We never need any excuse to write about Union Motorcycle Classics. Builders Mike Watanabe and Luke Ransom create beautiful machines in their old barn in Idaho, and several have graced these pages.
But there?s an especially good reason to feature this beautiful Ducati Scrambler 250. It?s a personal project of Mike?s, and he?s donated the bike to a charity that helps young people in northern Thailand and Cambodia. The Ducati will be raffled off to raise funds for food, housing, and education.

?The Ducati a 1966 5-speed Scrambler,? says Mike. ?I took it in as a trade, in return for a set of bodywork for a customer?s 350 Monza. It came to me as a basket case.?
The 250/350 series bikes were the forerunners of today?s Scrambler Ducati offerings?and were equally excellent bikes in their day. In 250 form, the air-cooled ?narrow case? single only pumped out 18 horses?but they were lively Italian horses, because the bike weighed well under 300 pounds.
The original Scrambler 250 followed the archetypal 1960s scrambler look, but UMC have transformed this one into a lightweight café racer.
Luke kicked off the project by completely vapor blasting and rebuilding the motor with new bearings and seals. ?I really like these scrambler motors for cafe racers,? Mike notes. ?You can get Diana-type performance out of them.?

The refreshed motor now breathes more easily through a custom intake, and there?s a full custom exhaust system too?with slightly larger pipework and a seamlessly ble...