Got a viewing in the morning. Bike is an 02B Done 13k all mots and books BUT only 2 stamps in book. Service by ducati at 750 and 6600miles. Stored and sorned 2008-11. Owner bought it this summer and replaced, oil, brake fluid, clutch fluid, plugs, filters, chain, sprockets, tyres, belts. It's done 250odd miles since...it looks clean and has a few nice extras long t&t. Doesn't sound perfect but price will hopefully reflect this.... Any pointers??
Stand back and take an overall view. Look at the tyres, you cannot hide how enthusiastically the bike has been ridden by the chicken strips. Look for the parts that wear like brake pads, gear and brake lever rubbers. Look at the fairing fixings, the two nose cone bolts that go through the air tubes are sometimes over tightened and crack the fairing. Look at the rear shock spring which gets very shitty and ragged if the bike is not cleaned after riding. Look at the chain and the eccentric hub and see how much adjustment is left and look at the rear sprocket all indications of wear and tear and whilst not that expensive still £150 to replace. Listen to the engine running from cold, it will rattle, all 9**/748s do, some will be the dry clutch but some will be the valve gear. You'll never stop it but it really shouldn't be excessive - a bag of nails is always used to describe the noise but it should be a small good quality bag. If you can, tilt the bike back on the side stand to extend the forks so you can look at the bit that is doing all the sliding in the seal. I have just bought a 748 of similar age which had also been stored for 5 years but having got it home and taken the fairings off and taken a thorough look, I am chuffed to bits. Good luck. Andy
I agree. You will see 'blueing' on the discs if it's had hard track use. Also, get him/her to start it and see how they do it, ie do they just start it and let it idle for 2-3 mins or do they start it and rev it's nuts off. Finally all the usual tips like check the lights when it's running, when you rev it do the lights get brighter? They shouldn't.
Cheers fellas all good pointers, I'm quite confident about stuff like visible wear and tear. I've seen a fair few dogs. The owner is (cliche) a motorcycle mechanic, he has a workshop which I'm visiting tomorrow. He seemed quite knowledgable? Well see...
Well it looked ok BUT on close inspection, brakes looked worn, it had tyres of a race bike on it that were pretty cooked, there was surface corrosion in lots of places and I couldn't get it to find neutral when running? It had a ripped rear seat, scuffs on one side, corroded down pipes, a smashed temp glass but it worked. No receipts for any work done. History just didn't stack up? It had been sorned from 08-13 but was resold in 09 and miles had gone up, so I'm thinking it's been tracked. Seller was nice bloke, bought it probably cheap and had a play on it, it's price was a reflection of the condition but not for me. More a gamble than most I think, rather spend the extra on a more transparent minter than pick up the pieces of a chequered past....
I think your correct to walk away!! It's deffo a track bike, you wouldn't want to take the risk. Keep looking and u will stumble on a good one with an Anal owner. Have u thought about a 996? A power hike for sure but possibly a better option?
After a 12 year lay off a 620 monster was a challenge at first, I think a 996 would be a step up too far! I know they only go as fast as you make them but 100bhp will do me for now after the monsters 60ish.... I've got a 97 748 to look at on sat....
Fair enough, would say that the newer the better though on 748's. That's obviously a very general rule as a newer badly looked after is going to be much more hassle than a mint 97, but in terms of quality of electrical components etc, your safer with a 2000+ Ps... Rode a 696 monster for the day yesterday, shocked how good it was. Good luck looking at this one.
Absolutely the right decision to walk away. I think you should wait until the right one comes along and not talk yourself into something that isn't what you really want so good luck on Saturday. Andy
Thanks, your right I'm actually getting good at walking away, was never that good with cars! My monster is like new (I watched eBay daily for weeks before it popped up, I bought it over the phone within 2 hours!) so I have a great benchmark and nothing less is going to do I know that now. I rang about 2 others today as well, I'm waiting on a couple of return calls, just had an email asking if the Monsters still for sale too which I guess for the right money it is, that would open a few more doors if it did go. I do love the hunt and no rush...
Hello and welcome! Good luck with the search, it's worth taking your time and waiting for the right one! Took me 6 months to find my ST3 but as always there were a couple more that appeared shortly after I'd got mine home!
Newer 748's such as 748E's are likely to be more of a daily use type of bike as the later ones were the entry level model. If you aim for a 748SPS or an early 748R you might find that although older they have been looked after more as they are a rarer bike and as such have been maintained to higher standard. Later bikes do have better electronics it's true but early bikes if looked after and well maintained should have had these problems looked at before now. You do also tend to get what you pay for, cheap bikes are mostly cheap for a reason.
I looked at quite a few 996`s before buying mine earlier in the year and your experience mirrors exactly what I experienced with some. One thing id recommend is a full HPI check and check all engine/chasis numbers match. Also, actually visually check the chasis numbers.. one i saw was overstamped all over the place!!! Also get the MOT/v5 details from the owner and check all the MOT`s online to see if the mileage all adds up. If a bike hasnt done many miles over a long period of time then some bikes dont like that. Ive heard that it is one reason for the flaking rockers on some bikes. Speaking to the owner tells you a lot about the bike - are they an enthusiast, are they likely to have thrashed it etc. If they have done any work themselves id expect to see receipts to prove what they are saying. Some owners seem to forget that belts are every 2 years OR 12k. I saw one 996 and asked the owner when the belts were changed and he replied "1500 miles ago". But further questions and he told me that 1500 miles ago was actually back in 2006!!! A lot of bikes fastenings & bolts will rust easily. My R1 has loads of rusty bolts on it even though its always been garaged. As others have said, tyres are a bit of a giveaway as to how its been ridden. If its got an aftermarket exhaust on it, has it been chipped to match? Also check the front nose cone carefully - many ive seen have shown signs of accident repairs around the headlamps. As an example on pricing for replacement consumables, as ive just done a load on my 996 - brake pads (about £75), chain + sprockets (£150), fuel filter, oil filter, top spec synthetic oil, belts, spark plugs, brake fluid, relevant washers etc (£220). All easy enough to do DIY. As for 748 vs 996. The 748 you can pick up a lot cheaper. They rev higher and dont have much less power than the 996. Personally ive owned both and do prefer the 996, but had a 748 came up a the right price id have bought that instead. Both on the road are cracking bikes once you have taken the time to set the suspension up properly (id recommend Performance Bikes magazine settings).
