Ducati Scrambler Customs
Following the presentation of a trio of one-off Ducati Scramblers at last year’s Motor Bike Expo in Verona, two more were unveiled at the most recent version of this annual Italian event.
Of the two new customs presented at the expo this past January, both took the Scrambler in a distinctly retro direction, but one combined “retro” with “fantasy”. What do we mean by that? Read on.
Anvil’s Hammer
Upping the off-road ante with the Scrambler was the ‘Scrambler R/T Special’ based on the 399cc Sixty2 model and produced by Anvil Motociclette.
A relatively new custom shop run by two young enthusiasts in Parma, Anvil Motociclette took inspiration from the Ducati R/T (Road and Track) Desmo 450 model from the 1970s.
“We wanted to pay homage to this glorious Ducati", stated the two customisers, "by giving it a modern twist, as if today's motocross world had lurched sideways and by bringing some of the styling traits of the Seventies into the present day.”
Those traits include an original R/T fuel tank modified to fit the modern Scrambler frame, new front forks and a twin-shock rear end on a custom swingarm.
These are the most obvious deviations from stock, but there are also dirt bike handlebars and a chunky old-school seat trimmed in leather. The plastic shrouds have been ditched, along with the headlight, mirrors, factory pegs and pedals. Dirt bike touches continue with spoked wheels instead of the factory Sixty2’s cast alloy rims, knobby tyres, repositioned mudguards and a re-routed custom exhaust.
Adding studs to the tyres is a bit of whimsy, but still looks pretty cool. The finishing touch is the ‘53’ race number, which Anvil Motociclette said came from the number of days it took them to build this custom.
While the project appears to be a “roller” only, (you may have noticed there’s no chain attached and there are a few other missing bits and bobs), it doesn’t look at all bad and is a pretty handy effort from these two newcomers.
Punk’d Duke
The second Scrambler custom unveiled at Verona came from South Garage, a Milan-based custom house that’s only around 100km away from their compatriots in Parma. Their café racer-style take on the full-size 803cc Scrambler was called ‘Essenza’ (essence).
A café’d Scrambler is nothing new, you might say, and you’d be right, especially since a factory Scrambler Café Racer was unveiled last year alongside the Desert Sled variant. But while Essenza carries the usual café racer features like clip-on bars and a solo seat hump, South Garage have added their own distinct take on the formula.
With its solid, industrial look, exposed rivets and hand-crafted touches, there’s a distinct ‘Steampunk’ vibe about Essenza, which South Garage acknowledged in their description of this custom.
“The style of the Scrambler Essenza stems from a modern, refined 'Steam Punk' reading in which superb craftsmanship, the quest for superlative materials, tone and finish are all combined with technical solutions of no small significance.”
That all sounds a bit airy, but a look at South Garage’s creation shows that not only a lot of work, but also a high level of finish has been applied. Italian motorcycle magazine Motociclismo must have thought so, too, awarding Essenza with their ‘Best in Show’ award at the Concours d’Elegance held as part of the Verona event.
Interesting detail touches on Essenza include the aged quilted leather seat and leather-wrapped handgrips, as well as the highly polished rims, engine covers and swingarm. There’s also a chrome finish on the fuel tank panel, rear spring and mudguards, a drilled chain guard, aftermarket levers, pegs and pedals, plus an intricate hand-made exhaust system.
Also at Verona
In addition to the customs, the new Desert Sled and Café Racer variants of the Scrambler - that made their world debuts at EICMA last November – were on show at Verona, as were two new colour schemes for the Icon (Silver Ice) and Classic (Polar White).
The Scrambler ‘Land of Joy’ showcase saw the debut of some new customer and fan engagement initiatives, too, including the ‘Building the Brand’ workshop aimed at high school students and a Scrambler Virtual Reality experience. There was also ‘Scrambler Radio’ broadcasting music, interviews and news throughout the Verona event.
Ducati’s collaboration with the Volkswagen Group also saw the presentation of a VW Amarok dual cab ute stickered up with Scrambler-inspired graphics.
Away from the Land of Joy, Ducati also unveiled a one-off XDiavel built by Roland Sands and a limited edition (666 units worldwide) Diavel created in collaboration with clothing brand Diesel.
Characterised by hand-brushed stainless steel body and trim work, with visible welding and rivets, the Diavel Diesel also features a real leather saddle, bespoke LCD instrumentation, modified air intakes, red-painted Brembo brake calipers and a custom exhaust system.
The Ducati Diavel Diesel will go on sale worldwide from April. Australian delivery is TBC.
Words: Mike Ryan
Photos: Ducati Press