What do riders think of the Ducati Desert Sled Scrambler as a mid range RTW Adventure Dual Sport travel bike.

We see several OEM's coming out with mid range ADV bikes:
Yamaha T-7, KTM parallel twin (700cc or 800cc P twin), Honda CB500X kit, possible upgrade of BMW F800 and maybe a few more.

The 800cc Ducati Desert Sled is priced at $11.400 base price, probably about
$13K usd out the door. Cheaper than the BMW's and KTM's but not much less than the new Honda Africa Twin.

Ducati claim several upgrades for the Desert Sled Scrambler over the other
5 Scrambler models. Frame has been upgraded, "better" suspension and a few other things you can read about in magazine reviews.

The reviews are good so far.

At 456 lbs. the Desert Sled is about 20 lbs. heavier than the standard Scramblers. A bit heavy, IMHO.

But does this bike have the potential to be transformed into a decent travel bike ?? or would we be better off buying a cheap, used standard bike from the 1980's and modifying that for travel?

Can you think of any reason at all to spend $13K usd on this bike?

In many ways I like the bike ... it's very spartan, quite simple without all the electronic gadgets we now wee on SO MANY bikes. It's very basic, no extra clutter or crap on this bike. But of course it's still got F.I. and ABS.

This bike looks like a One Up Only bike. Looks a bit tight for carrying a pillion.

Any thoughts on this?

If it has demonic valves the second service is supposed to include them and you need a setting jig. Ducati will accept a kidney and first born child in lieu of an arm and a leg, but I doubt your average Bullet-Wallah will have the right sized hammer.

There is also the same issue I had with my Guzzi, the parts department assume you can just drive the Lambo or get your maid to pick up your laundry while they find the right bit.

I'm not convinced.

Andy

Reports suggest better reliability and less service required on these older Air Cooled, 2 valve twins. I rode a Scrambler for two weeks (loaner bike while my HyperStrada was waiting for parts!) .

I really hated that Scrambler and am shocked it's Ducati's best seller! There are four or five versions of Scramblers. The one I got was very very LOW ... and at only 5'6" we're talking TOO LOW for many rides.

The Seat and Suspension were some of the worst I've sampled on a modern bike.

But the bike WAS easy to ride and perfect for new riders ... and shorter folk.
Power was mild but OK ... and for travel you don't need 150 HP. (this bike probably has around 65 at rear wheel)

I guess the price is going to put most serious travelers off ... and I don't blame them. New bikes are meant to be a serious STEP UP, this Desert Sled does not really do that, IMHO.

No one is thinking seriously about weight reductions ... and even some of the 250 dual sport bikes are overly heavy.

That said, I'm buying a used WR250R at some point. I've tested the bike twice and really like it ... (well, for MOST riding I do) It will not be great for high speed, big distance travel. But will be easier to manage off road over my current Suzuki DR650. The DR650 has been a stellar bike ... and I'm keeping it. Hoping the WR250R is as stunningly reliable as the DR650 has been over 60K miles.

But that DR is hard to pick up now and a bit of a Pig in more technical off road situations. My off road riding skills are no longer what they were.

Here's the thing with the Ducati Scramblers ... here in San Fran Bay Area, the Scrambler's have been big sales leaders for Ducati. My feeling is the HEAT for this bike will moderate to a mild simmer soon ... the dealer ships will be crowded with leftover Scrambles they cannot sell ... at any price.

Yamaha and BMW could also get burned once a "Scrambler" down turn happens and the Hipsters move on to the "next big thing".

Well - a lot depends on size (inseam / height) of the rider, had both Scrambler versions as weekend loaners (Icon / Desert Sled) on two occasions. Both felt rather small (DS more comfortable), similar to changing from my MTS-PP to our custom Honda Z50JZ "Monkey Bike" in some ways. Personally, the Scrambler bikes are 'cafe racer' weekend, city - coffeshop machines in my view - as always, opinions might vary ~ just sayin'......

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Agreed, here in San Francisco we see quite a few around. We have LOTS of cafe's! They are small bikes... and very low. Perfect for a lot of new riders, but for me, not the ideal Adventure Travel bike.

Love your big Ducati MS Pike's Peak. I own a HyperStrada (currently under construction, cam bearing seized, ruined front cylinder $$$) I love that bike.

How did you get hold of that Ducati in China?

I tested the first year Multi 1200. Not a fan on our tight, twisty and bumpy roads, but loved it on fast, smooth sport touring roads at over 100 MPH. But in the end, too tall, too heavy for me. My Hyper feels like a bicycle by comparison.

If I owned that Multi, I would not have my license long. On the Hyper I also have watch it ... but it's not fast, but unlike the Multi, eats up bumpy tight roads around here. (suspension done both ends ...way better than stock )

Mate, every well know motorcycle brand is in China now but as we say "You want to Play - You have to Pay" due to very high motor-vehicle import tax and extremely costly license plates and registrations around some China municipalities, provinces and cities....

China dealerships: http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...ops-gear-72688

Well ~ the small custom Ducati Z50 Honda "Monkey Bike" was handbuild with lots of one off special parts fabricated or special order from around the world. My Ducati MTS-PP 2012 was imported legally through Ducati (China): https://www.ducatichina.cn and fully legal plate and registration (11/11/11) in Shanghai / China. Absolute fantastic bike set up to my personal specs and preferences and had great fun cruising around China. Well - all good times coming to an end and the MTS is up for sale as too many China bikes on hand in the moment, got different riding interest in future years (KTM450EXC 2016): http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...da-pikes-91871

On another note, apparently Ducati (China) launching the smaller MTS950 and looking forward to take one for a test run but not interested to own another Ducati in the "motherland" in the forseeable future.....

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR