Lucky Canadian

Please say HELLO and tell us about yourself, your bike[s] and where you are located etc...
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Kierluk
Cucciolo - the Lil Pup
Posts: 1
Joined: Sat May 12, 2018 1:49 pm

Lucky Canadian

Post by Kierluk »

So, I'm sitting with my friend of 30 years, Tom, and we're having our second beer, and he looks over and mentions that his neighbour across the back fence has an old motorcycle in his garage that he inherited a few years ago, and it's been taking up space, and he wants to be rid of it, and he knows I've worked on bikes for years, and would I be interested? He tells me all he knows is his neighbour is not a rider, and he only knows the bike is a '78, he thinks it's a 900, and it might be Italian. I start running down the names of Italian builders, and he stops me at Ducati. Now, I'm interested. The last time I sat on a Ducati was in 1978 in Calgary, but it was too steep for my budget, and I had to pass. But, I never forgot that bike. So Tom says he'll go over the next night and text me some pictures, and he does. And, sitting neglected, uncovered, dust covered, and needing a lot of TLC is a '78 Darmah.

It's missing a few things, but it's mostly there. It doesn't appear to have been running in years. The Pirellis are dried right out and cracked, the brake lines snap when I try to flex them, there's rust, and oxidation. The cast wheels were at some point replaced by what look like wheels from an SS. It's got 09839 km. on the odometer, and I'm hooked. So I called Tom and told him I'd like to buy it. The following week, I went down to London from Hamilton, met with the owner, who told me he had no service information or records, but needed the space. I had no idea what it was worth, so we agreed on $2k. Cash on the spot. We wheeled it around the block and into Tom's garage, and I'm going there this Wednesday to start the tear down. I've read the factory shop manual and pretty quickly decided that there's no way I'm taking on a bevel engine, so I've been researching my experts, and parts sources, and hoping to have it on the road next spring. At 70, I thought I was done with speed when I sold my '85 and '86 1100 Shadows and bought an '83 Aspencade, but this is too good to pass up, and I know I'll very likely never see another one available between now and my last breath, so this is it.

So, good to meet you, and I'll be back to the forum when I get started, and if you have any good advice for part sources, and hints learned from experience, let me know. Best wishes to all. And I'll try to figure out how to post the pictures.
ducadini
860 GT / GTS
Posts: 296
Joined: Sat Jul 31, 2004 9:54 am
Location: Antwerpen

Re: Lucky Canadian

Post by ducadini »

You Lucky ,euh, guy :-D :-D
Never too old to begin a relationship with a Ducati and even if it has wirewheels, with a slightly modified seat You have a comfortable bike that goes like a Ducati : fast and noisy :-D :-D

Happy to help out with owners-info and more.

ciao
ducadini
Nego i ricordi peggiori
Richiamo i migliori pensieri
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Craig in France
Paso 906
Posts: 972
Joined: Tue Mar 23, 2004 3:58 pm
Location: Montpellier, France

Re: Lucky Canadian

Post by Craig in France »

You are, indeed, lucky!

Congratulations, and keep us posted. If you want to get in touch with a few more North American owners, the forum at http://lists.micapeak.com/mailman/listinfo/bevelheads is a good place to start.

Ciao

Craig
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