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The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Who else rides a motorcycle other than me and Desmobob? If you do, let us know...
- Thread starter FliGuyRyan
- Start date
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- Oct 8, 2001
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- 12,342
The two most recognizable and distinct exhausts in motorcycling are a Ducati and a Harley. 90% of folks know the Harley sound. Excellent. Listen closely when a Ducati goes by. :thumbup:
You'll get addicted to it.....
Coop
You'll get addicted to it.....
Coop
Cutshaw
Moderator
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- Aug 15, 2004
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- 7,274
Not so much paddling anymore. I lived in Knoxville throughout my twenties and paddled whitewater kayaks about 65 days per year. Back then? A progression of a Dagger Response, Perception Pirouette, Wavesport Descente, Dagger RPM, Dagger SuperEgo, Pyranha H3 255, then a WaveSport SuperEZ.
The only whitewater boat left is the Pirouette. I still have a Dagger Apostle (17' sea kayak) and a Dagger Reflection canoe. Most of the time is spent in the sea kayak now. I did manage a solo island-hopping trip to the Apostles last August. I just transferred to Indy 4 months and probably won't be able to manage a "kitchen pass" trip this year.
Thanks for asking, bro!
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- Jun 11, 2001
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- 5,105
Who can hear the Ducati exhaust of the melodic ching-ching-ching of the dry clutch?
Paul
- Joined
- Jan 2, 2007
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- 315
I've been riding since I was about 12.1st bike was a 60s honda 150 I bought with funds earned hauling hay.the bikes that I've gone through..the Ossa trialsbike,a Wombat even an old Penton 250.Today I have sitting in the garage,a 83 FLHS.It's been a keeper & I can tune on the Shovelhead powerplant.I do not care what we ride as long as we ride.
Good Thread,It has brought back
forgotten memories(for me)
Jimmo
Good Thread,It has brought back
forgotten memories(for me)
Jimmo
- Joined
- May 5, 2003
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- 2,493
Nice bike Bob
I've been riding for close to 30 years. My current rides are a 1989 FZR400 and a 1995 Ducati 900SS/SP (#673). The Duc gets most of the miles each year.....so far I've put about 7,000 on her this year.
Ahhh... what a beauty!
Mine is #866, so yours is a bit senior.... Who would guess that two of the '95 SPs are represented here on BladeForums? Small world....
(By the way... I asked my insurance man to give me a quote on insuring a new 1098 Superbike. I can't resist the darn thing much longer! I'll keep the SP even if I buy one.)
Stay sharp,
desmobob
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- May 5, 2003
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- 2,493
Who can hear the Ducati exhaust of the melodic ching-ching-ching of the dry clutch?
Paul
The sad truth of the matter is, most people don't realize the "clatter-rattle-ching" noise is the dry clutch and assume the valve train is about to derail....
To make matters worse, my full-floating brake rotors have a very generous amount of float and rattle loudly on the carriers each time I hit a little bump in the road. Most people in my little town think my Duck is on the verge of catastrophic spontaneous disassembly.
Stay sharp,
desmobob
I'm 24, and I've been riding for 3 years for a total of about 12,000 miles.
I learned on a beater '81 CB750, but my bike for the last 2 years has been an '05 Suzuki DR650 bought new. It's a wonderful machine - tough, simple, light, nimble, and cheap as hell. $4,600 out the door for a brand-new bike. You can't beat that deal with a stick.
It's holding up well, too, coming up on 10K miles with no problems at all.
Granted, with only 40 hp available you have to work a bit to make the most of it, and shift a lot in the curves, but that's okay.
Mods are a bigger gas tank, a jet kit and pipe, and a Buell headlight; because all of those items were terrible from the factory.
I ride it as my primary around town back-and-forth-to-work vehicle from about March to November and try to take 2 or 3 long trips every summer. The longest was from Toledo to Key West and back last summer.
It isn't happy on the freeway, but it will do 100+ bouncing off the rev limiter for hours on end - apparently with no damage. I try to stay off the freeway, it's no fun. It's great on backroads and fire roads, and I have no problem keeping up with my friends sport bikes and sport tourers as long as the road stays twisty. Once things straighten out, though, they go bye-bye. It's also not really built for two-up operation.
