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It is common for us to write about a motorcycle with a special story, and in a way, they are all very personal. Still, this might be the most special motorcycle we have covered to date. This is a story about a man that does not compromise.

Controversial Design

Let’s start with the bike we have at hand. It started out its life as a Ducati 999; a controversial motorcycle designed by the famous Pierre Terblanche and produced in the Ducati factory from 2003 till 2006. Why was it controversial? Well, first off, Terblanche superseded Massimo Tamburini, the man that designed the magnificent Ducati 916, among others. Tamburini designed motorcycles for Cagiva, Ducati, MV Agusta and even founded Bimota. All of his designs were basically iconic. Does are some pretty big shoes to fill for Terblanche.

Terblanche had his own style, which wasn’t always liked by everyone. Despite the odd looking double stacked headlight, and sharp lines of the original 999 and its smaller displaced 749 sibling, Terblanche’s design grew a cult following. Also because the 999 was an incredibly capable sport bike, with various victories in the Superbike World Championship. Compared to today’s figures one might not be impressed with the specs. However, nearly 20 years ago, it was a totally different story. So far the history lesson.

A man from Twello

So how did this Ducati 999 end up in the workshop of the dynamic Dutch duo Moto Adonis? Well, THAT’S an interesting story! This may sound like a story you would hear in a bar. Maybe one to take with a pinch of salt. Not this one. So here goes.

A few years ago, a man from Twello, a small town in the Eastern part of the Netherlands, had a traumatic accident. As a matter of fact, it was so bad, that he lost his left lower leg. Since then, he learned how to use a prosthetic leg and moved on with his life. This man had a vivid dream. He dreamt that one day he would be able to ride a sports bike. Not any sports bike, but a Ducati 999 nonetheless. He was so focused on achieving his dream, that he purchased a 999, bought a retro styled fairing kit, and tried to build the bike he had dreamt of. There was one major issue though: his leg. No matter how you look at it, a left leg and foot is needed to control the gearbox. Despite this setback, he kept moving forward, and found the boys of Moto Adonis. Together they came up with a plan.

Shifting Gears

We’ll cut straight to the chase. To deal with the gear shifting challenge, a pneumatically actuated manual shifter was created, which allows the rider to shift gears with the push of 2 buttons on the left clip-on. To give the prosthetic leg a safe place to rest, and to keep the motorcycle in balance, a modified floorboard was created from scratch. This is what engineering is about! To make the 999 look like a million bucks, the fairing kit got customized to suit and the side panels were ditched. The tank got modified to flow with the rest of the design, which as you can see, is heavily inspired by 1970’s race bikes. The subframe had to be modified and now houses the battery.

The seat was custom made and designed to look like a horse saddle; courtesy of Miller Kustom Upholstery. Looking closer and you will see an LED taillight, which is actually of a Yamaha XSR700. A round 7” headlight adds to the classic look, as well as the round Motogadget speedo. To custom paint job really pops when you see the Ducati, with a Moto Adonis unique twist to the Italian Tri-Colori. Not red, white and green, but red, gold and blue. Ohlins suspension ensure proper tractability, and the SC Project silencers add to the audible character of the liquid cooled L-twin from Bologna. Combined with the unique, classic Ducati logo on the tank, we think this is the best looking 999 in the world!

There’s more…

There is a little bit more to this story that we would like to share with you. The original prosthetic leg had to get irreversibly modified to allow the owner to sit properly on the motorcycle. This was a bit of a problem because he only had 1 prosthetic leg, and another one would cost a fortune. Also, not one single prosthetists was willing to modify a leg for motorcycle riding. Fortunately, the guys from Moto Adonis were willing to do the modification, provided a leg was available. When word got around, another motorcycle rider with a modified motorcycle and a prosthetic leg offered a spare prosthetic leg. Legend has it that both are now riding buddies and have become close friends. Now that is a story worth telling.

Builder details:
Moto Adonis
Website
Instagram
Facebook

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Beautiful Monster

Monstrous Monster
Taking a Ducati Monster and turning it into something more monstrous is not an easy feat. Yet, the folks from Moto Adonis didn’t shy away from such a challenge. As the Dutch builders have done before, they like to do thing different from other builders. It is clear that they have their own design language, which is great! Their bikes showcase their creativity, originality, and a level of craftsmanship we don’t often get to see. Just look at some their recent build to judge for yourself.

While you are reading through this, have you ever considered having your own custom motorcycle built? Are you worried about how much work it actually is? Well, we have good news for you! Moto Adonis in the Netherlands have increased their capacity and are currently looking for new projects to take on! Make sure you go over to their website https://www.motoadonis.nl/ for more details.

