Giant puzzle : Ducati Scrambler

Not exactly my kind of bikes, but it's always nice to see the sum of its parts.

Welded plug

Oh no, the faux-O2 sensor plug has gone again. We're back in May 2014 and the R11S is making a rattle noise again after losing the meral-resin made center of the said plug for the third time ...

Time for a definitive fix : a weld. The plug hasn't failed since.

Inspiration

Some inspirational pics from Practical Sportsbikes

Grumpy's GSX R 7/11 

A Rothman-esque VFR 750 RC24 from the classifieds

Like the Exxon Valdez stranded on a shore

Picture this : one day (way back in March from what I can remember), you just get out of your bed happy because it's one of those days where you can go to work on your motorcycle. No prim appointment, no drive-through shopping, no kid to drive around ... just green lights all the way.

So there you are, whistling in the lift on your way down to your underground parking lot, light hearted ... just to discover the unthinkable terrible truth when sliding up your garage door : your bike is laying on its side in the middle of a huge oil spill spoiling your toolboxes and other part containers ... like ... like the Exxon Valdez stranded on a shore vomiting its brent over local animals.

I think it took me almost 2 full minutes staring at the scene to realize what was in front of me that morning. The R11S had escaped from its stand overnight and fallen hard on the ground breaking the left engine cover open and letting 3 liters of rather fresh oil pour out from a huge crack. Some days ...

A new magnesium cover from NOS and some new oil later, the bike is on its wheels and working great again, but it's without mentioning the 2 hours spent bent both knees down wiping up the supertanker slick. It's rather rude for the R11S calling it a supertanker, as it's way lighter than you'd think, but you certainly better get the idea and full picture that way.

OK, it was already damaged before the fall ...

... but now it has a huge crack

Inspiration

Back in september 2014, while looking for a new project I spotted this tweaked first gen GSXR 750 on a well-known classified site.