Hi Everyone, Many of you may have seen my recent thread on general discussion - First Ducati, Which one to Get? After 20 years of not having a bike I have suddenly got the urge :smile: My last bike all those years ago was a GSX 750 slingshot which I loved. But now don't feel like getting a totally outright sports bike. I like the concept & look of the Monster & always wanted a Duke since they brought out the Pantah but could never afford one when I was younger. I'am going on a rusty rider refresher course this sunday & hopefully if i get on ok I'll be looking for a bike. So, I've always wanted a Duke & the Monster 796 seems to fit the bill. This will be a toy (had many years of riding a bike for work & pleasure in my youth) so will probably only be used in good weather. I'am not a particularly big chap (11 stone, 5'9" tall). I'll probably go for a 2nd hand 796 ABS Monster - there are 2-3 on the web for circa £6-7K on a 2011/2012 year plate. Wondering what ownership has been like & is there anything that should have sorted for a 1-2 years old machine (I know cambelts need doing every two years). Appreciated your feedback.
There's not a great deal to tell tbh. I've serviced several 696/796 and there's been very little problems. I've got a 696 of my own and it's a crackin little bike. There have been a couple of isolated tech issues and these can be checked off against the VIN number as to whether they are actually needed and whether they have been done. servicing is per new schedules and is pretty reasonable. As you know belts at 2 years with 'Desmo' services every 7500 miles.
My non ABS 796 of 2 years has been very reliable and never skipped a beat. I am however on my 3rd set of front brake discs replaced under warranty (which has now run out and they need replaced again). They weren't wearing properly at all and causing pulsing sensation through the lever and huge juddering; bizarrely though, they weren't warped and it was assumed the surface was not abrading evenly. It got very bad at one point and it they still don't feel great now...not paying for a set of standard ones just for them to arse up again so will eventually buy some wavys or something instead. Not to put you off mind; I know of a few others who've had problems but I seem to have been particularly unlucky. Apart from my brakes drama I do love this bike. I also just remembered I got a letter last January saying I needed to get the tank checked as it may be one of the dodgy ones needing replaced for free, forgot all about it too... Best get onto that, doh!
Do you do high miles? Have you heard of other owners with similar issues? This will be my first bike for a very long time, so will want something I feel confident on. I'am more tempted to get the entry 696+ ABS & see how I get on. It will also be a bit cheaper. I may then keep for 1-2 seasons & perhaps upgrade to a Streetfighter eventuially. I guess the other bike to consider would be the Triumph Street - but reviews put the monster a little bit ahead.
Not really, its coming up to about 15,000 miles; though I'd say two thirds of them were done in the first year. Its actually about 2.5 years old. Less miles since then as I had other time consuming commitments which put a stop to fun time. I have a friend with a non ABS 696+ who described a similar problem, but I never tried it so not sure it was the same, and he upgraded and seems happy. I replaced the master cylinders etc which seemed to help a bit. I think there was 1 or 2 guys on the monster forum who either had, or spoke of others with new shaped monsters which had some brake gripe, I dont know of them personally though. I tested a 696 and felt like the 796 has a decent amount of extra poke to make it worthwhile, but I already had a monster 620 at the time so felt like upgrading a little on power too; its also a little bit higher position seat wise, I'm pretty small and found the 696 to be a good fit, 796 does feel a little bigger, though its probably just psychological as the seat is a big higher. I dropped the seat to a lower cut one and fitted clip ons and am really happy with the riding position now - dont like it much standard, too upright for me, but thats a personal call. Can't say I know anything about the Triumphs, I'm sure they're great; though I park next to one at work every day and always think its pig ugly next to my monster..... then again, each to their own.
