Let's see those bikes

Done

 

This one's just under 6k miles for just under 7k, near perfect, and close to me. Akrapovic exhaust, S touring model.

The wife approved this model. Although I like silver or white best.

Although, I still want the 1098/1198. Those are decently priced without going to panigale price hike. I just don't know if I'm at the point in my life where I want any sort of a "touring" bike.

 

You need to ride one. It doesn’t feel like a touring bike. If you wanna ride it like a sporty, it’ll serve you just fine. Honest!
If you find one without the rear top case and think you could use it, they are very hard to find. My wife and I can fit both our helmets and gloves in it. She will be very comfy riding w you. That top case gives lots of support for the shenanigans. The different riding modes really change the attitude of the bike as advertised. There’s a semi-active suspension ecu for an upgrade if you wanna get crazy. Adjusts comp/rebound on the fly. The harder you push, the firmer it gets. My friend got one for his.

So really pay attn to the service records of the ‘10’s and early ‘11’s. Some got a corrosive coolant that didn’t play well with the heads. It was caught early and recalls were done, just nice to know. Also, tanks were replaced due to the southern and hot climates which had swell issues. Your local dealer can tell you what recalls were completed if you provide a vin. They won’t give you regular service records (desmo/belts) unless they were the ones that worked on that bike. I can help you with the rear brake issue. They are difficult to get bled correctly (as are a bunch of Ducati’s) due to the inverted rear caliper with bleed nipple at the bottom.

 

Corse Superbikes, the Ducati, and Suzuki dealer used to be 2 towns to the north of me, not even 10 miles away. They closed that location though a few years back. Grrrr. They're still one of 2 Duc dealers in Milwaukee area, but both are more in Milwaukee than I prefer. I typically do all of my own service unless it's a recall or needs crazy tools, or is too difficult for non trained techs to do. Which leads to why I went with the Suzuki years ago instead of the 95 Ducati 900SS/SP I was considering. Desmo valve service. It looks like it's 15000 miles on these bills. That's good. Not the 3000 miles that the older ducs were. This write up makes it look pretty simple, as far as a "simple desmo service" is. Motorcycle Info Pages - MTS1200 Service & Maintenance > Belts & Valves

I read that the early 2010 issue with the heads was an improper spec of casting ( porosity) and that it was only on very early 2010 models and that there was a recall and most of but all done by Ducati footing the bill. Gas tank issues with oxygenated fuel, will be something I need to look into as you really can't buy non ethanol fuel here where I live. I'm sure there were factory recalls, and the sensors are just a thing. The rear brake is like that on my TLS. Mityvac to the rescue. Suspension, it sounds like the ohlins equipped ones are pretty trouble free. I've got great suspension shops/ guys around here with Road America 45 minutes to my north. Now I've read this in a few spots, but I've heard the shifter is not that good on these bikes and they feel clunky and give false neutrals. I'm used to my buttery smooth Suzuki shifter. The one time I had issues with shifting my Suzuki was due to the output that bearing/ first year bike issues.

I'll keep researching.... That black 2010 I posted with the top case looks enticing.

 

Absolutely no doubt about it. If you're used to a Japanese trans, the Italian will feel be notchy. They require a stronger foot. Learn that and your fine, get lazy and you'll find false neutrals. I found that one of those rubber shift lever covers (for those that like to ride with sneakers) helped me. Whatever works IMO. The tank issue and my take, if it were going to be a problem, it would have reared its ugly head by now. Chance are it's had the recall done. They actually popped the tank cover bolts when it swelled enough. Eth has been in the US for a while, so..
Check out this guys entire series. I started with #4 to show you the special tool for timing cams.

 

A clunky shifter would be a non starter for me...I hate that... guess that comes from growing up on Honda's...although they had some that were better than others too...

 

Thanks!!

 

I get that! It's that elusive word balance that always makes it hard to do the miles we'd really like to do. I find owning two bikes decreases tire wear, and I do a pretty good job of ignoring the increased expenses.

 

I had a Suzuki back in 2008, bought brand new. Good thing it had a heel shift because I had to stomp on that sucker to get from 1st to 2nd (and at other times, to other gears). Had a problem getting from 2nd back down to 1st without stopping in neutral too. Once dropped the bike on a hill because I thought I was in first and gave it gas, pulled up my feet and fell over. I can laugh at the image in my mind now, but wasn't laughing at the time. Fortunately there happened to be a lady in a car behind me who helped me pick up the bike (steep hill front to back and crowned hard).

I'm sure they have improved the shifter by now, but I've never had those issues on the two bikes of a different brand in the past 7 years.

 

They were just trying to emulate the Harley clunkiness. Lol All other non Harley type Suzuki's shift like buttah! They probably shift the heat of all of the Japanese brands.

 

Yeah, I'd have to test ride one.

 

The BMW I rode shifted very well.

 

They failed miserably - at least when my HD's clunk, they are in the gear they are supposed to be in, and without having to stomp the sh*t out of the shifter

 

This thread needs moar pics!!


Finally found a left side oe fairing. Guy shipped it from the UK! Only difference is the decal, and I have one of those in the mail.

 

The ones from South Africa say "Super Chicken". Lol

Stickers are cheap and easy

 

What model was that?

 

C50 - not a sportbike, a cruiser.

 

Musta been one of them new fangled ones, mine shifts like a truck, if you don't pre load the shift lever before pulling the clutch you'll likely find a false neutral every time...it is 25 years old though with a quarter million miles on it

 

Yeah, it was a s1000r. One of the inline 4s. My suzuki is 21 yrs old and still shifts like buttah, although 250k is probably not super likely. Now I've ridden much older Japanese bikes that are now about 40 yrs old and they still shift great.

The Germans are funny with some things. Sometimes even when they know they are wrong, they'll instead it's the right way to do it. Then when they change and emulate how other non teutonic machines are made, they just zip their mouths.

 

Odd, because my cousin has an m50, a Suzuki cruiser bike with the same engine and about the same vintage as yours, and it shifted pretty nicely. If you look on forums, you'll see the c50 has a few shifting issues. There's probably bent shift forks or similar issues.