900ss Update

I seem to keep forgetting/losing my login information, so this is an overdue update of the Ducati 900ss project I picked up. It was a 2002 900ss ie, and I flip-flopped on turning it into a streetbike or a racebike. I've now settled on it being a street bike.

With some careful ebaying, as well as some horse-trading and swapping, the spec is as follows:
1. 2002 frame, bobbed at the rear, with cafe racer seat from motoforza fairings in the Czech republic. A good source for fairings!
2. 2006 alloy rear swingarm from a 1000ss ds.
3. K-bike slipper cluch
4. Low mileage engine from a Bimota DB4 -- got it from the UK. Set up for fuel injection, and aside from the alternator and starter (taken from the original, tired engine) it was complete. 10mm engine mounts that I bored out to 12.
5. Exhaust is from a Bimota BD4 -- the headers are identical in length, with the collector going into the Bimota 2-1. I got a welding guru to weld on a Cone megaphone. It sounds like a small block chevy.
6. Forks with Andreani internals, shock is an Ohlins I got from eBay Germany.
7. Found a 900ss carbie tank in good shape and swapped the FI stuff over. Easy.
8. Bar risers and renthals, Koso gauge, LED headlight. Motogadget bar end turn signals. The rear lights are a pair of LED's marked "DOT", and the licence plate tucks up underneath the tail with a proper licence plate light.
9. 999 calipers, rebuilt. EBC rotors I got new for $99 a side. Front master is a radial CB1000 from a Honda, in the correct (19mm) bore size.
10. I got rid of the airbox (yes, I know) to hide all the SS wiring, as the lack of fairing exposes the extra mile of harness. I've installed a Powercommander 3 and it needs to be dynoed and tuned -- it's running a bit lean I think.

Since I took the first picture I got the seat covered, and also installed an 848 oil cooler I had lying around. I welded up a bracket that mounts on an ST2 valve cover -- it has built in lugs to suit. Its mounted in the same spot as an S4 monster, and while it looks close, I am 99.9% sure it clears. If it works as it should, I'll plump for a cox or similar oil cooler guard.

I'm actually debating stripping the tank back to bare metal. Gibbs makes a product that you apply to bare metal to deal with rust. There was no way I was going to match the red at the local paint shop (I live in the boonies) so it was Tremclad black with a clearcoat over top. I've done it with a couple of other bikes I have, and I honestly like the industrial look. As it stands, I think the red is an unnecessary "extra" color on the bike.