Hay everyone. I am new to Ducati and don't currently own one but am just finishing restoring a 1977 900SS for a customer. I have a question for the group. The bike has about 7,000 miles from new, one owner. Last started about 25 years ago. I have gone through and done a cosmetic restoration -- new frame and body paint, new plating, chrome and zinc, wheels rebuils and polished, ss spokes, gauges rebuilt everything tidied up. I used as much of the original chrome as possible. Only the motor side covers were removed to polish. Carbs and breaks completely rebuilt. Ran when last parked. Now the problem: I won't start. I have spark, fuel looks good at carbs. Electronic ignition. Do the spark plug wired have to from a dedicated coil or could the wires go to either plug? Help, Thank you.
Welcome Oregon Arm Chair dude. Top job on the 900SS. I'd try switching the plug leads over to the opposite cylinders as a start.
Hi Armchair Duke, Looks like the one you have done is painted, so this is probably not relevant, but I know someone who did a bare frame rebuild of his black and Gold SS and after pushing it up and down a steep hill a couple of times and a phone call to a knowledgeable friend, his starting issue was that he had not cleaned the powder coating from the earthing points on the frame. Once that was remedied it started no problem.
Welcome to the forum ArmChairDucati and that is one beautiful restoration. One owner from new, wow. It might be worth you creating a thread in the Technical Help section as well as there’s some knowledgeable fellas keep an eye on that section, just copy & paste. Alternatively @Pete1950 may have some pointers, he’s into bevels (I think). Good luck
Welcome chap. When was the original ignition system replaced with electronic? If this still uses the original pickups they may be fubarred after standing for 25 years. (I have this issue and will probably be going the Ignitec route in time). Gotta love a gear gazer!
Welcome to the forum buddy, that is one fine restoration project, I hope you find the information you need.
Hey there and welcome, beautiful machine, cracking job. Sure you will have it purring like a kitten soon
After a long lay-up I have found it easier to get a reluctant kickstart bevel to start as a single initially - One plug out, lead to earth, much easier to get it turning over fast enough to generate the strong spark and momentum needed to fire.
Indeed. The wires which come out of the ignition pickups are notoriously weak, and the insulation on those wires is prone to deteriorate and crack to pieces. Since they are immersed in hot oil all the time the engine is running, they have a hard life. If the insulation is gone, the pickups may still send enough of a signal to the amplifiers to produce an occasional spark, but not consistently enough for the engine to run properly. Worth a check. If you removed the left side engine cover to polish it, you may very well have disturbed the wires in the process.
DellOrto 40mm carbs do not have a cold start enrichment circuit ("choke"), so starting from cold is a bit hit and miss. The routine in theory is to tickle both carbs thoroughly (i.e. until petrol is visibly running out), and twist the throttle a couple of times so that the accelerator pumps squirt in a bit more. That will make the mixture rich enough for the engine to fire even when freezing cold. However it is possible to overdo it. If you have done all this for a few abortive attempts, there might be so much liquid fuel in the cylinders that the sparks are dowsed. My own 900 MHR, for example, only needs a slight tickle and will not start if I overdo it. Try it with little or no tickling, and see if it fires. If the spark plugs are too wet, just take them out and dry them off, then try again. Or fit another pair of brand new ones, which never does any harm. Another possibility is that one or both of the accelerator pumps might not be working. Look down the throats as you twist the throttle - the squirts of fuel should be obvious. If they aren't, strip the carbs and replace the diaphragms. There's a remote possibility the problem lies with the HT leads. Make sure they are really securely attached both to the coils at one end and to the plug caps at the other end, with good electrical contact. Don't just look at them, give them a firm pull and twist. I actually had this problem with a bike once - intermittent sparks. Good luck. PS. Great looking bike, terrific job. Not sure about the pale blue rear springs.
