Question about a Duc 900SS

[Chocaholic]

Had a long chat with the fellow again last evening with him in front of the bike. Long story short....it doesn't run. He hasn't even tried in "months". Made some excuses and refused to fire it up while on the phone ("don't have any starting fluid handy"). Big red flag for me. Moving on....other fish in the sea.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

what a douche bag loser.

[Noah930]

"Runs rough" turned into "doesn't run at all." Too bad. It was a good lookin' bike in the pics, though. If it was cheap or next door, it might be worthwhile to poke around and see if it was a simple fix. But over a telephone from 4 hours away? No thanks.

[5String43]

These are terrific bikes and a hell of a lot easier to live with than the four-valve versions. I suspect that pricing is region-sensative, so what seems right for SoCal might not be right elsewhere.

What I'd like to add is that if I recall correctly, these bikes - the early ones, at least - were geared very high - so much so that at legal speeds, the engine was nearly lugging. I cured that by going up two teeth on the rear sprocket - do not remember if I changed the front one, this was a long time ago. But it made a big difference. Didn't loose all that much top speed, but the change turned the bike into a rocket when you rolled into the throttle.

[Jeff Higgins]

Stock sprockets are 15/37; most of us run 15/39. Some even go 14/39. Even at 15/39, I never use sixth gear at legal freeway speeds - it really doesn't like sixth until about 80 mph.

Stock bikes won't even pull the 15/39 to redline in sixth gear, much less the stock 15/37, so most owners kind of wonder what the point of such tall gearing might have been. Maybe to quiet them enough to pass some sort of noise regulations at a given speed in top gear.

Oh well, too bad it didn't work out on this one, Mike. $4500 should bring an absolutely "no issues" bike, not one where the guy says he doesn't have any starting fluid handy. Like you say, though, plenty of fish in this sea.

[Chocaholic]

Agree...just watched your video. You're killing me, man. My fat pig GSA doesn't provide the same experience as a sport bike (missing my K12S more and more these days). It's a great cold weather ride, but as they say...different tools for different jobs (and summer is upon us here in the sunny South). And my tool shed is a bit light! Still can't figure out that seller. Knowledgeable guy, but sheesh...why wouldn't you at least get the thing running if you're attempting to sell at a premium? It's advertised on Ducati.ms right now. Oh well.

Looked at a Tri-colore 09 Monster 1100 (albeit new) at the dealership yesterday. A stirring little vixen, just not sure I'm ready to ante up that much (about $11k). Also considering a Speed Triple (can't find a bad review), but the package doesn't do anything for me aesthetically so probably won't go down that road. The search continues.

Quack.

[motion]

I just bought one of these. I wanted air-cooling, light weight & naked motor, but with FI so I don't have to mess with carbs. If you live in CA, anything with carbs is a royal pain due to the gas we have. These are a screaming deal used right now. I have open clutch and belt covers on order now. So far, its a blast!

[Noah930]

Congrats and enjoy.

[Chocaholic]

Yes, ditto. Already have a dual sport (and I'm not much of an off-roader), but that does look like fun.

[jorian]

Richard,

I'm looking for the same rig right now. Hard to find.

I'm a dirt rider but want to do some street as well. Any issues with the Duc?

[motion]

None at all... I've been hooning on this thing all summer! Excellent purchase! I see them for sale all over the place. Where are you located?

Pic of a douchebag with white sunglasses on a Hypermotard:

[jorian]

I'm in Vancouver but am willing to look farther afield. I was thinking of converting a KTM 535 or something similar into a proper hooligan rig but then I saw a guy on a Duc and thought, "there's my next bike." Been looking at the Aprilia Dorsoduro as well but have heard it suffers from mechanical issues. Also, like 911's, everyone should own a Duc at least once in their life.

Where are you in Montana? I have a small uni-bomber-style place in North Idaho on a lake and often do trips into Montana.

[HardDrive]

Options.

[dienstuhr]

Hop you find your 900SS. They are out there. I love mine, bought it in 2006. (pic in my "Garage" <<)

Cheers

d.

[Britwrench]

My 1996 900SP, not selling!!!!