Great start!
Now, it must be noted that there was already some work done on this modified 1995 Ducati Monster 900. When the bike arrived at the Moto Adonis workshop, the engine had already been treated to a big-bore kit, a custom exhaust, and was tuned for performance accordingly. So no additional work was needed to the engine, a great start! There was also some work done on the tail section and fuel tank, however, the customer wasn’t very happy with this. That’s why he visited the folks of Motor Adonis.

Unique design
First step was cutting the tank and tail section apart and modify it to their own design. They also made an aluminium front headlight fairing with a laser cut Ducati logo in the center. After these initial mods, the customer seemed very pleased with the direction the build was going. The next step was to seriously upgrade anything that could improve the handling and the looks (obviously!). An original Ducati S4R single-sided swingarm replaced the original unit. Marchesini magnesium wheels, with upgraded Brembo radial brakes, all original Ducati parts, were also added. To top things off, a set of Öhlins fully adjustable rear shock and front forks were added.

Under the skin
Some modifications were made to the suffrage to accommodate the single seat, curtesy of Miller Kustom Upholstery. The fenders and various brackets were all made in-house by Moto Adonis. To keep a clean look, the wiring needed to be reduced to an absolute minimum. For this reason the battery got relocated and a MotoGadget m.unit system was added to run all electronics. Some of the components that are connected to the m.unit are a Motoscope tiny speedometer, mo.blaze indicators, minimalistic Motone handlebar switches, and the head and tail lights. To accommodate for all of this, a completely new wiring harness was designed and built.

Factory-style
The show ain’t over until the fat lady sings, or in this case, no build is complete without a well-thought of colouring scheme. And the paint job on this Ducati Monster is something of a statement, even if we have to say so ourselves! The combination of black, gold, vintage Porsche orange and gray fits the Monster and the lines of the bodywork really well. It almost looks like a factory option.

Photo credits: Lennart Stolte

Builder details:
Moto Adonis
Website
Instagram
Facebook

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When Ducati’s 350 cc and 500 cc parallel twins could hardly be called a marketing success, their fabulous engineer Fabio Taglioni set tout to develop a replacement.
The Pantah 500 originates from the last of the GP500 racers of 1973. The Pantah and many bikes afterwards, have shown that, a twin-cylinder motorcycle can compete successfully against bikes with a four cylinder engine. This is contrary to all expectations and that’s where the greatness of Taglioni lies.

The Panthah was first introduced during the Milan Bike Show (now EICMA) in December 1979. It was quite revolutionary as it had a trellis frame, contrary to earlier Ducati motorcycles. The engine is suspended in the frame acting as a stressed member of the whole. It was the first Ducati not fitted the old bevel-gear OHC design. Instead it had belt-driven cams. That, and the trellis frame, would turn the bike into the spearhead for the brand for generations of V-twins for years to come.

Although the 500cc engine was already endowed with impressive power, Ducati decided to amp it up a bit in 1981 by introducing 600cc engines, later to be increased to 650cc and even 750cc. The single overhead camshaft was driven by toothed rubber belt and primary transmission was via Morse chain. The Pantah’s performance gloriously surpassed that of the ill-conceived 1976 parallel twins.

Madrid Calling
Enough history for today.

Whenever we get a phone call from Madrid our hearts skip a beat. More often than not Pepo Rosell manages to get us excited straight from the starting line when new build roll through the doors of his workshop.
This time was no exception. The ‘La Guapísima’ (‘The Beautiful One’) is in your face from the moment you feast your eyes on her.
There is so much beauty and excitement going on with this machine, you just want to get on it and twist the throttle South!

Irons Café Racer
We are quite familiar with this shop in Madrid, even though we are yet to set foot in the door ourselves in person.

As BikeBrewers are involved with the innovative European rental platform MotoShare also, we used this location to launch Tamarit built ‘The Gotham’ earlier this year.

This shop, which sells motorcycle clothing and accessories, is obviously run by oil-blooded motorcycle afficionados. It is clear why they commissioned their next door neighbour to come up with this magnificent machine.

Upping the ante
The donor bike used is a 1986 Ducati 600TL Pantah. A nice machine already but Pepo would not be XTR Pepo if he did not do some magic on the engine before mounting it back in the frame.

He installed a Cagiva Elefant 900 Marathon motor with high compression pistons added. The heart of the beast has ported heads a ‘SLIENT HETKIT’ ignition kit with 16 maps and a lightened fly wheel for more immediate responsiveness.

