Ducati 750ss First time project

[Flatline]

This thing should get moving soon

Grumpyfrog is picking the UP bike Friday or Saturday and taking it to Forfar with him

A guy from a Ducati forum does a lot of electrical work on Ducati bikeS

And lives 2 streets away from Stuart!! Result

Once done I can really get this project moving

TFFT

[Flatline]

That was posponed until this weekend

Stuart should be picking it up Sunday afternoon

hahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahhahahahahhahahahahahahhahahahahahhahahahahahahhahahahahhahahahahahhahahahahah.....pheew

Feel better now

[Flatline]

So, the electrics have been done

Stuart has collected the bike and put it in storage as I am away on holiday until mid August

Let the fun begin

May be able to take it to Wales for the meeting

[Flatline]

Bought a second tank as the one I have is dented

Opens it up and its damaged so a claim is going in at the moment

Been working on the first tank making some adjustments to the shape

Used filler on the front part but foam on the rear part to get and idea of what it will look like

The original shape



Filled, less of an angular shape





The front

Again, makes it less angular

[VTRDark]

What did you fill it with, a catapult I hope the filler has adhered well to the surface. Filler in deep bits like that can break away. Best to use fibreglass for the bulk of it and then fill on top of that to smooth things off.

I do like the shape though. It gives it more of a classic look rather than the curved modern lines.

(:-})

[marravtr]

What did you fill it with, a catapult

(:-})

LMFAO! was thinking the same, which reminds me must get my pebble dashing finished at the wkend!

but seriously its coming along nicely, i love this project roll on winter when i can pic up a bargain and av a go me'sen

[Miztaziggy]

Lol...

But seriously, you probably already know this Flatty, but filler on top of plastics or tanks will eventually crack and or come off if you put it on in thick layers.

The guy that repaired my bike fairings said that cheap repair shops will stick it back together then use filler and sand down, but after time, it'll all come off. He said the only way to do it properly was to weld in pieces of metal mesh into the plastic to hold it, build up any sections as required with fibre glass, then use a tiny amount of filler just to give a smooth finish.

Not sure how you do it on a tank since it's metal, but I would suspect that you will need to drill holes in the outer case and form the shape with fibre glass, pushed into the holes to help it bond onto the tank. Only problem is fibre glass is a cnut to work with though in my experience. The resin is so sticky and the fibres get everywhere.

[Flatline]

Thanks guys

This is a mock up at the moment

Now that I am happy that the shape is better I can sort out the better way of doing the job

Thanks for the tips

[VTRDark]

Not sure how you do it on a tank since it's metal

Some spot welds would work well so there are some dimples for the product to adhere and get a better grip. Mesh is better where one has great big gaping holes or pieces of bodywork missing, use it to bridge with. The only benefit I could see in this case would be to save on fibreglass or filler. The problem then is that your creating an airspace which could suffer with pressure differentials which could cause problems. The two pack fibreglass is not to bad to work with but the sheet stuff is, well...sheet messy and horrible.

(:-})

[Flatline]

I had thought I would cut the foam down and fibreglass over it, sand it down and use a bit of filler, just like I did with the seat

[lumpyv]

I liked the first shape?

no I really did, praps its because it was painted

[Flatline]

Should be getting the bike back next Friday

Grumpyfrog should be delivering it at lunch time

Looking forward to getting it finished and make a start on the next one

Perhaps a K series Bmw cafe racer

[Darknomad]

just found this thread good stuff

[Shauned71]

If it was me trying to change the shape of the Ducati tank to something like the one you have been working on, I would tack thin sheet metal in there to get the rough shape and then go over with fibre glass and finish with filler. The metal will give more strength but at the same time will be lighter than filling alone.

[Flatline]

Thanks for that