Ducati Monster Forum

What do you do with a Broken Monster? Part out or rebuild? In July, 2008 my friend was making his way up Palomar and wound up landing on his head and crushing his Monster. How this happened is an interesting story in itself and will be the subject of a future posting. The Monster did cartwheels and bent the frame, front axle, fork internals, severe road rash and totally crushed the tank in addition to breaking the engine cases at the rear mounting point.(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_1685.jpg)(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_1730.jpg)

I took inventory of the broken/bent/trashed parts and spent time on this forum and others acquiring the parts needed to place it back in service. Can you see the Monster in this picture?(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_2054.jpg), yup it is there on the rack waiting for the right time to get back together. One of the first things to do was to evaluate the amount of "tweak" in the frame. With all the accessories off, the frame was twisted a bit, but not too bad.(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_1771.jpg) nearly 1/4" of a twist. Send it to Doctor Johns? Hardly. Steel is steel and can be moved. Before any of you go and get all scientific (your comic book pseudo-science) on me, you can straighten your frame under some circumstances. I've build a 300' long barge (Beluga) that tows reactor plants up the Columbia river to Hanford using plumb-bobs, chalk lines and levels. So long before Lasers were invented, humans could make things straight and level with less sophisticated methods. But I digress....Here is how you take a tweak out of a frame.(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_1767.jpg)(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_1769.jpg)
 A few tons of pressure straightened the frame right out.

OK, so not the most immaculate way to straighten out a frame, but we are descendants of cave-men after all (ugh!). After many months of thinking about how I wanted it to "look", I couldn't get any inspiration. The typical modifications and color schemes have been done by others with great results. I've taken inspiration about personalizing the Monster from this forum and in person (Ducati Island at Laguna Seca). Hmmm, did I want the frame red and the wheels black? Or vice versa? At about this time I came across a biography of Fransesco Baracca...WWI Italian ace and the originator of the famous Scudieria Prancing Horse; Fransesco's father gave the symbol to Enzo Ferrari after the war. I wanted to pay tribute to the merits of signor Baracca, but the era of canvas and spruce doesn't fit well with a modern motorcycle. So, on second thought, Ducati Performance did make quite a few aluminum components that could fit into an aircraft theme.....Working with that idea ,I chose an OD green for the frame and wheels and a OD canvas for the seat. Here is a picture of the work in progress(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3207.jpg) You can tell by the custom rolled rear fender there will be rivets in the finished product. (http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3209-1.jpg)The bike will be together in the next few months and I'll post pictures of the re-worked pieces and finished parts during that time.

Oooh...

 [popcorn]

that fender is amazing!!
cant wait to see the rest of the build

As I started reading I was thinking "There's nothing left there, you are going to be parting it out."  I am glad you proved me wrong and am really inspired with what you've done already.   [thumbsup]  I can't wait to see more on this rebuild and the final result.

So can't wait to see more!!!!!

I love the idea of using history to affect a build. Amazing choice and execution so far. Can't wait to see more.

I give massive credit to your efforts and inspiration...but once it is done, are you going to spend a lil $$$ to have someone do a dynamic check to make sure everything is staright and true, or are you going to trust that it is all perfectly aligned and go by feel?

I do look forward to seeing the future outcome...I also am curious about the cracked engine cases, did you weld them or get new motor or new cases or what?

Point well taken: Measuring (and the limits of guessing between 64ths) not withstanding, it is important to make sure the engine is aligned with the frame/wheels.front/back/etc. I will run it up to Riverside county and have it checked. I could not tell by feel, I'm not sensitive enough to know unless it was glaringly obvious. The cracked engine cases were welded . There were back-gouged to provide a full penetration weld and then re drilled for the bolt, but........depending upon the quality of the weld (skill of the weldor) and the stresses placed upon them......I am not a weldor; a local shop in Poway did. They've done welding for friends and they were pleased with the results. I would be disappointed, but not shocked if there were some cracks reappearing. I suppose at that point I could re-weld it with some structural gussets or get a different motor.
   Honestly, I've never ridden a Monster. I've been fascinated with them for years, but haven't thrown a leg over one. I typically ride an Aprila RSVR or my ST4, or a dirt bike or three. I'm anxious to get this on the road and dialed in. I know it isn't the usual course Monster owners choose for their bikes, but the Monster (frame withstanding) is a perfect blank canvas for expression. I'll have the rear wheel mounted and the fender bolted on later this week and post a picture or two. Front wheel is next and then installing hundreds of rivets in the aluminum front cowl, seat cowl, engine cowl, the dog, cat and anything else that isn't moving........
  I know some will think this is an abonimation, but who's milking this cow anyway?

