Ducati Pantah
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[edit] The Pantah
When the 350 cc and 500 cc vertical twins were recognised as a marketing disaster, Taglioni went to work on the Pantah.
The Pantah was the first of the belt-driven camshaft Ducati motors.
It came onto the market in 1980 as the red and silver 500SL, with the engine using belt driven camshafts, and a plain bearing crankshaft. It had the same bore and stroke as the old 500 racers, 74 mm x 58 mm, but the head had a 60 degree included valve angle and belt driven camshafts. They were noticeably lacking in bottom end and mid range torque, but revved freely enough. The handling seemed less certain than earlier Ducati models, and the 35 mm front forks lacked rigidity.
Enthusiasts found the final gearing too tall, and the intake and exhaust restrictive. If you changed those, you had a fast bike.
In 1981 the silver 600SL became available with fairing and hydraulic clutch activation. It had an 80 mm bore and the 58 mm stroke giving 583 cc (TT2 racer used 81 mm) By 1984 the last of the 600SL bikes had MHR paint.
In 1982 the 600TL was released, and the styling was promptly panned. The TL only lasted till 1983.
In 1983 the 650SL came about because of the need to homologate the TT1 750 racer’s 61.5 mm stroke. Instead of producing a production 750, the 650SL was born with 82 mm bore and the required 61.5 mm stroke. Visually it was the same as the 600SL, but it had torque, and that was a big improvement.
Cagiva (CAstiglioni GIovanni VArese) company, founded by the Castiglioni brothers, took over Ducati Meccanica in 1985. Ducati engines promptly appeared in Cagiva motorcycles.
The 650SL continued to be produced after the Cagiva take-over, and ended production in 1986.
For the full history of the motors see Ducati Air-cooled V Twins (1970 on).
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