It's no secret that here in the Bike Shed we are suckers for a booming Bolognan v-twin, at last count there eleven and half Ducatis owned by the crew, so it takes something a bit different to get us revved up. About this time last year Italian restaurant boss Marco wowed us with a copper plated Monster S4 and after 7 months of hard graft he's back with Ardita, a 2003 Ducati Supersport 1000. Although the later Ducati Supersports were far from beautiful they were underpinned by the iconic trellis frame, one of the main reasons why so many have been customised of late. Marco did the right thing and stripped the donor back to its constituent parts, meaning the frame could be tidied up and sent off for blasting and plating, a low sheen chrome in this case giving an finish somewhere between titanium and stainless steel, very nice indeed. Marco is a dab hand with the fibreglass and made all the bodywork from scratch, including the fuel tank. Intricate fuel pump plumbing proved tricky, running an external system rather than in-tank. I hope that the Veronese restaurant that Marco runs pays him well, as he seems to be a rather talented chap. The engine was in good order but anyone who's owned one will be aware of Ducati's flakey cases and their predisposition for peeling. There's no real way around the problem other than a strip and blast. Here the barrels were vapour blasted and now match the frame and other metals on show, the crankcase received the same treatment and some covers were black powder coated for contrast. The diamond stitch seat and bum-pad looks like a great place to be, cosseted by quality fine grain leather. External cambelts whirling around in full view is another ace up a Ducati's sleeve and one of myriad of reasons the engine is so lusted after on these air-cooled versions. Clattering dry clutching and belts inches from sucking in your trousers; you either get it or you don't. It is one area though that can look slightly unfinished so Marco made some narrow gauge mesh guards. A bespoke stainless steel exhaust was welded-up and finished with mean looking pair of Leo Vince GP silencers. Our money is on this sounding pretty fantastic. One of the best ways to improve handling is to reduce unsprung weight and good place to start is with the wheels. These gorgeous multi-spokers by PVM weigh in at just 1.3kgs each. That's less than a decent full face crash helmet. Maybe that restaurant does pay well after all. After going to this much trouble and expense it would be churlish to slap a cheap coat of paint over all that hard work. Luckily Marco knows a pro-painter who laid-down Tequila Sunrise, a Harley-Davidson shade, before adding gold leaf pinstripes and plenty of clear coats. For someone working in an already time demanding job its incredible what Marco has achieved on a limited budget of both workshop hours and overtime Euros. I wonder if he'll stick with Ducati for build number three, we have our fingers crossed. More from Marco on Bike Shed Archive | Facebook Photos by Antonio Cellini