History:  Between 1956 and 1960, Ducati race bikes were decorated with a prancing horse identical except for color to what is now the trademarked emblem of Ferrari today. Fabio Taglioni's father was in fact a companion of the Count Francesco Baracca's (a famous Italian ace) and fought in his famous 91st Air Squadron as well during WW1 which is where the emblem originated. Baracca's family gave it to Enzo many years later to put on his Scuderia Ferrari racers in 1932. Taglioni used it starting in about 1956 on Ducati's but with the original red coloring of Barraca -- but stopped using in about 1960 due to a private agreement between Ducati and Ferrari in regard to its usage.

Taglioni only used the prancing horse itself -- not the yellow background shield ala the Scuderia (and later Ferrari).

Also note there are many variations of the prancing horse itself as Ferrari "revised" it over the decades since.

addendum:  Baracca's "prancing horse" was painted in red on his plane -- after his death his squadron continued to use but it was painted black. (and how it was presented to Enzo for use at the Scuderia)

Hats off to you for taking on such a project and saving another Monster.  Glad to see it not being parted it out and restored back to life.  I'll be following the progress of this post.  Keep up the good work  [clap]

Well, who knew finding/scrubbing/cleaning/priming/painting all those little "damits" could take so long???? I got the rear wheel back together and put is on to check things out
(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3211.jpg)
So far, so good. Fitting the rear fender is proving to be a challenge: the mounting tabs are a bit off ,must be the one-off fender thing, huh? I placed it on the fender and used a rag to provide some spacing so you can see how it (should) look when I get the mounting tabs sorted.(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3212.jpg)
check out that rear sprocket: I got it from oldfatguystryintobestuntas.com and it has all of 46 teeth! (more than entire families in Copperhill TN) :-X

is that a chia seat?

Like a chia pet? No, I haven't had to water it yet. It is a Marine Corps (ohh rah!) sea-bag (canvas) that I had the upholstery shop rip up and sew on. Living is southern California, I'll take the chance to not get it wet. Now if I was still living in Tacoma.........

jesus that's green!

good on you for picking your flavor and going with it

Impressive build!!  Looking forward to watching it develop.

OD Green or Green OD? gaaaawd, that is a  lot of green. Here is a picy with more of the aluminium accents thrown on....not quite so , ah, over-powering(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3214.jpg)

that hugger is vicious man.  love it.

have you seen Christians 1098? The whole bike is green with orange accents. Killer. www.speedymoto.com (http://)

A blind man, would have loved to have seen you straighten that frame like that. In Africa, they call that back yard mechanic. I have been known to pull similar stunts, although never done a frame like that.  [thumbsup]

Looking good...loved the way you went about straightening the frame.  Very ingenious. 

very cool...........can't wait to see the finished rebuild.



when I rebuilt the crashed 00 900ie I picked up a few years ago, I had a very similar tweaked frame. An old bike rebuilder here advised me to put it back on the engine and straighten it with a steel bar which worked like a charm. He said that if I tried to straighten it first, there was a good chance I would not get the engine back in. Either way, looks like your way worked out just fine.

I also had the rear engine mount part of the engine cracked on both ends. I had it welded, and so far it's held up great under my big ass.

i think my only question for you regarding the frame is... how did you measure to make sure you bend far enough, etc. And, how did you prevent cracking the frame's welds in doing so?  I mean, it clearly looks like it worked pretty well, and it may have been pure luck, but just curious.

you going for a 40's Rosie the Rivet girl making the military kinda of theme?