While we are on the subject of technicalities; breathing in arranged by adding two Keihin FCR 39 carburettors with DNA filters, while the exhaling is done via a two-in-one Wolfman exhaust.

A Ducabike antihooping clutch is mounted to keep the horses at the rear wheel under control, but riders may skip that part as a quickshifter is also part of the package.

And that on a 1986 machine!

More technical stuff
There is much that meets the eye when you look at this apparatus. But the list of (sometimes invisible) modifications just never stops!

As we are more about the bike and what it does to your hormone levels when riding it, we will just sum it up below. But before moving over to that, we point out the front fairing.

This is a particular piece of the bike that makes it stand out we think. It is nice and streamlined with a feel of those 70’s and 80’s dragracers we grew up with. This element is produced inhouse by XTR, while the cool paintjob is done by their friend Pintumoto.

Modifications:
(inhale deeply)

PANTAH modified frame
Engine : CAGIVA ELEFANT 900 Maraton , high comp , ported heads, SILENT HETKIT ignition kit with 16 maps , lightened flywheel,
DUCABIKE antihooping clutch , quickshift , KEIHIN FCR 39 carburators , DNA air filters.
RC racing oil radiator
Exhaust : 2 in 1 WOLFMAN.
Swingarm : CAGIVA ELEFANT 350
Rear suspension : OHLINS
REGINA gold chain
HYOSUNG GT 650 Front fork, lightened yokes, wheel ,NG rotor and brake caliper with BREMBO pads
BREMBO front brake pump with XTR regulable and foldable lever
BREMBO rear brake pump
FRENTUBO front and rear brake line
BREMBO Clutch pump with XTR regulable and foldable lever
FRENTUBO clutch line
XTR front mudguard
XTR clip-ons
RIZOMA Nex brake fluid reservoir
RAV footrests
AVIACOMPOSITI Dashboard (rev counter)
DOMINO quick open gas throttle and grips
DOMINO starter commando
FULBAT LIPO battery
4,5 x 17 inches alluminium rear rim
OSADO lenticular covers
CONTINENTAL Conti Sport Attack 4 front and rear tires.
XTR front fairing and bracket
XTR fuel tank
CNC racing fuel cap
XTR MK2 solo seat
XTR upholstery
XTR carbon fiber bellypan
PINTUMOTO painting

(…aaand exhale!)

Finish line
As usual we wish we lived in Madrid to be close to the man and his work. Searchin online we noticed a video with a very lucky lady rider hitting the throttle on this Duc!

As we understand the bike was supposed to be at the starting line of the Sultans of Sprint in Glemseck this past season. Unfortunately COVID came in between and we can only imagine what this ‘Guapísima’ would smell and sound like in real life.

We hope to meet her in the flesh one day.

Builder details:
Builder: XTR Pepo
Instagram
Photography: Ruben del Valle Producciones

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Ducati Cafe Racer
We have seen some very interesting and perfectly executed café racers here on BikeBrewers, built around Ducati’s. Sure, it is not everybody’s cup of tea, but it definitely is ours! Café racers can be defined as lightweight, powerful motorcycles, that are optimised for speed and handling rather than comfort, and for quick rides over short distances. We’ve come a long way from the original café racers that were built in the 1960s, and yet, if we look closely at the definition of a café racer, this build ticks all the boxes.

Racing Pedigree
Radical Ducati has shown us how a café racer in the 21st century looks like. Motorcycles have become more high-tech in recent years, with a plethora of software and hardware that keep the bike and rider in check. Heck, even the MotoGP and Superbikes racers can’t control their machines without the help of traction control and wheelie control. And rightfully so, with well over 200hp at 15,000 rpm, those machines are no joke. It makes sense that the motorcycles that aren’t meant for racing still incorporate some of the tech from the MotoGP and Superbikes. ABS wouldn’t have made its entrance to mainstream motorcycles if it wasn’t for the racing industry. So does this Ducati 1198s Corse; it is a race machine made suitable for street riding.

Solid Foundation
First things first, the entire body work of the 1198 had to go, except for the fuel tank. Somehow the 1198’s original aluminium fuel tank looks too good to be neglected, plus it is a race replica. All that the tank needed was a bit of sanding, some clear coat, and a racing filler cap. The front suspension is a special bit of racing spec kit too. that came from the factory on the 1198 S Corse; it’s a fully adjustable Öhlins 43mm with low friction titanium-nitride treated fork sliders. At the rear we find the venerable Öhlins TTX race shock. On top of that, the original super powerful Brembo Monoblocs were also retained. These are some of the highest spec brake callipers in the world. The same goes for the lightweight Marchesini 7-spoke forged aluminium wheels.

