Ducati Monster Forum

I am lucky enough to have a few bikes. My Monster 696 was my fun bike that I used for going out on twisty rides, one track day, and in town going out. After 4 years I replaced it with a Triumph Daytona 675 (the gen 2, 2009) - what a bike! Beautiful, powerful, light, etc...despite being a more aggressive sports bike I found the suspension, especially the forks, much better.  My Daytona has an arrow exhaust and a few tasteful mods. It's been a year and I have been thinking of going back to Ducati (with maybe the only exception a Street Triple R). I miss the character of my Monster. I feel it was a better city bike and I felt more comfortable pushing it in the corners than I feel the Daytona. Maybe, I am just not good enough for the Daytona.  I have been researching a lot about the used monsters. I think I want something a little more powerful than my 696 (with 14T and Termi) was. I can't decide between the 796, 1100M or 1100 Evo. I have researched the threads that compared them new. Now, that they are used, the price difference is not as high. Are the 796 non-adjustable forks as stiff as the 696? Is the 1100M heat issue a big one? Is the 1100 engine in general not a good city engine? Is one more reliable than the other? It sounds like I would want to put a 14T in the front on all of them as their gearing is taller than the stock 696. Is the 1100 Evo's range significantly smaller than the 796? I heard the 796 is supposed to have a lighter and more economical engine than the 696. Any advice is appreciated.

I can only compare the 1100 with the Street Triple.  The bottom line - see which one I am riding!  I don't have much city traffic on my commute and suspect the clutch might get a bit heavy after a while.  Otherwise I have no issues with traffic and filter etc without issue.  The engine gets hot, but not uncomfortably so.  My Monster has Ohlin's, so no issues there!  The Street Triple was a much smoother ride but lacked soul.

I have owned M696.... traded it for M1100s.   Vary happy with that swap.  M696 was a good thing, M1100s is more of a good thing.

M1100s:
Ohlins adj. suspenders at each end.
Dual Spark.
Dry clutch.

Heat issue?  Sure with the stock exhaust it can get a little discomforting on a hot day.  Not significantly worse that M696 though (and same exhaust routing as M796).  I wouldn't even rate it as an "issue" and certainly wouldn't let that dissuade me.  

What about the 796 VS 1100? Should I just go for the 1100 since the price difference is small used? I even see some 1100 evo for a reasonable price and am just confused what I should go for. I suspect a test ride is needed

Less, is less.

Test ride 'em both.

And then buy the 1100  ;D

I read between the lines that you WANT an 1100, so that's what you should get  [Dolph]

If you insist going a few rounds of sensible thinking first:
Maintenance is very similar, lost value by years/mileage is equal, insurrance maybe a tiny bit higher than a 796 (check first), suspension better (?), clutch can be made lighter, gearing changes are available for all, joy of ownership favors the 1100 ......

go for the 1100(S), you'll only feel you're mssing the extra torque / hp by going lower. If you feel exhaust heat is an issue, you can always ceramic-coat the pipes :)

The torque of the 1100 is intoxicating. :D

The S for the suspension. Evo for a couple of extra hp.

If you get the 796 you'll always wonder "should I have gotten the 1100?" if you get the 1100 I doubt you'll ever wonder if you should've gotten the 796. And I agree drop the extra and get the S. Personally I'd pick up a used 1200S ...they're popping up now.

OK, 1200S is way over my budget. In fact, my budget is very much dictated by how much I will get for my 2009 Daytona and is likely at $8k top. The 1100S are very hard to find. I did see one recently that also had ABS, was a 2010, but $9k asking is a little too much for me right now. Besides the forks being adjustable, is the 1100 stock suspension better than the 796? Also, is driveability in the city very different for the 1100? My 696 was actually quite good with the 14T mod. When warmed up it was fine form about 2500 rpm on.

The suspension upgrade for my 696, 1198 forks with ohlins and racetech internals was night and day... suspension will always be my number 1 on bikes as power isnt truly useable on the street. The low end tq of my 944 st is great  and the 696 has more than enough power just have to use gears more. Honestly if you get a 696 with 1100s suspension that would be the best street bike to me.

I agree. But, how much did it cost to do that suspension upgrade? I feel when you have to do it yourself it is thousands of $$$. My biggest concern was the stiff fork and I wonder if that is a relatively cheap modification.

I think i paid 600 for the forks and had i not had custom triples wouldnt have needed the extra 450 for triples.

You should ride both and see what speaks to you. 796 and EVO share the same chassis. As for the fork, if you had the Showa, the Marzocchi on the 796 is better..., decent actually. Just don't expect $$$ SBK. Mine has never done anything wrong. It could be smoother. Better oil may take care of that. Hope to switch from Shell to Red Line 10W shortly to find out.  ;) The Sachs I switched out to cheap Ohlins before taking delivery. Fits both BTW. IMO both can still use a 14T too because both are geared identically..., and higher stock than a 696.

Ride them! I bought a 796 because I didn't need an 1100. As it is, the bike wants to go everywhere at 80+.  8) 796 may be a hair smoother since the "bangs" aren't as big. Hydraulic wet APTC clutch is nice on the 796 too.

