Hi, as much as I love my 2002 998 biposto I was wondering how much effort is required to convert to a single seat(mono) set up? I've noticed several tail units for sale on e bay ranging from basic non painted units priced around £100 to painted units which look fantastic priced at around £350. Is it simply a case of swapping over all the "bits". Are the original tail units still available from Ducati, unlikely I know?
Have a Quick search. From memory red998 has done some quality write ups on the detail you're seeking.
Mate, Defo worth it. This is probably the best thing you can do to these bikes to transform the look. If you can get a mint one in the right colour for about £350 then I'd go for that. I can't remember what I paid for mine but the paint alone was £300. You just need to mess about with the rear bracket a bit and job done. I replaced my steel subframe for an alloy one the other week so I don't need the spacers anymore. If you decide to go ahead with the conversion, let me know and I'll send you the spacers. Ian
Anyhow....mono seat can be fitted onto a BP subframe. You just need to adjust the spacers for the seat lock. Or...you can go the whole hog and fit a mono alloy subframe but you then lose the pillion pegs etc and it'll cost more.
You will need spacers to raise the seat lock plate to the correct height, these tend to vary bike to bike and for different types\makes of seat. A bracket for the mono seat which takes the lock plate and the rear light unit, I use the 748R type bracket, or you can use one that is often sold via eBay but is more expensive. Finally the foam triangles which sit on each air vent or side of the seat to help prevent the seat rocking. If necessary you can use a riser block at the front but a genuine seat should not require it. If you check my other posts you should see a few that refer to this conversion in a bit more detail. If you buy a seat without any rear plate attachment points then I can advise on how you can set up the seat by glassing in some threaded spacers to give the necessary attachment points.
I got an original tail unit from Ducati 2 years ago they are not cheap though.... you will also need the the seat pad as its higher at the rear than the BIP seat pad.
Simply put yes and no! Some items can be a lot less than you might expect and others seem to be way above it. Sometimes it is best to enquire about the part before you look for it second hand as you can quite often buy cheaper than some secondhand advertisers are asking. Seat parts are generally dear but if you get a good seat pad and a well made seat unit you don't always have to go with what Ducati produce\d. See what you feel you might want and take it from there. I have done a number of conversions for people over the years and a well made and well painted product can be just as good as the original mono plastic seat part. To put things into perspective I got a 748SP seat for £25 once which was scratched and damaged, a repair and a repaint and it was like new. I also got a 998RS Ilmberger kevlar race seat which cost £600 new at the time for £10 which was damaged, I repaired it to as new and It is heavier than it was, but still a lot lighter than a plastic full race seat of the time. Think laterally and you could get a bargain if you are repainting anyway. Pristine seats generally go for really good money. Don't pass up a damaged seat if it is a fraction of a good stock seat. As a final point I bought a brand new DP Aviofibre road mono seat for my 998 for £80 when they more than twice the price. Don't necessarily buy the first thing you see.
