[albymangled]

Great post.
Your mods are coming along nicely (well done on the vinyl wrap...).
Pictures show your progress well and the embedded links to the parts are helpful.

Now if only you (and the rest of Melbourne) get cut a little slack sometime soon...

Thanks for sharing.

 

[tiltos]

Update: New handlebars, risers and instrument holder

So it's been a long time since updates! As a bit of a refresher, I'd bought a Rizoma handlebar MA009B and a simple set of risers/handlebar mounts. I'd also bought this instrument holder, but it ended up getting stuck in Germany - so I had to wait until a mate could bring it back with him to Australia (complete with two weeks in quarantine).

Now I hadn't come across this handlebar being installed on a Scrambler before, but I liked the width, did some rough calculations to see if it'd hold the controls, and it seemed good to me. I though it was similar to the Full Throttle bar, but it's actually a fair bit narrower.

Installation

Installation wasn't particularly hard, and I definitely have more confidence these days anyway. The main challenge with installing the bar is that there's a set of guiding holes in the bar to align the controls on the left, and the controls and throttle on the right (two). So these need to be drilled into the new bar. There are also some dimples at the top of the bar, but these are for alignment only.

Disassembly was pretty simple. Everything is hex keys, except the bolt holding the the handlebar mount - this is a 15mm bolt/nut combo.

To get the holes in the right spot, I loosely installed the new bar, found the optical 'top' of the bar, and then copied the measurements from the OEM bar. These measurements were mm from the end of the bar, then rotation from the 'top'. The bar was tough to drill through, but I had a couple of nice tools to help: the V-Drill guide I got off Amazon, and a clamp to help hold it (although that wasn't enough, I had to hold it as well). I taped the bar up to mark the measurements and to minimise scratching.

I ended up fucking up once - I rotated the wrong side for the clutch hole, so had to drill a second hole there. Overall pretty happy though. The levers are just where I want them, however the left controls (indicators/horn) are a bit low. Totally manageable, I just have to stretch my thumb a little to reach them.

As you can see in the photos, the reservoirs are a lot closer to the middle of the bike now. So much so that the brake sits over the instrument panel a bit. It doesn't cover important info, but still contemplating if I should get a different solution there. Aftermarket options like the Brembo master cylinders are super expensive (and overkill for what I'm trying to achieve), so I might see how much the Cafe Racer reservoir is from my Dealership at my next service.

I also got around to adding the aluminium trim for the instrument panel a couple of days later. While I got this like half price, its still probably the most overpriced part on the bike. Note to install, it required a T6 Torx.



Performance

To an observer, my posture hasn't changed much, but it definitely has a different feel. Much sportier. By default I now lean slightly forward rather than directly upright, but the main difference is the width. I've never ridden a bike with clipons, and assume that's much more dramatic, but the bike feels a lot more responsive when I want to turn. I'm still getting used to it at super slow speeds and when I'm going slow with a pillion, but I definitely like the change. It looks far superior too!

What's left?

Two main things are remaining: the seat (and accompanying side panels) and the exhaust. I ordered a Mugello seat way back in June/July, and they've been absolutely terrible to deal with. Despite numerous promises of it being finished by X date, or I'll receive a tracking code by Y date, I've seen nothing. I've given them one last chance (48 hours) to supply a tracking code, otherwise I'm cancelling the order through PayPal. I don't think I've had a worse experience with buying something before. If it comes to that, what other seats do people recommend?

The exhaust is getting installed by the dealer at my next service, which I think will be as soon as a week or two away. So at least that's good news!

 

[K1W1]

Most people just grind the pins inside the switch housings off when they are fitting new bars without holes. The pins and holes are only there to make sure all bikes leave the factory set up the same way.
If you have a late model phone with an inbuilt camera I recomend that you buy one of the new anti vibration mounts for the quad lock. There have been quite a few issues with phone cameras being destroyed on quad lock mounts. I have personally not had a problem but I figure the anti vibration mount was cheap in relation to the cost of a new phone.

Motorcycle - Vibration Dampener

The Quad Lock Vibration Dampener absorbs the vibrations from motorcycle's so you can confidently mount your smartphone to any motorcycle

www.quadlockcase.com.au

 

[tiltos]

Most people just grind the pins inside the switch housings off when they are fitting new bars without holes.

Yeah I'd read about both approaches, but thought the non-destructive approach would be better, just in case.

Thanks for the tip on the quadlock, hadn't read those reports but sounds like a good idea to get it!

 

[Yellowhead]

Most people just grind the pins inside the switch housings off when they are fitting new bars without holes. The pins and holes are only there to make sure all bikes leave the factory set up the same way.

Interesting to hear the reason for those pins and holes. Never knew that, but I think you’re right. I’ve ground the pins off on other bikes in the past, with no adverse effects...

Meanwhile, just discovered your thread @tiltos. Kudos - very informative!

 

[rob23]

Two main things are remaining: the seat (and accompanying side panels) and the exhaust. I ordered a Mugello seat way back in June/July, and they've been absolutely terrible to deal with. Despite numerous promises of it being finished by X date, or I'll receive a tracking code by Y date, I've seen nothing. I've given them one last chance (48 hours) to supply a tracking code, otherwise I'm cancelling the order through PayPal. I don't think I've had a worse experience with buying something before. If it comes to that, what other seats do people recommend?

I was afraid of that too and living to far away (Chile) and heavy tax duties policy, I went instead with the mustang seat... it should be arriving the next week.... i have also seen some pictures where apparently people have just cut the "hanging sies" of the original one and frankly im tempting to do so as well.

 

[tiltos]

After putting the pressure on them pretty hard, they put it in the post, and it should arrive today. They tried to charge me an extra A$100 because posting to Australia 'is hard from Thailand', but DHL got it into the country in three days without me paying the additional money, so I feel like they were being dodgy there.

As for a backup option, I was eyeing off the OEM "Cafe Racer Twin Seat". This is actually the seat on the new Nightshift, and can also be seen here: Ducati Scrambler Cafe Racer Twin Seater Seat

Chopping the sides off is definitely an option, but I also wanted a flatter silhouette to the bike itself, which I feel would come from a bench seat. Plenty of people here have such high praises for the Mustang seat though, so I hope you enjoy!

 

[rob23]

yes sure that seat is neat! when i saw the launch of the nightshif the first thing to come to my mind was: "that´s the seat all scramblers should have come with!!!" ....... but im not sure it works on the icon.. does it???

 

[tiltos]

My understanding is all the scramblers come with the same frame, except for the Desert Sled. For example your Mustang seat is advertised as being compatible with any of the 803s.

 

[rob23]

I just saw the post of he guy who tried it out on a DS although the description doesnt mention the DS as compatible.... i also like the increase in height... faaack the expenditure continues.... YOUR FAULT TILTOS!!! jajaja

 

[Yellowhead]

Chopping the sides off is definitely an option, but I also wanted a flatter silhouette to the bike itself, which I feel would come from a bench seat. Plenty of people here have such high praises for the Mustang seat though, so I hope you enjoy!

When the bike first came out I had mixed feelings about the seat, with those low sides, but after learning what the original Scrambler looked like I came to appreciate what the company was trying to do with the Icon (following the design cues of the original) — and now I’m okay with how the seat looks. In fact I actually like it for not looking like the seat on every other bike!