I jumped on a friend's Kawasaki Z1000SX the other day for a quick ride, and despite it being almost 100kg heavier than my Monster 796 it felt incredibly nimble in comparison. It turned in easier, felt tighter through the corners etc. I had much more confidence going in to a corner than on the Ducati. I have no idea if anyone has fettled with the suspension on my 13 plate bike, or if it can even be improved much over stock... but I'm open to suggestions! Any options? Any way to know if mine has been tweaked?
I would imagine you need to take your bike to a Ducati track day and find an expert to ride it and see if has a handling problem and if it can be tweaked....to handle better. OR dash down to your local Ducati dealership and ride one of their bikes. Comparing Apples and Oranges and expecting a logical sensible answer is never a good idea in fact that is almost as bad as asking someone on an online forum if your bike has been tweaked......crystal balls being very rare and extremely expensive these days. Heavier is not critical in this department it is more about the height of the CoG. It could even just be something very simple like the tyres make and model and pressures. BUT you are asking a question here that no one can answer.
From memory - I owned a 796 a couple of years ago now- The forks are non adjustable and the rear for preload and maybe rebound only So it should be easy enough to see if it's been fettled with- the stock settings will be in the owners manual If there's adjustment available on the top of the forks - this would suggest replacement cartridges have been fitted If not its stock and there's nothing to adjust
Hi mate, I would start with new oil in the forks, fresh springs if you want . Get the rear shock set up to go with the front + some new tyres at the correct pressures , like pilot powers , not 2cts because you don't need them . They make most bike's turn faster.If that's not what you wanted try lighter wheels, better forks and a new shock !!! Good luck and keep us posted. Kais suspension are fantastic at setting anything up on two wheels. Or MTC are also spot on.
I can't speak for the 796, but my 696 was always really slightly disappointing in the handling stakes. Then after some "forced" remodeling after a trip down the road I put clip-ons and rear-sets on and was amazed by the change in the handling. Throwing the extra weight on the front seemed to make a real big difference in the right direction.
I've dropped my bars quite a bit, not to clip-on level but I have lower risers and an angled down drag bar on there now. Changing out for new tyres definitely made the bike turn in better, I've not played with the suspension yet though!
I used to find my pegs dragged which didn't help confidence, these helped to lift the ground clearance slightly and grip the pegs a bit better. http://ducatiforum.co.uk/threads/monster-1100-796-696-metaltech-rearsets.43852/
Only on the steepest angles, slowish roundabouts ect. Somehow knowing the pegs could touch unsettled me! I put the metaltech rearsets on and never got close again, toe on the pegs, knee was the first thing to touch on the 1100
I don't know the 796, but dropping the forks through the yokes or raising the rear (if it has an adjustable ride height rod) will make it any bike more nimble. Don't go mad though as you don't need to make much of an adjuatment And +1 re: fitting 2CTs