Lightweight
If so much got retained, what did the folks at Radical Ducati change? Let’s start at the front. The CNC’d headlight bracket is custom made out of lightweight magnesium, and it holds the classically shaped round headlight, but with a modern LED touch. The rear subframe is a custom-made aluminium unit, built to spec by Radical. Welding aluminium can be tricky, but at Radical they know their stuff and finished the rear subframe off with a beautiful rear cowl that matches perfectly with the fuel tank, creating an aggressive flow to the whole.

Desmodromic Dreams
The 1198cc Testastretta L-twin pumps out a healthy 170hp at 9750 rpm and 131 Nm (97 lb-ft) of torque at 8000 rpm. These are unique figures for a desmodromic engine, where valve closure is activated mechanically. The engine itself came with the necessary weight saving, by incorporating magnesium allow parts such as the vale covers. The already performance oriented 52-57mm exhaust system got upgraded for a set of SC Project full line exhaust system, allowing the 1198 S to better breathe. The thermal wrapping around the exhaust is supposed to lower some of the heat dispersion these bikes are notorious for. Radical added some of its trade mark touches such as transparent belt-covers, red Samco hoses for all the fluids, which blends perfectly with the red frame. The clutch cover also received a transparent treatment.

For legislation compliance purposes, a side-mounted plate holder form Lussardi Racing does the job neatly. A handmade leather seat makes the build complete. We would love to know how this Radical Ducati café racer riders, but we do have an idea of what it sounds like. With over 170hp and less than 170kg of weight, the perfect power-to-weight ratio can only mean one thing, and that is that this Ducati will go anywhere fast and in style.

Builder details:
Radical Ducati France
Website
Facebook

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When you think the Ducati Monster 1200R is extreme, then take a look at the latest creation by our friend XTR Pepo. He took brand new 1200R and created a distinctive XTR-version out of it. Nice! This one is, by a good tradition of XTR, named “Il Padrino”.

Ducati Monster 1200R Mods:

• XTR subframe.
• XTR Licence plate support.
• XTR led rear light.
• XTR led blinkers.
• Carbon fiber front mudguard.
• Ohlins fork.
• Ohlins steering damper.
• Ducati Desert Sled handlebar.
• XTR aluminum hand guard.
• XTR foldable and regulable levers.
• Ducati Scrambler front light.
• XTR light grid.
• XTR gas tank.
• XTR dirt track seat.
• XTR upholstery.
• Ducabikealuminumm CNC machined footrest and footrest support.
• Ducabike clutch cover kit.
• RC Racing wáter radiator.
• Wolfman 2 in 1 exhaust system.
• Spark Silencers.
• Ducabike alluminium wáter pump cover.
• Ducabike rear sprocket carrier.
• Regina gold chain.
• XTR carbón fiber swingarm cover.
• XTR carbón fiber chain cover.
• XTR alumium sprocket cover.
• XTR number plate.
• PINTUMOTO painting.
• Pictures : Cesar Godoy.

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Maarten has a degree in industrial design and works as concept product designer at Spark Design & Innovation. We confronted Maarten with some questions about the product.

Why did you build this bike and why this base bike?

The build of this bike started with the passion for Ducati motorcycles. After a University project with the Ducati Factory, I decided to build my own custom Ducati café racer. The name 4Nol is linked to my grandpa, it is an homage to my grandpa named Nol, who teached me how to wrench.

The project started with a Monster 900ie, with an engine that has been completely overhauled. The simplicity of this motorcycle and the “ridable power” is key! The icon Monster needed to be the base for this project.

What was your idea or vision?

The inspiration came from the 60’s café racers, these bikes that have been transformed into sleek racers build for the ride. But I decided to design a modern interpretation of those bikes. The straight line, flowing from tank into seat, is characterizing those motorcycles. So the feel of a true café racer, but the looks of a modern one.

Where did you find inspiration for the project?

The inspiration for this build and any Timmer Motorcycles build, comes from other bikes and various other sources like products, cars, and architecture around me and on Pinterest etc. After hours and hours of sketching, I found the right lines and proportions, allowing me to start clay modeling to refine the modern café racer lines in real life.

What was the total budget?

Stopped counting when I topped the budget of a brand new Ducati…

Any interesting challenges?

Challenges are part of the development of any premium custom motorcycles. But for this project specific: the entire tank and seat are designed and sculpted in a clay model and resulted in one coherent shape. Timmer Motorcycles believes the perfect balance and stance of a motorcycle can only be achieved by a full-scale clay model. The final clay model design was translated into rough 3D CAD data, making use of a 3D scanner. This acted as the starting point for the integral digital designed one-piece body. Through this process, fiberglass molds could be made in which the final body was laminated. This body strengthens the typical café racer lines and characteristics.

