I have a 748 I bought new in 97 and man was the charging system a nightmare ended up getting it all straightened out but lots of headaches. Found you on the Ducati forum and subbed so I’ll be around
Fun video Kie. I absolutely can't get enough of long-form videos on this generation of Ducati that go over all sorts of details. Please keep them up! Hilarious how you keep calling corrosion "patina" 😂 If it's a real R, I'd keep that over the other for sure. Lastly, I believe those wheels were only on the 748R - see below: "Marchesini wheels - Ducati marketed the 996R as having lightweight Marchesini wheels. Marchesini (a subsidiary of Brembo) are well known for their forged aluminium and magnesium racing wheels. The wheels on the 996R are not that, they are standard cast aluminium. These 5-spoke wheels have Brembo cast into them and a Marchesini decal on the outer rim. These were not special for the 996R, in fact, they were a carry-over. Having P/N 50210221AA, these wheels were on the 996S, 996SPS, 996R, 998, 998S (Bayliss & Bostrom), and 998R. In the case of the 998R, there has been some confusion as Ducati advertised the 998R as having "lighter weight" wheels, stating 400g less in the front and 800g less in the rear. This was a misunderstanding however as the 998R received the identical wheels as the 996R had. Ducati did in fact ship a truly lighter version of these wheels, P/N 50210231AA, but they were only included on the 2001 and 2002 748R and 748RS. This was due to the WSBK "Supersport" class rules requiring bikes to run OEM wheels. The WSBK "Superbike" class rules did not have this requirement. Visually, the wheel spokes are slightly different, appearing as if the top and bottom were ground smooth. The standard 5-spokes had a noticeable ridge on these top/bottom spoke faces from the casting mould. Even these wheels are cast aluminium and not forged."
I can’t add anymore to that statement other than I agree 💯 and thanks for some of the info from both of you guys. Love these bike and haven’t been without one since 1997.
It caught my eye when I spied it outside your hideout last weekend. I walked around it a couple times admiring it's lines. What a nicely preserved jewel. I'm on the lookout for a birth year ride but this one's a bit beyond my budget. Hope it finds the right home.
Beautiful bike! I owned one back in the 80s. Wondering why you put the fuel in the "reserve" position rather than the "on" position? Were you low on fuel? How does the bike start when cold? Does the choke work? Was the bike repainted and seats refinished under your ownership or by the original owner?
Hello… and thank you! I was not low on fuel. As a rule, I only use “reserve” on any vintage bike that has an on-off-reserve petcock. Dunno why lol. I guess I feel as if I know how much fuel is in there. I remember being a young rider and how much I hated that running out of fuel feeling and fumbling around for the lever. Doing it this way just makes sense to my warped mind I guess. The bike starts 1st or 2nd kick when cold. Yes the choke works. The original owner (he owned it 62 years) had the bike redone (paint, seats, engine, etc) in the late 90’s by a shop in the PacNW.
A performance loser with the single Mikuni and it just looks wrong. Somebody couldn't adjust dual Amals. Shame, hope the new owner can return it to a proper Commando.
That Commando sounds terrible with that single Mikuni and it no longer idles properly. It used to be a nice Commando, until some owner who couldn't adjust dual carbs, installed that single Mikuni thinking that would solve their technical limitations. Why compromise the performance of a Norton Commando by removing the dual carbs? Now they have a bike that has lost the acceleration, the torque and the grunt that Norton Commandos were engineered and designed to have.
I bought one of the last models new in june 1977, and kept her for 9 years. Fantastic bike, the only drawback beeing the Isolastic system which took a lot of play along the years, therefore damaging roadholding. I still regret her !.
.. it's one expansion chamber exhaust pipe, with a twin stinger; ...the 2nd can's brazed on where it will have little effect to the reverse pressure pulsing waves aiding in exhaust port scavenging & performance. But it does from a distance help in the aesthetic of the looks, making appear more '1980s GP Era' alike. Thats whu 😊
Cool to see. There’s one of these in my neck of the woods, used to belong to a member of the family over here that had the local Yamaha dealership for years. Crazy to see one on the other side of the world pretty much!
Bro: little tip: Keep your foot on the kick starter, take a jump and put your weight on your foot!! Don't just push down on it with your leg! 🦶👍💨 Please post a vlog showing if this is helpful!!❤
Hi, I'm really pleased to see your 2 video's on this Fuel Pump problem as I have just bought a non-running Buell 1125R and have a similar problem - the difference being that mine is constantly blowing the 15A Fuel Pump fuse (even with the key being out of the bike). My bike has not run for 10 years ! Your videos have helped my identify that its probably a short to ground in my Fuel Sensor that is likely causing this problem. I have verified that I have <1ohm resistance between the Black & Green and the Red & Green and the Black & Red wires. With the Green wire terminal is removed from the connector block, my fuel pump seems to run ok when the ignition is switched on (without blowing the Fuel Pump fuse). I am not able to try running the bike as I've already drained the fuel for removing the Fuel Pump. I intend to remove the Fuel Pump and repair properly (also the Pump body O-Rings are leaking. Therefore my questions to you please are: 1. Does what I'm saying make sense based on what you've seen ? 2. Where did you buy the specific fuel sensor from (I live in England, so getting one from Holland would be easy) ? Thanks in advance, Gareth.
