It's ALIVE!!!

Post by **jcslocum** » Sat Feb 26, 2005 1:50 pm

The engine and frame were re-united last weekend. With a little bit of a cranking she fired right up and ran on the choke for a few minutes warming up. I shut it down to check for oil leaks. I traced a small leak and fixed it then started it up again. She starts and idles just fine.

I did paint the exhaust header with High Temp paint while it was off. WOW does that stuff smoke when heated up. The flat black does look good compared to the old rust color. I have no idea how long it will last tho.

I have also taken the time to paint the inside of the body work flat black. When the color was change from Red to Yellow there was some overspray and primer on the inside that always looked bad.

The old girl is now ready for another season of 2 up riding!!

mike · Post by **mike** » Sat Feb 26, 2005 6:00 pm

1) can you report back on how the exhaust paint holds up
2) can you take some pix that reveal the flat black inside the bodywork while the bodywork is on the bike? (like a front 3/4 shot))

lookin GOOD i think yellow pasos are :lick:

pompone · Post by **pompone** » Sat Feb 26, 2005 7:44 pm

Jon, your Paso is very beautiful. I was thinking to re-pint my Paso in yellow, I'm not sure of this, but your Paso inspired me. Good luck.

Post by **jcslocum** » Sat Feb 26, 2005 9:27 pm

Pompone,

The yellow / white scheme is from the Super Light. It was painted to match.

The yellow makes the bike look smaller and a little more sporting. As if the Paso isn't unique enough, the yellow really makes it POP out in the crowd. I'm the president of the local NYC Ducati club and regularly ride with 20-30 other Ducati's. The Paso always gets more attention from passerby's than any other Duc.

It's a true classic from a company that has produced many!

fasterdammit · Post by **fasterdammit** » Sun Feb 27, 2005 3:47 am

Jon -
Looks fantastic, man! Very nice indeed! Would love to see more close-up shots.

What was behind the tear-down, anything in particular?

pompone · Post by **pompone** » Sun Feb 27, 2005 12:58 pm

I'm agree with you, Jon. The Pasos are spectacular, and cause sensation everywhere. I have one pinted like a Limited version, white colour with red wheels. And I have other with fiber problems caused by a crash. I'm trying to repair it by myself and I was thinking to pint it yellow when I finish the job. Your Paso is very beautiful.

Post by **jcslocum** » Sun Feb 27, 2005 1:36 pm

fasterdammit wrote: What was behind the tear-down, anything in particular?

The trans blew up last fall. The output shaft bearing failed (behind the engine sprocket) and then more destruction occured. Luckily I was close to home and not going very fast; 40 MPH. The rear wheel locked up and almost threw me off!

This failure I blame on myself. I had adjusted the chain recently and blame the failure on that. This is a very rare failure on a Duc so there isn't another explanation. So, don't OVERTIGHTEN your chain!!! Keep it clean and lubed, leave it on the loose side. New sprockets are much cheaper than engines.

pompone · Post by **pompone** » Sun Feb 27, 2005 7:50 pm

Really¡¡¡ :ugh: I broke this bearing when I was ridding very fast, around 170 km/h. I listened a big crack, and I was very lucky because the chain didn't stop, the bike was like a neutral gear point, and I stopped without problems. An oil pool under my Paso says me that it was serious. My mechanic says the same, don,t overtighten the chain, and prove the chain tension with a person on the bike. I have this engine in a box and I want to try to repair it when I'll have time enough.

steele · Post by **steele** » Sun Feb 27, 2005 8:24 pm

That is a very nice paso they look great in yellow well done

Paul · Post by **Paul** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 11:02 am

It looks very nice. Is the saddle just the black bit with the yellow piping (with the yellow bit as a plastic cover) ? or is the saddle material black and yellow. Either way it suits the bike.

I agree that it would be nice to see some before, during and after shots of the build process. Its amazing what you learn by looking at these pictures. If you've got some can you post them ?

Thanks

Paul

Post by **jcslocum** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 3:15 pm

Paul wrote:It looks very nice. Is the saddle just the black bit with the yellow piping (with the yellow bit as a plastic cover) ? or is the saddle material black and yellow. Either way it suits the bike

The yellow portion is also part of the full seat. It's quite comfortable for the passenger. I need to have the front section reshaped slightly. After 2-3 hours it gets uncomfortable.

Overall the Paso is an excellent 2-up tourer. I have it so that my 16 year old daughter can ride with me as the 748 is a horrible 2-up moto!

I'll dig up some more pics if you are interested.

Post by **jcslocum** » Tue Mar 01, 2005 5:00 pm

Here are a few more pics

Maybe there was a misunderstanding but I didn't just build this bike. I've had it and have been using it for a few years. I had to replace the engine due to the transmission blowing up last fall.

The top pictures is of a tour that I took with my daughter and 2 other Duc riders last year. We did about 1000 miles in 3 days and the Paso had no trouble keeping up with her younger siblings.