Tony Prust of Analog Motorcycles is an old-fashioned craftsman. He can turn his hand to fine woodworking as well as metallurgy, and his Chicago-based workshop turns out bikes that are functional as well as beautifully finished.
Tony eschews fashion, but there’s often a stroke of serendipity in his timing. Six months ago, his 1949 Indian Scout racer became a stunning counterpoint to the modern Scout. And now we have ‘Super Scrambler’—a vintage-inspired Ducati custom.
Clever planning? We’ll err on the side of happenstance, because the seed of this Ducati custom was planted a year ago. That's when client Del Thomas—owner of an Analog-built Ducati Indiana—approached Tony with a novel idea.
“Del’s a lover of Ducatis,” says Tony, “and a few years ago he restored a late 60s Scrambler 350.” Del, however, was irked by his Scrambler’s right-side shifter. “He wondered if it was possible to build something to compete with the modern Triumph Scrambler—but using an old Ducati.”
Tony relishes a challenge, so he agreed to tackle the project. In California, Del found a 1975 860 GT—from the first year of the Ducati bevel twin square-case engines. The donor had no mufflers, seat or lighting, and the tires had rotted to pieces. But Tony got it running, and the Scrambler build was officially under way.
Tony started first with the suspension, installing a pair of Fox Podium RC1 shocks—slightly taller than stock length, to increase the suspension travel. “Then Del and I researched front ends: what would have the needed length, and spring weight options?” They settled on a Triumph Tiger setup—including triples, forks, bar mounts, an axle and calipers.
Tony called Frame Crafters for some pointers on geometry. After the math worked out, he just needed to trim a couple of inches off the top of the forks. He laced up a 19-inch rim to the stock front hub, and upgraded the brakes with drilled and thinned CB550 rotors from Godffery's Garage. The Ducati now handles well on- and off- road.
Now it was time for the aesthetics. “I made a foam buck for the tank and Craig Rodsmith made it out of aluminum. On went a set of scrambler-style bars, and then I trimmed about four inches off the sub frame.” Sitting on top is a hand-made seat pan, for solo use only.
Tony also fabricated the exhaust system, using parts from Cone Engineering. The headers are ceramic-coated black, the mufflers are stainless, and there’s a custom stainless heat shield. “After all, a proper scrambler should have high-mount pipes and decent ground clearance, right?”
The custom luggage rack is a neat touch. It was CNC-cut by Free Form Designs, along with the pegs and front rotor carriers. If you like it, you may soon be able to add to a version to your own bike: “We’re starting Analog Motor Goods and will be starting out with some parts. The luggage rack on the Ducati is a prototype for a part we’re still working on.”
A few extra ounces were lost with the help of an EarthX Lithium battery, which sits in a custom-made tray. It’s plugged into a new electrical system, which powers new lighting and a Legendary GPS speedometer.
All that was left was to figure out the color. “Del originally wanted to go with a flat-green-and-brown-seat scheme,” Tony recalls. “But I wanted to pay homage to the original Ducati Scrambler. Yellow is not really my style, so I asked if we could do a sort of orange. Not a bright orange—more like a burnt orange, but leaving the sides of the tank brushed aluminum, with the original logo.”
Del sent Tony a BMW 1M color called Frozen Valencia Orange—and they agreed it was perfect. Kiel from Crown Auto Body handled the paint, while Brando pinstriped the tank.
The finishing touch comes from Cotter Pin, the motorcycle travel gear specialists. They’ve created new versions of their Adventure Roll and Tool Book, using a smart gray waxed cotton.
We reckon it’s the kind of bike that Ducati would have built in the late 70s. And unlike many custom scramblers, it’s more than a 'just for looks' build. Analog's Super Scrambler has been thoroughly tested off-road, and easily handles jumps.
There's only one question mark hovering over this bike, and it's not Tony's fault. What would you rather have in your garage—the 'official' 2015 Scrambler, or Analog's old school Ducati custom?
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