Ducati Monster Forum

I wanted to get some feedback via poll to gauge interest in an aluminum tank for our beloved S*R Monsters.  Many here have had their motos through the Ducati NA settlement and as we all know, the result was less than satisfying.  I’m sure some don’t mind replacing a distorted tank when it becomes difficult to access the battery or air filter.  But for an Italian bike, that seems like a shortcut in need of a better and more permanent solution.

A distributor well known in Ducati circles has undertaken the manufacture of aluminum tanks for GT1000 and Sport Classic motorcycles and from what I see, the results are astonishing.  There was considerable conversation on ducati.ms about these tanks.  Not only is the tank made of aluminum which does not distort, but saves weight in comparison to the polymer OEM tanks.  The tanks are made by the same source that supplies fuel tanks to Ferrari and are manufactured in Italy.  Best of all, fit, finish and craftsmanship would be on par with our motorcycles.

The cost of the item isn’t cheap, then again the replacement OEM tank isn’t either.  We would have to confirm a group buy of 15 to get things rolling as well as confirm we are serious about this effort.  The distributor I mentioned earlier will chime into this thread with more details.

Specific pricing would likely be less expensive than the Sport Classic, GT1000 or Streetfighter tanks (which have been undertaken already).  The rough estimate for the simpler Monster tank would be closer to $2200 shipped.  There could be additional details (billet filler cap, hinge etc) .

Post your thoughts and interest.  As this company has already undertaken a few Ducatis (and is sympathetic to the situation), I’m confident we could get a group buy for a high quality tank.  They have already begun looking for an appropriate motorcycle to get dimensions etc.  Based on the timeline from the ducati.ms thread, once 15 are confirmed it seems delivery is reasonably quick.

Mods:  Feel free to move this thread where it may get more attention.

$2200, boobies included? :)

yes, interested, on 2nd tank now, caswell'd, and noticing some (slight) expansion...  [bang]

$2200 not likely in budget...  you know, until I HAVE to...

Some notes on aluminum from my time researching ethanol and lurking in Ferrari forums:

You will still want to coat the tank if you use E10/ethanol-blended fuel, particularly if your bike sits for long periods of time.  Some Ferrari collectors have had problems with the ethanol in stagnant fuel corroding the OEM aluminum tanks in their cars.  If you ride regularly and you never keep gas in it that is more than ~1 month old, you will probably never have a problem.  Issues only seem to arise when E10 is allowed to go stale.  Just something to be aware of if your monster is a sunny-Sunday toy that sits for several months in winter.

If you want ethanol-free fuel, check out www.pure-gas.org (http://).  This is what I've been doing in my Gran Canyon, which has nylon tanks that are known to swell/distort over time.  Ethanol-free is frequently more expensive (out here ethanol-free only comes in premium grade  and is $1/gal more than 87-octane E10).  To mitigate the cost, you could run regular/plus/super E10 during riding season, then do your last 2-3 fillups with ethanol-free fuel before winter storage.  The previous owner of my 900SS used 100LL avgas for winter storage in his bikes.  Smelled fantastic, though I cannot recommend the use of leaded gas in modern bikes.

I wish I had an option to gas up with ethanol-free gasoline.  via that website, my closest station is over 90 miles away.  Plus, it limits where I'd take my road trips, but your point on storage is a good one.

There's already a thread on alternate tanks.

i think the option was a steel or aluminum?

search for it on the forum.

Ducatiz was handlign the sourcing, not sure how far he got

YUP...here it is -> http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=54892.0 (http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=54892.0)

Here are the tanks and tails we have had made so far:


(http://motowheels.com/images/M55760197.jpg)
Sport1000

(http://motowheels.com/images/F79176073.jpg)
Streetfighter

(http://motowheels.com/images/F75845410.jpg)
GT1000

(http://motowheels.com/images/M60443259.jpg)
Paul Smart

These are made in Italy. They are about 1.5 - 2 lbs lighter. The tanks hold about 1/2-3/4 gallon of more fuel. Fuel cap, fuel pump mounts and mounting points are billet. They feature an aluminum internal breather. The Tanks are all hand made by the tank supplier to Ferrari. The billet pieces are made by NGR, supplier to Bimota and other companies.

Make one for an MV Agusta Brutale and I'll take it. [thumbsup]

At nearly $3,000 I'll wait for something not made by Ferraris supplier. :-X

We tested a Streetfighter tank from India.
The keycover did not fit. The side panels did not fit. It would not fit the bike. Fuel cap base leaked. Fuel pump base leaked.
I don't remember if it had a vent system in it.

Polished finish was nice if not a little wavy. The aluminum box that it came in was cool.

It was less expensive...

I think these would be closer to $2000 or $2200 when all is said and done. 