The overhauled 900ie engine provides smooth yet high torque power at low revs. To make this engine run as smooth as possible, an entirely new 2-1-2 exhaust manifold system was developed for the two Spark megaphone silencers. Furthermore, this 41mm wide manifold with the K&N performance filters and Dell’ Ortho carbs are contributing to this performance. The design and manufacturing of this system was a challenge on its own for make it fit as compact as possible around the engine.

After defining the position of the exhausts the CNC milled brackets were designed in-house at Timmer Motorcycles. Two smaller versions of these brackets can be seen in front of the bike in the form of headlight brackets.  At Timmer Motorcycles a lot of 3D CAD modeling, clay modeling and CNC milling are the important elements in the process of building the premium customs.

Did you got help from others or did you outsource any work?

The exhaust manifolds are developed externally. The expertise of Star Twin on exhausts and Ducati motorcycles was a key for the exhaust design.

The frame adjustments have been executed in collaboration with WiMoto. The skills and workshop of WiMoto made this a quick fix.

Along the way, I received some help from friends assisting with the sanding of the molds for example. All the elbow grease.

The tank-seat unit has been painted at TonCar, by Fred van Egmond. The devotion he puts in the paint job is unique.

What modifications are made and what parts are used?

• The entire one-piece tank-seat piece has been designed and manufactured at Timmer Motorcycles.
• The exhaust system is entirely developed for the best performance suiting the 900ie engine.
• For the air intake Dell’ Ortho PDM 40 carburetors are used with conic shaped K&N filters.
• The 4Nol is equipped with high-end Rizoma parts all over: clutch, timing belt covers, levers, clip-ons, footpegs and indicator lights.
• Full new electronic systems and Koso speedometer.
• The brackets for the exhausts are CNC milled, even so the headlight brackets. These head light brackets ae mounted on a sheet metal adapter on which the Koso speedometer is mounted as well.

What do you like the most about the bike?

The one-piece tank-seat unit is my favorite part of the 4Nol. It creates the aggressive stance and flows perfectly from the front to the rear of the bike. This is the design element, that one part, that makes this motorcycle unique.

And last but not least: how does it ride?

It rides easy and loud! The high torque at low revs makes the 4Nol a pleasure to ride with a smooth and direct control.

Follow Timmer Motorcycles:

Web | Facebook | Instagram

Photographers:

Color: Mark Kamphuis

Black/white: Mark Meisner

The post Ducati Monster Cafe Racer by Timmer Motorcycles appeared first on BikeBrewers.com.

Custom works by XTR Pepo:

• Subframe
• Suede upholstery
• Front mudguard
• Carbon fiber rear mudguard
• License plate bracket
• Carbon fiber swing arm protection
• Air filters
• Carbon fiber airbox
• Foldable and regulable levers
• LED blinkers
• CNC footrests

Other mods & parts:

• RAD 02 fuel tank
• Tsubaki gold chain
• Lightech CNC quick open gas cap
• RAD 02 Corsa Evo solo seat
• Ducati Monster fairing
• Elipsoidalfront light
• Discacciati brake rotors
• Frentubo kevlar brake lines
• Frentubo kevlar clutch
• Tamburini race oversize wáter radiator
• Monster S4R oil radiator
• 848 evo CNC machined air intakes and injector holders
• 1098 throttle body
• Ported heads
• Conversion to dry clutch with EVR antihooping clutch kit
• EVR slave piston
• Super Mario exhaust system
• SPARK megaphones
• Electrical wiring reposition
• EVR programmable ECO
• LIPO battery
• DNA oil breath filter
• Ohlins rear shock
• Pirelli Supercorsa tyres

Follow XTR Pepo

Website | Facebook | Instagram

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Just like the electric car, the electric motorcycle is becoming more and more common. We’ve featured several cool EV-projects that are close to production and more people see the benefits of the electric motorcycle. But an electric cafe racer? WTF? Of course, it was just a matter of time. But to be honest, I think that it’s going really quick now.

This machine right here, the “D-EV Project” is initiated by the owner of Ducati Thailand “Natapichat“. He’s an early adopter when it comes to EV vehicles and he is a fanatic EV-user since 2011. In this project he took a Ducati Scrambler as a base bike and put in a 33Kw engine in it with a 5.6kWh battery. This machine puts out an impressive 107Nm (right away!) and makes a top speed of 160km/h possible. The machine weighs just 165kg and has a range of over 100km. Pretty cool… for an electric motorcycle…!

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