1983 Ducati TT1 Racer

I do have a soft spot for Ducati’s it’s no secret. Making this build all the more exciting to get into and learn about. Greg had reached out about his TT1 dream build. A specially made Chromoly frame, fitted to a worked 1000cc Oil cooled 2 valve engine, wrapped in the Iconic TT1 race fairings. He had my interest.

Greg is a life long racer, and a builder in his own right. With his bikes being featured in Magazines since the 90’s. We found common ground in our love for all things motorcycles, and the variation in styles and types we resonate with.

The TT1 + TT2 effectively wrote the blueprint for the sports and racing ducati’s that followed it. Built around the legendary belt-driven Pantah L-twin engine, a bare-bones, lightweight trellis frame that used the motor as a stressed member. Weighing next to nothing and handling like they were glued to the tarmac, these purpose-built race bikes dominated the Formula 2 circuits. They proved you didn't need massive, brute-force horsepower to win races if your chassis and geometry were dialed in perfectly. For us builders, the TT series remains the ultimate masterclass in stripping a motorcycle down to exactly what it needs to go fast, and absolutely nothing more.

The Idea was to have a streetable race replica bike based around the TT1. The project was started by sourcing a Sports Motorcycles (NZ) chromoly frame, Monster 3 spoke wheels, late model 900SS swing arm, and some period correct Marzocchi M1R forks. The build stalled for a while as the ingredients were there but needed some serious work to all work together. Which is where we have stepped in to finish this creation off.

We started by getting as much of this picture together as possible. The new TT1 replica tank was just finished from Coopertec Composites with a short sump that allowed us a bit more room to fit the 41mm FCR carbs on the interposed heads. The Engine was freshly rebuilt by Ron Young with 12:1 pistons, Hot cams, lightened and balanced crank and a fresh dry clutch. With these components fitted to the chassis we could start making the custom intakes for the carbs.

Starting by mounting the carbs together, correctly spaced and fixed on an isolated bracket to the frame, we’ve cut out some manifold plates on our arcdroid plasma cutter and fabricated some custom intake’s to allow both carbs intakes to face forward and have cool air delivered to the DNA pod filters as the bike cuts through the air. The intakes are a little longer than I would like, however with the set up we had, this was by far the best option. The added bonus of this configuration is it looks epic, and as that Ducati begins to scream above 5000RPM, the intake noise echoes through the front fairing and windscreen which delivers a great sound to the rider as you tuck in.

We then started the task of mounting this race replica body kit. As it wasn’t made for this frame, engine or exhaust set up we have our work cut out for us. The front fairing needed to be raised slightly from its full race position so we could allow for the taller Aussie made Tingate offset clip ons. This allowed a sporty ride position without a complete racers tuck. We’ve fabricated custom brackets and a light weight brace that supports the windscreen + fairing linked to the head stem nut.

The single piece side fairing and belly pan was split down the center to allow for the width of the engine and exhaust clearance. We’ve custom machined aluminium mounts for the side fairing and hand made a link brace to tie the two sides together with a custom mesh grill. This braces both parts, adds some strength and will give that engine a little better air flow over the original set up.

The road lights + plate mount on the rear are also removable with 2 bolts and one plug so in a matter of minutes the bike can be track ready. Our final detail on the rear was a set of pressed sheet muffler hangers. Hand made, light weight braces that fit perfectly with this 80’s race aesthetic.

The single piece side fairing and belly pan was split down the center to allow for the width of the engine and exhaust clearance. We’ve custom machined aluminium mounts for the side fairing and hand made a link brace to tie the two sides together with a custom mesh grill. This braces both parts, adds some strength and will give that engine a little better air flow over the original set up.

The final major part to modify was the tail and seat. Again not made for this frame. The seat box was chopped, widened and the rear of the seat moved back to give our rider more room. We’ve also included an integrated brake light cup that flush mounts one of our Orbit tail lights. Further work was needed on the rear of the frame to make housing for the battery, and electrical connections in the tail. As the race frame has a docked tail we’ve built a bolt on frame and tray that houses what’s needed behind the seat.

Up front we have stayed true to endurance racing using a Hella Rally headlight offset mounted headlight. Indicators are tucked away under the handlebar cut outs, using a set of our Omni lights to keep it as minimal as possible. Wiring and controls are taken care of by the Purpose Built Moto Black Box, and handlebar switches. The gauge is a Daytona W 90mm with analog RPM and Digital Speed read out.

I have a great video on the PBM Instagram of the first fire up, the body is raw and unpainted. We figured this way we could at least prove the concept on our custom intake and carb set up before everything was locked in for paint. The bike fired right away and ran through heat cycles and some initial tuning easily. So it was time to hand off the paint + seat to Justin from PopBang classics + Timeless Auto trim. The seat is wrapped in single piece Alcantara no seams, no details just plain and simple. Exactly what this race replica called for.

As a replica bike, the design and creativity part was done for us now. The paint scheme would be mimicked from a magazine article Greg had dropped off to us with the bike. A few different liveries were known on the TT1 and Greg’s choice was a paired back version of the red + blue design with no sponsor logos etc. This classic colour combo was custom mixed by Justin perfectly, and although he faced a lot of challenges having the paint lay down nicely on a very hard to work with fibreglass body kit the finished result is as close to perfect as you could expect.

Once assembled we have given the bike a nice run in and tune clocking up a few K’s on this bike as we worked out the kinks. Greg no doubt will futher refine the bike and give it far more of a hiding than we are game to do. The ride on this Ducati is anything but relaxing. The engine is one of the more snappy V2 engines I’ve ridden and revs up unbelievably fast. To feel at home atop the TT1 you really need to tuck in for the ride, as you do that everything starts to make sense. At 174KG wet the bike is nimble yet stable at speed. Due to the long tank and extended seat I felt small on this machine, but still it inspired confidence as long as you kept the Ducati revving above 4000RPM. The Classic styled reverse cone mufflers sound like a dream from the cockpit and as I mentioned as you start to stretch the bikes legs it delivers a beautiful induction sound through the DNA pod filters. Make sure you check out our build run down and test ride video on YouTube.

As I always do, with these odd projects we get asked to build I loved getting to know the TT1 endurance racer style set and play with how everything worked. Diving into the history behind the machine, and checking out a few race bred examples at a recent vintage racing event. I appreciate all of our customers that trust us to deliver on their dream bikes and I hope this one holds a special place in Greg’s stable.