Could you elaborate on the Ferrari supplier comment?

Here are a few links to similar threads for Streetfighter and Spor tClassic aluminum tanks:

http://www.ducati.org/forums/street-fighter/47311-aluminum-streetfighter-fuel-tanks.html (http://www.ducati.org/forums/street-fighter/47311-aluminum-streetfighter-fuel-tanks.html)

This thread on ducati.ms had considerable interest (55 pages worth), and resulted in some enthusiasts setting up tanks for the GT and SC.  This seemed to happen fairly quickly and the results appear professional.  Tanks were helium tested for potential leaks prior to shipping.

http://www.ducati.ms/forums/77-sport-classic/150137-taking-deposits-aluminum-fuel-tanks.html (http://www.ducati.ms/forums/77-sport-classic/150137-taking-deposits-aluminum-fuel-tanks.html)

(http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e344/Motowheelscom/DucatiGT1000-fueltank-alloy-road-fine-inccap029_zps9e5110b9.jpg)

(http://img689.imageshack.us/img689/228/0114gd.jpg)

I would just have one on a shelf . . .

Read a post or two above mine.

Dang, those are beautiful.  Wish there was an aftermarket aluminum tank for my Gran Canyon.  :-\  Yeah, I only spent $3500 for the bike.  But with ADV add-ons and an aluminum tank, especially one that increased capacity, the bike would be worth $5500, so $2000-$3000 for the tanks wouldn't be that bad a deal.  Nevermind the fact resale is not my concern... I'm not getting rid of this bike until it falls apart.

Anyway... time to continue dreaming.  Maybe someday I'll learn how to TIG weld and will attempt it for myself.  Probably no fancy curves though... Mine would be angular, consisting almost entirely of flat plate sections that roughly mimic the original shape.

...and yours probably wouldn't crack.  ;D

I got a note from Italy today.

The Monster tanks would be under $2000.

How much under $2000 would depend on how many tanks were ordered and how many variations of the Monster tanks would be required.

-M

 I want one for my M1100S.

Isn't the M1100 tanks plastic with an outer painted skin?

It would be possible to make aluminum outer skins for the M696-M1100 series at a fraction of the cost of a complete aluminum tank. Of course we would need to make a few of them because of the mold costs--but is is certainly do-able. Just have to create a group buy to find out how many are interested.

-M

The only tank cover for a 696 that would be cool would be a 3/4 surround of one piece.

basically the two side panels and middle back panel as one piece.

Just to confirm th obvious...

These are not painted correct?

And would all of the ducati OEM parts (i.e. fuel filter, cap, latch, brackets, etc) fit on and in the tank correctly?

Would it be possible to order them from Italy for european customers?
Ordering from the US add 25% to the price :s

That's doable.

Aluminum tanks come unpainted.
Available in a "rough ready to paint finish" or a "fine" finish that is suitable to leave unpainted.

All OEM parts swap over.

We will have things like fuel filter, O rings as options for those that want to swap those out at the time of change over.
We will also have available some Ducati stickers in different fonts and stripes in different colors that can be cleared over or used as stencils to create some interesting "bare" aluminum effects on the tank.

-M

Yes, we had a direct ship option for the Sport Classic tanks.
The price will be about $150 less if shipped directly from Italy - but you will still have VAT to contend with.

-M

Sales outside EU should be without Italian VAT (and probably is)(if not, all US customers have overpaid)
Import to Norway is charged with 25% VAT regardless where the item comes from.

I don't need a replacement tank yet - euro gas is still available as 5% ethanol - not sure it will ever be 10 or 15% - more difficult to source enough ethanol than gas and electric cars are more interesting/popular.

Even so, I might very well be interested in an alu tank (Moto's or Ducatiz's).

Yes I would be interested in a high quality aluminium tank at $2K or under, but only if it did indeed add, say, 3 Litres (0.75 US gal) to the paltry stock fuel capacity (roughly 12.6 Litres usable on an S4RS).

With that, the mod would be worth doing for custom appeal and future-proofing, even though ethanol is not an issue where I ride ... yet.

AFAIK, the 06 and later S4Rs and S4RT have unique under-tank shapes and fuel pump mounts.

you guys really are rehashing the entire other thread about this

Outside the fact there is 1) a fabricator familiar with manufacturing fuel tanks with known quality control, 2) they have produced tanks for other Ducati motorcycles (GT, SC), and 3) some members here have also been involved with that earlier exercise, you are completely correct.