I didn't even want a dirtbike, I just wanted a light simple thumper. I like not having a pretty bike that I have to give a damn about, though. For example, when my bike fell over into a bunch of fire in Centralia, PA I probably would have been upset had I been riding something nice. My friends worry so much about scratching their paint or their chrome that they forget to have a good time on our adventures.
It's a glorious way to travel, and since we finished school and scattered all over the country bike trips are one of the few things that get all my friends and I back together. If there's anything better than riding the Blue Ridge Parkway in the fall with your best friends, I don't know what it is.
I learned on a beater '81 CB750, but my bike for the last 2 years has been an '05 Suzuki DR650 bought new. It's a wonderful machine - tough, simple, light, nimble, and cheap as hell. $4,600 out the door for a brand-new bike. You can't beat that deal with a stick.
It's holding up well, too, coming up on 10K miles with no problems at all.
Granted, with only 40 hp available you have to work a bit to make the most of it, and shift a lot in the curves, but that's okay.
Mods are a bigger gas tank, a jet kit and pipe, and a Buell headlight; because all of those items were terrible from the factory.
I ride it as my primary around town back-and-forth-to-work vehicle from about March to November and try to take 2 or 3 long trips every summer. The longest was from Toledo to Key West and back last summer.
It isn't happy on the freeway, but it will do 100+ bouncing off the rev limiter for hours on end - apparently with no damage. I try to stay off the freeway, it's no fun. It's great on backroads and fire roads, and I have no problem keeping up with my friends sport bikes and sport tourers as long as the road stays twisty. Once things straighten out, though, they go bye-bye. It's also not really built for two-up operation.
I didn't even want a dirtbike, I just wanted a light simple thumper. I like not having a pretty bike that I have to give a damn about, though. For example, when my bike fell over into a bunch of fire in Centralia, PA I probably would have been upset had I been riding something nice. My friends worry so much about scratching their paint or their chrome that they forget to have a good time on our adventures.
It's a glorious way to travel, and since we finished school and scattered all over the country bike trips are one of the few things that get all my friends and I back together. If there's anything better than riding the Blue Ridge Parkway in the fall with your best friends, I don't know what it is.
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Thanks Bob. Yeah, it is indeed amazing to have two SPs here. You'll have to let us know how that 1098 turns out. They are pretty nice, but I think I'd rather have an old 888 (perhaps my favorite Duc) or a Desmosedici
....not that my wallet can afford either.As for the clutch noise, I'm always getting people asking me what's wrong with my bike. They look at me like I'm crazy when I reply 'Nothing'.
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Nice bike, fishbulb!
I sold my Kawasaki KLR650 last year. I had a lot of fun with it. I had the same want as you: a good ol' thumper roadbike! Ducati made a neat single, the Supermono, but they are rare and expen$ive. I liked the Honda 500 single that was available some years ago, (FT500?) but couldn't find one around.
I added a Super Trapp aluminum racing series can and Dynojet kit/K&N intake kit to my KLR. It was a fun all-around machine but really too top-heavy for all but the most sedate off-road use. The purchase price and insurance costs made it a real value.
Unfortunately, the thing was covered with goofy graphics, had a purple seat and light green bodywork. I couldn't bear to look at it sitting in the garage next to my Duck. ;-)
Stay sharp,
desmobob
I sold my Kawasaki KLR650 last year. I had a lot of fun with it. I had the same want as you: a good ol' thumper roadbike! Ducati made a neat single, the Supermono, but they are rare and expen$ive. I liked the Honda 500 single that was available some years ago, (FT500?) but couldn't find one around.
I added a Super Trapp aluminum racing series can and Dynojet kit/K&N intake kit to my KLR. It was a fun all-around machine but really too top-heavy for all but the most sedate off-road use. The purchase price and insurance costs made it a real value.
Unfortunately, the thing was covered with goofy graphics, had a purple seat and light green bodywork. I couldn't bear to look at it sitting in the garage next to my Duck. ;-)
Stay sharp,
desmobob
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Thanks Bob. Yeah, it is indeed amazing to have two SPs here. You'll have to let us know how that 1098 turns out. They are pretty nice, but I think I'd rather have an old 888 (perhaps my favorite Duc) or a Desmosedici
As for the clutch noise, I'm always getting people asking me what's wrong with my bike. They look at me like I'm crazy when I reply 'Nothing'.
