondly, you should do a tech tip on sealing the rims. I think that many of use could use the knowledge."

I heartily second the second. If you would share a little more detail about the sealing process, I'd appreciate it.

thanks,
weaz

[GTRossi]

there are a couple of folks who have sealed wheels on the forum - if you do a search you'll find plenty of info including pics, etc. on the process (mine included).

the key is to make sure you have a sealant that is correct for your wheel material (alloy vs. painted vs. chrome steel). the rest is pretty common sense...

[Lee C.]

How are you planning on riding that box -o- parts to California this summer ???


I'll bring my duct tape

Lee C.