new biker

[HereticBalloon]

Hello All,

I have had my Ducati Monster 796 (2011) for a week now, it is awesome!

I am a new biker and have little knowledge of bikes, so my first question is: with a bike like the 796 what is the best way of cleaning them, sounds simple but it is already overly dirty due to the weather and hopefully you guys have some short cuts. Second, what are your recommendations for riding in the wet? In the way of can it effect the electrics etc?

Looking forward to hereing from you,

Cheers,
Ollie

[smiffyraf1]

i use muc off you just pre wash squirt on leave for a bit then wash off removes all the road cack of mine. just be careful not to leave anything on too long as can stain the paint. never had a problem with the monster in the wet. my ss used to lose the forward cylinder until i waterproofed it.

[LouSCannon]

Welcome... fan of muc off here too, although I've seen some say it's a bit harsh I've had good results.

Modern Monsters don't seem to have to worry about the wet as much as the very old models, that said the new shapes are reaching the stage where people have had them for a few years and possible ageing gremlins may start to show... but I doubt it... best recommendation for riding in the wet is make sure there's a good brew waiting for you at your destination! :)

[don_matese]

Welcome! My monster hated riding in the wet ( 1995 model though) until I changed the original HT leads (that were arcing to the head) and all was better then! good luck and have fun!

Oh and keep the pressure washer away from the bike, use a hose and sponge/cloth instead!

[J.P]

Welcome to the club Ollie.
Worth noting that after a good clean with whatever product you use it's worth looking at spraying with something to help protect the engine against the weather. Something as simple as WD40 around all the cylinders and under the engine, or sprays like F365, AC50, they help keep the grime from attacking the paint on the engine.

[Darren69]

Welcome! My monster hated riding in the wet ( 1995 model though) until I changed the original HT leads (that were arcing to the head) and all was better then! good luck and have fun!

Oh and keep the pressure washer away from the bike, use a hose and sponge/cloth instead!

Thats good advice about the pressure washer, the previous owner of my old ss had used one and had got water in all the electrical conectors etc, caused a lot of niggly faults/breakdowns.

[jdp683]

Welcome :mand:
Like the rest of the guys are saying i use muc off and spray the engine casings/heads with WD40 once it's clean!!

[Dirty]

Welcome

I just don't ride the Monster in the wet, saves a lot of messing about and cleaning :)

[HereticBalloon]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the advice!

I have just knocked of the RH indicator on my bike after getting off, evidently a rookie error but does anyone now of a quick fix and a recommendation for the future, ie a suitable mod or anything of the sort? has anyone had this themselves?

Cheers,
Ollie

[smiffyraf1]

the whole unit or just the lens?

[HereticBalloon]

The whole unit, at the part where it attaches to the tail tidy. Will that mean I have to replace all of the tail tidy as well?

[smiffyraf1]

hmmm not sure can't have been on very well if it just 'knocked off' can you get a picture?

[smiffyraf1]

they are normal just a screw thread with wires down the middle and a nut to hold it on to whatever its fixed too

[Albie]

I am just changing mine for rizomas as 1/3 shorter in length and more solid. Watch out for front ones catching as can break the headlight casting. Dont get too much water near the wheel bearings either. Mines been good electrically over nearly 5 years and same battery never charged up manually.
Enjoy the ukmoc and the bike

[Funkatronic]

for quick tart up of , the vulcanet wipes are excellent

for more serious cleaning i prefer sdoc100 as a cleaner for most of the bike. its very effective degreaser and and more gentle than muc off . its also supposed to leave an anti corrosive film when it drives
i use Paraffin on the chain and sprox and other parts then get hit by chain lunge

if you ride in all wethers then ACF50 is great stuff as protecting the bike from moisture, but it leaves a sticky film over everything so does make the bike look filthy (albeit nice and clean and uncorroded when you wash it off)

i have found muc off can mottle/dull some plastics and also carbon parts

[HereticBalloon]

they are normal just a screw thread with wires down the middle and a nut to hold it on to whatever its fixed too

I cant upload the picture as they are two big. I have just had a look again and they are part of the tailtidy I think, sothe plastic that it was held on with just snapped, it wasnt held on with anything but the plastic.

[Dirty]

I cant upload the picture as they are two big. .

Try these http://postimage.org/ there is a resizing option. Without pics it's difficult to advise

[HereticBalloon]

Cheers Dirty, I will remember that site heres the link http://s22.postimg.org/i7cn0jnrl/1398280007833.jpg

Thanks for the help again guys.

[Dirty]

Cheers Dirty, I will remember that site heres the link http://s22.postimg.org/i7cn0jnrl/1398280007833.jpg

Thanks for the help again guys.

You're welcome. You probably went a bit too small ha ha :biggrin: but we can see the problem.

Yep, looks like the indicator is intact but the part of the tail tidy that it attached to has snapped off. No easy fix, you could try and bodge something in there for a temp repair whilst you keep an eye on ebay for a replacement tidy.

Another pic tip. Just above the text box that you type into is a little yellow square -> http://s22.postimg.org/ajqnkzmz1/yellow_mountain.jpg. If you press that then paste the link in there it will show up on your post

like this

http://s22.postimg.org/i7cn0jnrl/1398280007833.jpg

[HereticBalloon]

Dirty, thanks again for your help.

I think thats what i will do; I was planning in the future to replace the tidy anyway wth something a bit smaller and more compact, and after reading the threads I am going to have a look at the evotech eliminator, and try to sort the issue with the indicators at the same time. No doubt that if I have caught it once I wil end up doing it again.

Have you made many modifications to your bike?

Cheers,
Ollie

[Dirty]

Dirty, thanks again for your help.

I think thats what i will do; I was planning in the future to replace the tidy anyway wth something a bit smaller and more compact, and after reading the threads I am going to have a look at the evotech eliminator, and try to sort the issue with the indicators at the same time. No doubt that if I have caught it once I wil end up doing it again.

Have you made many modifications to your bike?

Cheers,
Ollie

A couple, tail chop (I made my own tail tidy, nothing on the market did what I was after), custom exhaust manifold, Mivv 'exhaust', bit of carbon here and there, raised tail, twin projector headlights, twin disc conversion, bar end mirrors, rear sets, the usual stuff :)