As for heat, the 796 has the flapper valve under the seat which in HOT weather can get warmish, otherwise I barely notice. Haven't ridden an Evo enough to compare..., but YOU can.  :)

Yes, I should ride them to compare. That is really the only way to know. It is a little harder when done with private parties, but hopefully, if I come in full gear on my own bike they would let me do it.

That and cash.  ;D

For me, the engine is something I tend to leave pretty much alone so thats the one thing I focus on when I buy a bike. As indicated by others, the 1100 motor is just more of all the good stuff you want in a monster but what really made me select the 1100 evo was a picture from He Man's s2r1100 evo build. Linked below.

(http://kuixihe.com/gallery3/var/resizes/My%20Motorcycle/My-First-Rebuild/81.JPG?m=1346711640)

Now I cant speak for the 1100 standard motor but what I saw from the 1100 EVO was that ducati went the extra mile with the internals. All the cogs are drilled out for reduced weight and from what I've been told, the flywheel is similar to the 848.

He posted the base s2r 1000 motor guts as well and you can see the difference is night and day.

(http://kuixihe.com/gallery3/var/resizes/Trips/Move-to-Colorado/P1020650.JPG?m=1338152202)

Also, I had an ATPC clutch on my old S2R 800 and those things are rock solid reliable and the lightened clutch pull and partial slipper are just plain awesome. I had 47,000 miles on the stock clutch pack. It was so reliable that I actually questioned my ability to judge whether my clutch pack was failing (see link to post below). I've heard many stories (and a physical test ride of an m1000) of the dry clutch being grabby and a little less predictable as well as not as durable. This was one of the main negatives for me for an older 1100 dual spark.

http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=50675.0 (http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=50675.0)

Lastly, a comment about suspension. The only thing the 1100s has going for it is the front forks. I have an ohlins road and track rear on my 1100 evo and its good but not great. The rear shocks are relatively cheap. I cant attest to the ohlins forks but a simple respring on my stock marzocchis made them decent. This is only an assumption but if the shock on an 1100s is mediocre, I have a gut feeling that the forks may be better than other options but not up to what we would normally expect from the ohlins brand.

Just some things to consider. As always YMMV

Or u can apparently wait for 1200R model to come out...

OK, these big Monsters scare me...I was under the impression that it's strengths were simplicity and style. I think the style remained, but they are getting to be significantly more powerful, bigger, heavier. When you look at those bikes, the competition is fierce.

You have to look at the continued incorporation of technology into the new monsters.  The monster 1200 and 1200s come with traction control and abs standard.  Great for street or track use to prevent that costly low side and even costlier high side. 

These bikes also do not feel like they weight 460 lbs.  They are very well balanced and the geometry allows these bikes to be very flickable. 

I was going to buy a 1200s and I ended up buying a S4RS.  Huge difference!  The power delivery of the 1200s was intoxicating and it handled like it was on rails.  I guess i'm more old school and wanted the character of the 998 Testastretta and dry clutch. It spoke to me- right on Curmudgeon   

test ride at dealerships not private party.  Dealers have insurance  [thumbsup]

I don't doubt the 1200 and 821 are better bikes. They also cost a lot more than the used bikes I am looking for. What I was trying to say is that when you are looking at a 1200, you also can compare to a Tuono, Speed Triple, Superduke, etc....all of which have some character as well.

My Daytona 675 is better in many ways compared to my old 696, but I miss the simplicity and character of my old Monster. I have researched a lot about the S2R1000, 796 and 1100 (base, evo and S). What is left is for me to try them and to manage successfully to sell my Daytona. I can get an S2R1000 for significantly less than the other two since it is older and will have more miles. My understanding is that the handling and riding position is slightly different and the newer Monsters are lighter as well.

I'm not saying the 1200 and 1200s are better bikes.  I'm just saying the tech incorporated in these new bikes allows a street rider to put an insane amount of power down safely and stop quicker due to the tech gear.

I know nothing about any other naked bike out there, so I will be no help there.   

S2r1000 is a GREAT bike for the money and I pretty sure the ergos are the same as the s4r.   


But I have to say the new 1200 had an extremely comfortable riding position and i'm pretty sure they are the heaviest monster ever made.  They also start @ $13,500 new and the S starts @ $16,000.  You can find a really good used S4R or S2R under 7K that someone sunk thousands of dollars in mods into. Just my 2 cents

Yes, and that is why the dilemmas ;-)
Trying to compare an s2r1000 to a Monster 1100. At the moment I have to see if I get my asking price of $5800 for my Daytona. My goal is not to add more than $1000 to it. It's easy to find 696's in that range, occasionally a 796, rarely 1100. For an 1100S or EVO I would need to add at least $2k more. I have not yet decided on how much really I want to spend and since this will be my fun/sunday ride bike I would like to make sure I maximize the fun part ;-)

You have hit the nail on the head with one of the big reasons my:

Buell S3T (100 rwhp), Guzzi Breva 1100, and BMW R1100RS are all gone and the current fleet exists of:

M696
Guzzi V7
HD XL1200Lr

The related other half of the puzzle is that it can be more fun to ride a slow bike fast than a fast bike slow and I can push all of the current fleet more (relatively speaking) than the listed departed.

As such, if given your list, I'd get the 796.

There is just something cool about doing more with less.

YMMV, so pick your own road and have a ball...

Ride safe!

Kev