1974 Ducati 750SS “ Green Frame “ Specifications

The Definitive Source

The best books for researching Ducatis in general, and in particular for the 750SS, are the publications authored by Ian Falloon of Australia. Importantly, if you are an existing or prospective Green Frame owner, the limited edition book shown at center of the photo at left has greater detail and previously unpublished photos to help you verify that your bike has its original/correct parts. Contact him at: ianfalloon.com

Overall Dimensions

Length of 2230mm / 87.8 in, wheelbase of 1530mm / 60.25in, width of 650mm / 25.6in, seat height of 762mm / 30in, height to top of fairing 1050mm / 41.3in, dry weight of 180kg / 396lbs, and fuel capacity of 20 liters / 5.3gal.

The Cockpit

While the 750 SS shares some parts with the Sport and GT, many parts were unique to the model, including the Aprilia dash housing, the Smiths instrumentation, the Marzocchi triple trees, the Scarab master cylinder for the dual front disc brakes, Verlicchi grips, Tommaselli Daytona throttle, and the Aprilia light/horn switch. Original dash photo courtesy of Roy Kidney via Ian Falloon's "The Book of the Ducati 750 SS Round-case".

Motor, Carbs, Gearbox, and Performance

Kick start only, 748cc, L-twin, desmodromic valve gear-driven, overhead cam, 4-stroke, 9.6:1 compression ratio, with twin Dell’Orto 40mm “hand stamped“ carbs (the original 38 number was machined off and the number 40 stamped in its place), and a 5-speed transmission, putting out 80-85hp at 9,000rpm with a top speed of 130-135mph.

Exhaust System

The green frame had the 1974 Pescara Italy-stamped Conti pipes. Both of our bikes feature the custom, high pipe location, similar to the Imola race bikes, but we have the correct set-up to return the bikes to a stock location if desired in the future. These silencers are also available as reproductions, with only slight differences from the originals (welds, seams & mounts).

Frame, Brakes and Suspension

Unique Verlicchi "075001" prefix tubular steel frame, reportedly painted using green Ducati outboard engine paint, 38mm Marzocchi forks up front with 750SS-specific lower legs (black or polished), twin Scarab disc brakes at the front wheel with webbed rotor carriers and solid 275mm rotors, a single Lockheed disc brake with a 230mm solid rotor at the rear wheel, and Marzocchi 305mm, three-position adjustable spring shocks at the back.

The Rarest Rims in the Motorcycle World?

As noted earlier, the Ducati 750 SS’s had a number of model-specific parts that have become virtually impossible to find. At the top of the unobtanium list are the original 3.5" x 18" Borrani “5-slash” 4777 rims which were featured at both ends of the original bikes. Many of even the most original green frames are missing one or both, and they can cost several thousand dollars each, depending upon condition.

Photo credit: Ian Falloon

Bodywork and Seat

Unique green and silver painted fiberglass bodywork including a half fairing up front, Imola-style gas tank with unpainted vertical stripe for a quick view of the fuel level, one piece seat pan and rear cowling with a 750SS-unique zipper union between seat and cowl for storage. Side Covers with “750 Super Sport”, and matching painted fenders at front (two bolt only) and rear.

Electric, Switches...Other

There are way too many one-off parts in the "other" category to mention them all here, but a few that stand out are the rare wood grain Aprilia fuse box cover which some bikes were fitted with (including our Woods Bike), the old-school chromed Aprilia light/horn assembly, the wire mesh open bell mouth carb intakes, the non-choke black clutch lever, the rare JOD Duplo headlight (left), and dozens of other quirky and essentially impossible to find items for a restoration.

How Many Are Left?

After Ian Falloon definitively proved that 401 green frames were built by reviewing factory archives, the debate naturally turned to identifying how many are left. Like many bikes of the era they were raced, customized, crashed, and stolen. Frames also broke and engines were blown up and replaced with later versions. Additionally, because it was an "out of the box racer", the 750 SS experienced a higher than average rate of attrition.

Owners and marque experts generally agree that around 225 examples have survived, with only roughly 80% of those having their original factory frame and engine combination. There are even fewer completely original or mostly complete examples extant with all, or virtually all, of their correct factory components.

There are a handful of registries published online and in the various Ducati books that attempt to identify all of the known bikes but they are not updated regularly, some can include fake bikes and they generally do not represent a complete or accurate record of the surviving bikes. At this point, the most reliable 1974 750 SS registry information can be found in the Phil Schilling/Ian Falloon Registry recently published by Ian. The 225 number quoted above is derived from this registry data.

Ducati 750SS Ownership Requires Verification

As 750SS values have risen exponentially, so has the number of bad actors producing fake motorcycles. Re-stamped engine cases, fake Verlicchi frames and forged documents are a few of the ways that counterfeiters take advantage of prospective owners. Have your bike inspected and verified before purchase and consider Ian‘s authentication service to produce a report specific to your bike. He can be reached at: ianfalloon.com