I’m posting this as information for anyone else who may have similar ideas about using these wheels in different bikes. I have 2 bikes with Marchesini 5 Spoke wheels, my 2005 1000SS/SL Mongrel which came with them as a 1000SS from the factory, and my 2004 M1000 which I converted to them as I prefer the look to the more common 3 spokes. The M1000 Wheels came from Ebay advertised as from an ST4. The front wheels in both bikes are identical in all respects and I know are completely interchangeable as I’ve done it to move different tyres between the bikes. I’ve always been aware that the rear wheels running on different size spindles had different size bearings in them. The 1000SS has a 17mm rear spindle and the M1000 25mm. However as part of the previously mentioned tyre swapping I’ve also swapped the Rear wheels between the bikes by replacing the bearings and swapping the internal spacers over. Consequently I’m completely convinced that the bare wheel castings of both these sets of wheels are identical. The method above may sound like an extreme way to swap tyres around, but a set of bearings from simply bearings and my time is not only cheaper than paying somebody to swap the tyres from Rim to Rim, but I can also do the work myself when I get time to do it, normally on a Sunday. When the Wheels below came up for sale quite locally on Ebay with new tyres at a really good price I snapped them up as the SS needs new tyres. They were advertised as from an ST4S. The plan was to pop the new wheels in the SS after changing the rear bearings, and still be able to use it whilst getting the old wheels Powdercoated Gold, then swap the tyres over so the SS ended up with the new tyres on Gold Wheels. The Front wheels swapped out seamlessly, as expected, but I did swap the discs over for the ones currently on the bike as the new wheel had quite rough very early M900/SS discs on it. I changed the bearings and internal spacer in the Rear wheel, fitted it with the SS Sprocket carrier and couldn’t get it to fit the Swingarm, the assembly was just too wide. This was where my belief that all the 5 spoke wheels fitted to bikes of this era are identical fell down. Hence warning other people. Careful measurement has revealed one small but game changing difference. The raised bosses on the wheel that the Cush drive rubbers are pressed into, and the central boss for the wheel bearing are 5mm taller/longer on this rear wheel than on the other two Rear wheels. Bugger. I started thinking about how I could machine the wheel back to the same size as the others, including deepening the Bearing counterbore, but had to come to the conclusion that my own Lathe/Mill just wasn’t big enough to take the wheel. Bugger2. I retired disjected to a cuppa in front of the telly and realised that in my particular case I have a really simple solution, especially as it will be temporary until the old wheels are powdercoated. As part of the recent fitment of a JMC Swingarm to the SS the bike now has a 9mm spacer between the Sprocket carrier and swingarm, so I can easily move the wheel over 5mm. It will then be properly central in the bike, and the Caliper carrier will fit where it should the other side. There is @8mm of additional thread on the gearbox output shaft so I can pack the front sprocket out 5mm with a hardened thrust washer, and I can move the plastic chain ‘slide’ over a few mm on the swingarm. However, Beware, if you are buying these wheels to use in a different Ducati, despite looking identical they may not fit.
Thanks CAT3 Whilst I'm mucking about with them I might put them in my 999 just to see what they look like and take a picture. From memory the 999 has the same tyre combo.
