Ducati 750SS by Kaspeed

The Ducati 750SS is one of those machines with a long history. For most Ducatisti’s it’s a desirable machine, for others, it’s an expensive machine, hard to ride and probably a little less value for money than you may expect (at that time). Whatever “they” say, it sure has something magic. And that was one of the reasons for Kaspeed to take a 2001 750SS as a base bike for their latest project. The German builders don’t need an introduction anymore (you can read more here and here). The German father and two sons showed their capabilities with their earlier builds and like the most builders, every build seems to be their next masterpiece. Just like this 750SS.

Jimmy Dressel: “You already know us, so I won’t say any more about our team our workshop. But I have to say that this bike is definitely our most sophisticated build to date.” The bike got a big fat feature earlier on our friends at Pipeburn and I don’t like to just repost things, but I like to give the guys from Kaspeed some extra exposure. Further words by Jimmy:

Even before when we acquired the bike, we knew it would be a tough task to turn this bike into a cafe racer given the wide and curvy gas tank and not really straight top frame lines. But we were up for a challenge.

Before taking the whole motorcycle apart the rear frame was extensively modified. It was tightened towards the rear end, shortened and simplified so only a single rear tube remains. Finally, the whole frame was de-tabbed. We wanted to create a seamless connection between the front and rear bodywork from the front fairing all the way to the seat cowl. Starting from the front, we found a distinct front fairing with Moto Guzzi Le Mans style, that was shaped to support the classic and racer like look. It was also adopted to a smaller front light diameter. In the middle of the bike, we cleaned the gas tank from the pad to add the needed flow. For the rear end, a hand-built seat cowl was shaped from scratch with all mold fabrication done in-house. Also, the final lay-up with carbon-fiber, Kevlar, and fiber glass was done at the workshop. A fitting single seat was made by a local upholsterer.

While completely stripping the bike, we refurbished all worn parts and integrated the new electronic components. The exhaust manifold was polished and we fitted two GP-style exhausts with custom mounts to underline the modern racer intention. We wanted to keep the paint scheme simple to let the shapes speak – the logo on the gas tank is a reminder of Ducati’s racing heritage. The paint is finished in Ferrari Rosso Fuoco (fire-red) which is a sophisticated three-layer paint. We actually do all paint work professionally in-house, since one of us is a trained automotive refinisher. The engine and frame got a new layer of paint as well. Original colors were used on the frame and wheels. A fitting dark gray metallic paint was chosen for the engine to create a little contrast.

With the reassembly of the bike, a headlight with LED parking light ring was mounted to give the front end the modern touch we were aiming for. Two modern retro gauges from Daytona were installed and Motogadget Motosign Mini motorbike warning lights in black were integrated into the upper triple tree via CNC machining. In addition, the bike got LSL levers for the Brembo brakes and Motogadget bar-end indicators. It also comes with a stainless-steel license plate mount including Motogadget mini indicators as well as a small rear light, integrated into the rear tube. The wheels are now hugged by Pirelli Diablo Strada tires. Of course, the Ducati is fully road-legal in Germany.

We also got a nice 360-degree shoot:

List of modifications:

• redesigned rear frame (thightend, shortend, simlyfied with single rear tube) de-tabbed
• distinct front fairing with Moto Guzzi Le Mans style, shaped to support the classic and racer like look
• Headlight with LED parking light ring
• Hand-built seat cowl shaped from scratch
• lay-up with carbon-fibre, kevlar and fibre glass
• seat was made by a local upholsterer
• Two modern retro gauges from Daytona
• Motogadget Motosign Mini Motorbike Warning Lights in Black integrated into the upper tripple tree via CNC machining
• LSL levers for the brembo brakes, motogadget bar-end indicators
• Daytona tachometer and speedometer and GP-style exhausts
• stainless steel license plate mount including motogadget mini indicators
• Paint is Ferrari Rosso Fuoco (fire-red) – three-layer paint
• Original color on frame, and wheels. Fitting dark grey metallic paint
• Completely stripped, all parts refurbished
• logo on the gas tank is a reminder to ducatis racing herritage
• Polished exhaust manifold
• Pirelli Diablo tires
• 2001 model – 65 HP
• Fully road-legal.