I personally think the 2 threads are worthy of being merged since they are in essence about the exact same thing...the only difference is that Martin has an offering that was not previously presented which adds value to the overall potential for a solution for all affected....if it ends up being competition, then in the free market that could provide cost benefits to the end purchaser....but I currently don't see a need for 2 threads at this juncture because this is all potential opportunity with nothing for sale yet...when the time comes, I am sure Martin will post an offering thread in the Motowheels sponsored area for members to have the info for purchasing...and when and if ducatiz's offering comes about to fruition or any other options out there ( be they Japanese Beater tanks or whatever), they can do so in their own seperated thread(s). 

actually no, because these tanks were also discussed in that HUGE thread.

Here is the deal.

Our MFG will be starting on about 40 (pre-sold) Streetfighter tanks soon which will tie him up through December. This is an experienced company that has delivered over 70 tanks and tails to us already in the last year. These were all pre-sold. Because of the small margin and high cost, we have no plans to keep any in stock.

If we want them to start on Monster tanks, we have to show interest and commitment or he will start on work on something else that will tie him up for several months. These tanks are all hand made. They can only produce 2-3 tanks per week.

There are substantial start up costs. Molds, Jigs, CNC runs of billet parts and sacrificing OEM parts - cost money. We can't pay all those upfront cost for just a handful of tanks. We will need to make about 40 tanks.

The Monsters do no use the same fuel cap bases or fuel pump bases that the other tanks use - so our minimum order quantity on those parts alone are 50 units.

This can be done, we just need people to commit. We won't take deposits for the tanks until we get enough people interested. If we show interest, we will collect the bikes needed to create the molds. After they give us a precise estimate, we will collect small deposits and collect the balance once they are ready to ship. if we don't collect enough deposits the tanks will not be made.

I'll start a list with model/year Monster information if there is enough interest.


-M

Ethanol free gas is going to be harder and harder to find in the coming years, as the refiners are basically punished if they do not use as much ethanol as possible. Trouble is they do not want to offer E15 due to engine warranty concerns, which leaves them offering E10 and also E85. Hardly anyone is using E85 and they are already blending well roughly 9.5% ethanol into the US supply, so you will see them increasing supplies of E10 to try and get to the 10% max that they can use. It sucks, but that's the way the current laws are pushing the refiners.

The aviation world is going to be moving away from leaded fuel, but for flight safety reasons they cannot run ethanol... so once that transition is made to unleaded ethanol-free avgas, you'll have an excuse to get a few flight lessons and learn how to use the pumps at the airfield.  ;)

This fuel will be compatible with aluminum tanks, and stable for long-term storage... it has to be, as many airplanes have "wet wings" (fuel stored in the skin & structure itself), and many airplanes sit for extended periods of time.

If you do that M please do it in your board.

I can move this thread there if that's easier or you can start one.

If there is enough interest, I'll start new a "pre-production group buy" list in the Motowheels section.
Does not look like it is necessary at this time.

-M

I think the interest/need is there. I believe the consumers are tired of pre-funding these projects though. Conversely I understand not wanting to drop the funds required to bankroll this yourself so we end up here...endlessly talking about it.

I agree with what you are saying.

A deposit would be far from funding it, as it would barely cover the cost of shipping a single tank.

We actually will have to bankroll it as we have to pay for the tooling and parts before they start, but we will only do it if we know all the tanks will be sold versus taking the chance that they will sit on the shelf.

-M

To bring back a slightly old topic.  Is the group buy still on?  I've looked at the motowheels site and there is still an option to buy, but is this group buy still valid? Iis the 8~10 weeks from when I put my deposit down?

I'm on my first replacement tank.  It's now expanded worse than the original it replaced.  GRRR.. This is just what I was looking for, as I was considering finding a custom builder to fabricate a steel tank for me.

Thanks!
Ed

Guess I'm late to the game???   ???

Call Motowheels directly. I'm pretty sure the group buy may still be on because the aluminum tank is still listed on their site.

did anyone actually even buy one of these? i'm interested in an aluminum tank, tail and front cowl for a 2008 S4RS, if that's any kind of possibility. i do see the tanks still available on your website (motowheels) but they don't appear to be obviously compatible with the S4RS, only the S2R and 620/695.

Good question. What ended up happening?

S4RS
http://japan.webike.net/products/21788539.html (http://japan.webike.net/products/21788539.html)

 I'm sure i posted this on here before.....
(http://i60.tinypic.com/oizxpi.jpg)

no one would make one for less than 3-3500$

It was from 'beater' in japan. Iirc it was approx 225,000 japanese yen. I had to purchase through samurider as beater don't handle orders direct anymore. There's a good 6 month wait depending how busy they are. It was well packaged and arrived undamaged. I've yet to paint it.

what a great peace of mind knowing you don't have to worry about the ethanol expansion any more.
i'll continue to drain and air out my tank every winter in hopes that it will prolong the unknown future issues resulting from years of ethanol  [thumbsdown]

New group buy opportunity is coming.

So this'll be locked.