  Simply trial and error. Apply some force, watch it move, release pressure and place the frame on a flat surface and take some measurements, check for flatness between the engine mounts, measure diagonally to check for square, measure from the surface to the center of the tubes, etc, etc: a lot of measuring, head scratching and stuffing it back under the truck for more tonnage. Seriously, this is a rigid unit. You can't see it, but my driveway is sloped and with the truck facing down hill it got to the point that I was raising the rear of the truck with the force I was putting to the frame. It still wasn't enough to straighten it out. So I turned the truck around and lifted uphill instead of down hill and only then could I bring it into something respectable. There is some rigidity built in.
   The welds are a good question. By trade, I am (was years ago) a journeyman (I served an apprenticeship) ship fitter: a structural iron worker who had the opportunity to do everything structural aboard subs/carriers (except set a mast). I've rarely seen welds crack, unless they were stressed while hot, i.e. hot-tacking iron to get it into alignment with a BFH (Big F***** Hammer). After they sand blasted the frame and prior to powder coating, I did a 5x visual of the welds and did not see any evidence of cracking. There are other ways of detecting cracks: dye penetration, Magnetic particle, x-ray, etc. I was satisfied with the visual. Lucky, well I'd say so and I'll take good luck any time I can.
  The real luck is what actually was bent: The monster went airborne and flipped, landing on the seat cowl and bending the rearward most section of the frame (sub-frame on most bikes). Had another part of the frame been bent, I don't think it would have been possible with my rudimentary tools: Dr. Johns would have made some money straightening it out. The lack of serious structural damage was one of the contributing factors to rebuild vs. part out. Oh, that and Mrs DTR would have not taken kindly to another *&%$ motorcycle in the garage :D

  Yes, that is how it is coming out. I only started with an idea and it isn't exactly what I started for, but it is working without getting too overboard (matter of opinion I guess). So there are several hundred more rivets on the way....hammer time!

Cool. Just curious.

I have seen the welds by the headstock break (just this last summer actually). Was a known issue on certain year supersports, iirc (DP will remember, an elephant never forgets).

Glad it all worked out.

With regards to wear it was bent (the "subframe" that's not subordinate on these, but integral) - i've seen 'em like this before and even on a very minor scale - where everything seems "right" - motor fits in, suspension mounts up fine to swingarm, but with the seat off - you notice that something just is 'off' a smidge at the very tail (especially when chopped since those ends of the frame are higher than the drooping ends that are typically cut off). With tape measure from tip of frame on left to marked swingarm point - compared to right side, just under a 1/4" difference.

Sure does make the removable subframes of the new gen of bikes (all sbks starting with 851, but also the hyper, etc) and kind of the new monster (front frame with VIN, and rear, rather than sub, frame) appealing since you can remove those to fix them, or replace them.

Well,  I haven't been posting as this goes along, but I'll cut to the chase:
(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3435.jpg)

Still have more rivets to add and forks to black-out and a few other little things. I rode it yesterday and AM sure I know the next bike I'm going to get a ticket on....

sweet and sour baby jesus, that's hot.
 [beer]

awesome man

well done.....very sharp

I like it, looks like something one would use for jousting after dining at the Round Table  [Dolph]

What are you running for the rearsets? 

They look like SS or ST foot pegs and brackets? 

Really nice work - hope to see it at the next GP shop ride

I haven't been checking this lately, sorry. Yes, the pegs are ST-4 as in the rear brake Master cylinder. If you look closely, you sill see where I had to fab a couple on little spacers to rotate the rear-set down/forward to clear the high-mounts. The latest pictures show the nearly finished Monsters (at this point) I've added rivets to the front cowl and the rear seat cowl. I still would like to paint some teeth on the lower engine cowl, but that is in the future. It has a pesky oil leak from one of the oil lines as it leaves the engine: I'll try a new crush washer and see if that helps. One item that has me scratching my head is how "bouncy" it is. Really, It can lift me off the seat on a decent sized bump. Sag is good, I guess it is compression and/or rebound damping?(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3520.jpg)(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3517.jpg)(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3521.jpg)(http://i740.photobucket.com/albums/xx49/evandewan/IMG_3515.jpg)
When is the next GP shop ride, I'd like to join in (even if the Multi is the only thing running)

if the bump is so hard that you are launched out of your seat because the shock could compress, fiddle with compression. if it is so fast to expand after it contracts for the bump as to feel like a pogo stick, fiddle with rebound. 


looks like the distance between the right rearset peg and rear brake toe peg is very close, and very flat - might need to adjust it a bit for comfort, but that's just observations from looking at pictures.  might be comfortable for you or not what it appears from the pictures.

Spot on with the observation. It needs some adjusting AND some heat shields: I noticed my heel cooking after only 10 miles or so....

nicely executed   [thumbsup]

love the theme, even the tank ding looks like it should be there...