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Hello and Advice/ help needed

Discussion in 'Newbies Hangout' started by 1um3, Dec 13, 2013.

  1. Hi,

    I am new to the forum and fairly new to motorcycling.
    I use to ride scramblers and enduros from the age of 6-14 then stopped and recently passed my full bike test.

    I am looking to buy a bike to get from Surrey into the City of London every day and I thought the Ducati Hypermotard 796 was the one for me.
    I am about to pull the trigger on a 2011 hypermotard it but am i buying it at the wrong time with winter coming?
    [FONT=Lucida Grande, Trebuchet MS, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]will it really effect the bike? Will the bike wear badly from the weather?[/FONT]
    Are Ducati's mechanically sound enough to ride every day?
    Will I need extra protection on the electronics and metal parts on the bike? if so what can I get?

    I just need a bit of advice from Ducati owners and people who commute on what they think.

    Thanks for your time
     
    • Like Like x 1
  2. alright Pete? :upyeah:
     
  3. Apologies, my name is in fact Liam
     
  4. Hi Ken and Welcome :upyeah:
     
  5. Lol you have met the locals ken and dave ;-)
    Hello and welcome to the mad house
     
  6. Hi Liam - welcome - I can't advise you as I never use mine in the rain. Or the snow. Or the wind, or the sun come to that.
     
  7. Hi and welcome to the forum.
    Sorry can't help you on your questions, I used to commute to work on a bike, but give it up as a bad idea when I got to old and it got to cold, and as for commuting in London on a Bike !! I don’t think I would enjoy that one bit, would suggest an APC rather than a Bike
    Guvs.
     
  8. G'Day Liam
    sounds like its a good idea to me , right size engine, sit up riding position = good traffic view, it will be a hoot going to and from work.

    get some ACF 50 to protect the bike,
    recon you will probably need some heated grips
    if you need new tires try the Michelin Pilot Road 3 they are designed for wet weather.
    PD oiler for the chain.
    Maybe uprate the horn but best not go for the compressor type as it pulls a little too much from the battery causing miss fires.
    Go through all the electrical connector blocks with some spray grease....especially the alternator rectifier ones (not water proof)

    I used to commute 80 miles a day on my Mutley..... best part of the day :upyeah:

    Cheers
    Andy P.
     
    • Like Like x 2
  9. Android,

    Thanks for the response, some great advice there.
    I will definitely get some heated grips, are the oxford ones for about £70 the best? or are there cheaper alternatives?
    I have ordered some ACF50 to use, and would i just use it with a rag on all metal parts of the bike? how often would i have to apply it?

    I am really looking forward to getting on the bike and the commute just as it is going to be mixed from country roads to highway then into central london.

    Thanks for all the advice guys

    Liam
     
  10. As regards the ACF 50 I think its best sprayed (mist) on the bike as its very difficult to get to all the nooks and crannies.

    I only have the cheapest grips with a rheostat control.....best because in traffic they get too hot and you can back them off gradually.
    I also used handle bar muffs
    On my commute if there was a frost of -5C and then traveling for an hour at the NSL with the wind chill factor( -18C). After 40 miles it hurts without the muffs.

    Just heated grips and hand guards my fingers would be numb back to my palm although the pain of them warming up made me feel alive for sure.

    The frames of my BarkBuster hand guards(less the plastic) keeps the muffs from interfering with any controls

    Around town you would not need so much protection of course.
     
  11. Hello and welcome!
     
  12. Welcome to the forum
     
  13. Alright Dave? :smile:
     
    • Like Like x 1
  14. Hi - ive got a 1100 evo hyper. Maybe its just me im not sure but ive found that the ducati fixings seem to corrode faster than any other bike ive had. So, ive made a point of steadily going round the bike replacing everything I can see with stainless or titanium equivalents.

    I had the sub frame off to get it coated black so everything that went onto that was replaced with stainless.
    All engine casing fixings.
    Front brake caliper mounts (went a bit blingy with that and got titantium.
    Exhaust studs and bolts - now all stainless.
    All bolts around the handlebars and forks.
    rear sprocket carrier - replaced with stainless nuts and went blingy on the carrier (anodised red)

    Havent done the head nuts yet but that's next on the hit list...

    Having said that I don't tend to use mine in the wet but im planning on keeping it long term so im adopting more of a preventative maintenance view of looking after it...

    Hope that helps.

    just to add - ive got a couple of stainless fixing places that are close to me so I tend to take a load off at a time - go down and pick up the equivalent in stainless - works out pretty cheap....
     
    #14 comfysofa, Dec 16, 2013
    Last edited: Dec 16, 2013
  15. #15 Android, Dec 16, 2013
    Last edited: Dec 16, 2013
  16. Hello and welcome :smile:
     
  17. I took the plunge bought the Hypermotard and loving it!!!!
    Thanks for all the advice guys and I learning quite a bit from my commute. Thanks to Android for helping me out too
     
    • Like Like x 1
  18. No problem glad you are enjoying it

    Have a read of Motorcycle Roadcraft: the police rider's handbook may help you to spot dangers before they get you.
     
  19. Great news Liam
     
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