Hello, I just got my first Duc, 03 Monster 800 Dark. The bike has been lowered for the previous owner. She says it has been only lowered in the back by the adjustment link and nothing else was done, supposedly nothing was done with the kickstand. The fork sticks up above the triple clamp about an inch. So I lifted the rear end back up, have about 5 threads sticking out on each end of the adjustment link past the locknut. Bike feels much better through a turn now. However, I cannot trust the kickstand now, it feels like the bike will fall over. Also, when folded, the kickstand sticks out quite far to the side below the footpegs, not sure if that will be an issue when leaning, that would be the first item to drag. So my questions are what are- what are the standard settings for suspension height, front and back, any recommended spring preload, sag, and should I anticipate having a short looking kickstand at that point? I can post pics, if needed. Thanks for any help!
I strongly recommend downloading the service manual and the owner's manual, then, putting the bike back as close to the stock setting as possible.
(Especially with the used bike with unknown history, the one with seriously tampered suspension system. The previous owner of your bike and whoever has done that work for her (lowering the rear end with linkage rod), both are clearly clueless. )
In the owner's manual, Ducati calls it “Changing motorcycle track alignmentâ€.
It says
“Motorcycle track alignment is the results of tests carried
out under different riding conditions by our technical staff.
Modifying factory setting is a very delicate operation,
which may lead to serious damages if carried out by
unskilled people.
Before changing the standard setting, measure the
reference valueâ€
The owner's manual should tell you the limit of adjustment that can be made with this part.
“Warning
Length of linkage (2), included between the two joint
center lines (1), should not exceed XXX mm.
Do not unscrew ball joint (A) more than 5 threads or
XX mm ?
I would like to add, check the side stand mounting bolts for tightness. My bike has the Ducati 1100 multistrada engine and those bolts had backed out a bit so that the bike almost fell over when put on the stand! Especially with a used bike checking as many bolts as possible is probably a good idea!
Do what SpikeC says, a loose sidestand could cause major case damage.
You will need specs from a factory manual to set height correctly. It will give you a measurement from the top of the fork (not including cap) to the bottom of the lower triple. As far as I remember, your 800 did not come from the factory with an adjustable rear link. If I am correct, maybe the previous owner has the original link? Or get someone to measure their stock link.
Thanks everybody for responding. The previous owner says no parts were swapped, just adjusted. It is not really useful for me to speculate about the qualifications of the party who did the lowering. For what it is worth, I believe it was a dealership as this woman had all of her service done there and I think they adjusted it for her as she bought it. In any case, knowing that is not helping me now, I need to figure out what the factory settings were. That said, the owners manual that came with the bike really doesn't discuss suspension adjustments beyond a seat height which gives me no information on the balance between the front and rear height. I need to know what was the factory length of the link was and how far is the fork supposed to stick up above the triple clamp. I did download one different owner manual that covers 620,800 and 1000 which curiously has more info and says not to exceed 5 threads on the link, which is where I am at now, so I assume it is a tad higher than stock. If anyone could lead me to a place to download a service manual that would be great, so far google search didn't do it for me. Also, I am not sure what is up with the kickstand, I am trying to attach pics of the stand to see if anyone could verify it looks right,but all it does it inserts this "img/img" or something in square brackets??I am not sure if the kickstand is bent?? The bends on it look factory. The stand bolts are tight.
OEM spec is 272mm center to center on the link.
For the regular M800, not including the cap:
Top of fork leg 205mm above the top of the *bottom* triple.
That puts them ~12mm out of the top triple.
M800S, tube ~ flush with the top of the top triple.
Thanks Speeddoog, that is what I was looking for.
Upon closer examination I think the kickstand is somewhat deformed, will have to bend it back to shape.
I still would love to be able to find a service manual, if anyone knows where to download one.
Also, I would like to know what is the recommended sag setting for the shock preload.
Thanks anyone for help
Have you checked here?
http://www.pdfmotomanual.com/index.php?r=site/page&view=manuales&order=t&key=D&make=1898&lang=ENG (http://www.pdfmotomanual.com/index.php?r=site/page&view=manuales&order=t&key=D&make=1898&lang=ENG)
Thanks, unfortunatelly no service manual there either :(