Upgrade suspension on 899 or upgrade to 1299

Steve B said:

Racetech - the spring you're looking for is: FRSP S3827100.

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Thanks for that, just emailed the Australian outlet to see if they have them. Since I posted yesterday I contacted my dealer (we have only one Ducati dealer in Perth) and am waiting to hear back if they have them also. But I am not confident.

Buliwyf said:

Bitubo fork cartridges are about $1500. Rear shock complete is about $1000. So don't feel bad about trying different springs and spending a little money on the stock stuff. It's a pretty big bit of $$$ to get to the next level.

BellissiMoto - Bitubo Front Suspension

I'd play with the stock stuff for a while, then upgrade later. I'm a bit heavy as well. I'm not upgrading anything until I lose the weight. If the 1199 wasn'r so designed to be an S model, I would have bought the base and just upgraded the suspension. The Bitubo stuff works really well on our Suzuki's, but I've never sampled it on a Ducati.

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Looks really nice! Yes, I agree on just springs for now. I have spent enough money already my wife tells me. But if they are not the answer, then these just maybe. I didn't want the 1199 and was told by my wife i couldn't afford the S. But actually the 899 is the bike I would prefer once these springs are sorted. Thanks.

I can offer You piston upgrade set for the front fork from Matris, add stiffer springs like 1kg or 1,05 and You will be just fine.
My set is for sale in classfields

Chudas1199 said:

I can offer You piston upgrade set for the front fork from Matris, add stiffer springs like 1kg or 1,05 and You will be just fine.
My set is for sale in classfields

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So I looked into the piston upgrades and considered it, but was waiting to hear from the shop about springs. He quoted me me on the piston upgrade as well. Basically, this being Australia, no matter whether I buy from you and get the rest from him, it comes out fairly expensive. The price he quoted me here was $850 , which then makes the cartridge kit from Bitubo look like the better option. I contacted the Ducati dealer and asked about it, and was told the springs are rated for 75kgs to 120kgs. They do not carry other spring rates at all here. So now I emailed the head office here to ask why I have to spend my money and no way are those springs covering that weight difference. A test ride is not going to tell you anything, unless they let you work on the bike! My 996 never had this issue, so I was caught off guard a little. I love the bike, but this is a real issue

Rumor has it, there's the 899 S version being announced, but supposedly it will be bumped to the 950-ish range. Keep your eyes/ears peeled for their next show and just wait till then to decide.

Sprinkles said:

Rumor has it, there's the 899 S version being announced, but supposedly it will be bumped to the 950-ish range. Keep your eyes/ears peeled for their next show and just wait till then to decide.

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I have an 899 that is two months old, so too late for me. I had an OPC Opel Astra car for 11 months and lost big on the change over, so used up that move as far as my wife is concerned. No, I am stuck with my bike, which I am happy about. My only complaint is the springs in the front fork. Oh, and the foot pegs, but other than that I love the bike, and it grows on me each time I ride it.

This bike really feels good with Ohlins TTX32 and NIX30 inserts. It is worth the money to try that.

mtb said:

This bike really feels good with Ohlins TTX32 and NIX30 inserts. It is worth the money to try that.

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I ordered Bitubo cartridges and complete rear Bitubo shock. The stock rear seems ok to me, but I figured if I buy the front it will not feel right on the rear as these things are usually the way, and then more time wasted.
So while I was there ordering, may as well sort it all out in one go. I ordered the Bitubo steering damper a week ago as well. I plan to ride this particular bike mostly on the track.
I contacted Ducati Australia to ask why they might not offer other spring rates on their bikes, at least the superbikes.
Cant do this on mass produced, so accommodate 75kg to 85kg riders.Yada Yada Yada. They referred me to the owners manual on the settings, of which I had already explained to them they were a turn back form full hard.

Interestingly, the local Ducati dealer told me even a 120kg rider is in the range of the stock spring.

I went on the explain to them, that I bought the bike solely based on my 996 experience, and if I was new to the brand I would have spent at least a couple of weeks online with reviews, forums etc, as I do with most major purchases. To not carry a limited range of options to suit a broad range of riders might be costing them sales since we all talk to each other and give our opinions online like never before.
At the very least, point the customer in the right direction to a source of OEM Showa springs to suit.
I started my own watch brand, a tiny affair to be true, but customer service has never been more important than it is today, and I have most sales based off that fact.
Ducati is a great brand, but they are a price above most other offerings, and do not sell well here. Perhaps going that extra mile would change that to some degree.

A heavy rider can be in the OK factory setpoint range.

But a normally stiff feeling Ducati will feel a hair more sloppy like a softly sprung Honda or Kawasaki. So it'll work, just not as well as the proper spring for said rider.

I had to increase rear ride ht. to get the feel I wanted. I need to lose weight, and get a stiffer spring.

Buliwyf said:

A heavy rider can be in the OK factory setpoint range.

But a normally stiff feeling Ducati will feel a hair more sloppy like a softly sprung Honda or Kawasaki. So it'll work, just not as well as the proper spring for said rider.

I had to increase rear ride ht. to get the feel I wanted. I need to lose weight, and get a stiffer spring.

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I did the same thing, but you're right, working on losing weight at the moment, currently down 15 kgs and another 15 to go would get me back to my playing weight, might be able to move about on the bike a little easier as well.

Ended up with this. So while this will work (half way there with a quick set up) I think I have found a small issue that might also contribute somewhat to the perception that the stock suspension is rubbish.
The initial brake grab forces the bike to dive quite hard. The brakes themselves seem a little average to me as has been pointed out, but I am now going to change my pads to less initial grab then more progressive bite. Giving this some thought, it appears (to me at least) to be a fair bit of the dive problem with the Showa forks. Still would not fix the issue entirely for me as I am soft in the middle

Get a flat rate linkage too....that helps a lot

BROsiah said:

Get a flat rate linkage too....that helps a lot

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I need to read more on that subject, I still do not quite get it at this point. Seems it could have been on the 899, not a particularly expensive part for Ducati to include on the bike.