Chapter 1
Its’ started again, like picking of a scab off a healing wound;
I can't leave it alone!
Everything was fine, for a while, then, the acquisition of the Marathon CH Racing 900 Azzalin, drew a new line in the sand, for engineering excellence. I began to look at the much-modified 888 elefant, with same eyes, as someone who was going through
“their mid-wife-crisis!”
This coupled, to the ridiculously small range fuel tank which needed re-fuelling every, 183 kilometres, made further tinkering with the 888fant thing, a “dead cert!”
You may recall the real tank was a dummy to house all the toot which Ducati fit as standard to their 4 valvers!
Long before I got the CH Racing beastie, I was mid stroke, on a deal which involved the French, a CHR replica and guilt. I had agreed to swap the 888fant for a bundle of Euros and a CH Racing replica, in return for my version of the Cagiva elefant /Ducati 888 interface!
I soothed, my heavy conscience, by acquiring another 888 engine and promising myself “the next one, would be bigger and better”.
I started with the frame and recut and rewelded throughout!
Added to this, some further wheeling and dealing found me with an official Ducati 926cc big bore kit, to which I married a 916cc crankshaft and left them all, overnight, with the new 888 Ducati engine, to get to know each other. Some months later a 955cc 8 valve engine decided to see the light, and “shacked up” with some twin banked, as in 4, injectors. As usual the inclusion of the new injectors meant the EXCLUSION of a frame part!
The fabricators built a jig and rewelded new bracing bars in pior to the frame being blasted and epoxy coated.
During all of this gestation period, a set of “actual” hand crafted Paris-Dakar aluminium rear tanks flew off, to America from Germany, before feeling euro homesick and making their way back to Good Old Blighty and into my sausage fingered mits!
Naturally the new rear tanks meant a new rear subframe assembly, to carry the weight of the new FOUR fuel tanks! The new tank arrangement gave me 16 litres on each side with 6 litres running through the middle ...all running to an in-line electric pump rather than the original Ducati in-tank arrangement which failed me previously.
This new subframe arrangement, was fabricated from 2 standard Cagiva units and welded, joined and braced to a superb standard. Here you can see the finish of the subframe compaired to the OLD main frame.
Just as these parts deals were coming together, the main deal was unravelling and the French Ministry of Transport said “NON.NON ”
They had grave concerns over the importing of such a non standard bike as the 888 fant and refused entry.
An example, which, perhaps, should have been followed by dear old “Granny Robertson” during her time with the French Resistance.
Bless her!
So, the anticipated deal, collapsed as quickly as a subprime lender!
I had the ST2 fant thing, an all singing, all dancing and working so well, it could have been the “official” Cagiva elefant for the 21st century...a REALLY agressive stanced elefant...if ever I saw one!
The joys of living on an OLD DUTCH Island.
The island scenery encompasses everything from 17th century Dutch Cottages through to a deserted and abandoned 20th century Texaco Fuel Jetty.
I also had the CH Racing Marathon 900 Azzalin thingy, not yet quite “perfect”, more “challenging”….shall we say, when it came to the handling department. But getting there.....
And then…. finally, we had the 888elefant.
Sold down the river, well, the Sienne, actually…..and sitting next to a pile of expensive aluminium bits with Ducati written on them.
What was I to do?
Next up...we shorten the swingarm......rewire with NOS 888 looms and get new rims and discs. The new discs cut the disc weight by 0.5kg per disc!
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Chapter Index
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