I'd also love to have an 888. My dealer was riding an 851 as his personal bike when I bought my SP. He also had a 750F1 in the shop that I REALLY should have bought instead of the SP. Every time I think about it, I could puke. :barf: I'd kill to have that bike now....
After all this talk of clutch noise, I think I'll order a ventilated, skeletonized clutch cover for my SP this week so more of that sound can get loose.
Stay sharp,
desmobob
I looked at the KLR, but the DR was just more dynamic and much better on back roads. I rode them back-to-back before I bought the DR and there was no comparison in the twisties.
I like Ducatis, and I would certainly love to have one someday. They are, in my opinon, the best sounding motor vehicle on the planet. A symphony in motion. And rather nice to look at, to boot.
I almost bought a small Monster a while back. But right now I can only have one bike, and this Gonzo Suzuki is it.
I like Ducatis, and I would certainly love to have one someday. They are, in my opinon, the best sounding motor vehicle on the planet. A symphony in motion. And rather nice to look at, to boot.
I almost bought a small Monster a while back. But right now I can only have one bike, and this Gonzo Suzuki is it.
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Ahhhh.... The Holy Grail. Rare and sexy. Hard as hell to work on, like the 851, though.
Love the noises. An experienced ear knows, but the neophytes step away....!After all this talk of clutch noise, I think I'll order a ventilated, skeletonized clutch cover for my SP this week so more of that sound can get loose.
Buy some 1/4" I.D. diameter small bushings or even washers and space the cover out 5mm. Cheap, ventilated, and noisy
Coop
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I'd also love to have an 888. My dealer was riding an 851 as his personal bike when I bought my SP. He also had a 750F1 in the shop that I REALLY should have bought instead of the SP. Every time I think about it, I could puke. :barf: I'd kill to have that bike now....
After all this talk of clutch noise, I think I'll order a ventilated, skeletonized clutch cover for my SP this week so more of that sound can get loose.
Stay sharp,
desmobob
Ooooh.....a 750F1. Yeah, I can understand being upset about passing on that.
I went the partially open clutch cover route to begin with, but after I bought a 'bling-bling' pressure plate, I couldn't stand to see it even that covered up. I've been running no clutch cover for quite a while, and never had a problem.
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- 5,105
I'd also love to have an 888. My dealer was riding an 851 as his personal bike when I bought my SP. He also had a 750F1 in the shop that I REALLY should have bought instead of the SP. Every time I think about it, I could puke. :barf: I'd kill to have that bike now....
After all this talk of clutch noise, I think I'll order a ventilated, skeletonized clutch cover for my SP this week so more of that sound can get loose.
Stay sharp,
desmobob
I believe there are going to be some guys over to your house discuss the nuances of the beautiful music of the Ducati dry clutch to the awful noise of your screaming over the awful noise of bone crunching.
I think they may even revoke your Ducatista membership. Or they just might make you an offer you can't refuse/
Paul
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- Apr 1, 2001
- Messages
- 19,305
I've been riding since 1965, owned everything from bare-bones trail bikes to full blown touring machines. The list would include: Yamaha Trailmaster 80, Honda CL-350, BMW R-65, Yamaha RD-400 (3 times!), Yamaha 750 Classic.
Favorite ride? From Dover AFB, Delaware to Hurlburt Field Florida to Lackland AFB Texas to Pueblo Colorado, arriving Thanksgiving day, 1968, on my way back to SEA for a second time. Rode a Street/Trail Honda CL-350 with my B-4, duffel, awol and camera bags strapped on. Quite an adventure!
Favorite ride? From Dover AFB, Delaware to Hurlburt Field Florida to Lackland AFB Texas to Pueblo Colorado, arriving Thanksgiving day, 1968, on my way back to SEA for a second time. Rode a Street/Trail Honda CL-350 with my B-4, duffel, awol and camera bags strapped on. Quite an adventure!