Rebuild or Give Up?

Technical Help 2 Valve Belt Drives
#1

Right then : As my original request went almost entirely unrequited, (and never made it to the ‘new’ forum) I find myself having a crisis of confidence……can you all have a bloody good look in yer garages, through yer spare parts bins, under the mattress, down the side of yer couch, in fact anywhere that you might find the following parts to fit a 1992 900SS:

Pair of usable heads (for me to modify); (Neal, if you still got some, ‘pm’ me with a price)
A pair of high (10.5 or 11:1) comp. pistons;
And a pair of FCR 41’s with linkages etc….

Oh, and a set of knackered clutch plates to make a clutch tool from……

I’m well aware of the cost of these parts new, so have put aside some wedge, but not enough to just throw a blank cheque at the internet…. and I’d rather other club members got a chance to offload their unwanted spare parts first…. :laughing:

If I can get this lot fitted to the bike before summer, it might just abate the nagging voices at the back of me head that keep telling me the best thing to do with the bike is, despite it flying through yet another MOT two weeks ago, sell it for parts and buy something from this century with more valves – and not necessarily from this continent :open_mouth: :open_mouth:

…and don’t panic Spaggy, I will be using the official channels to put a ‘Wanted’ ad on the site… :blush:

There, in fantastic ‘passing the buck’ style, if I go back to the darkside, it’s all your fault :laughing: !!!

#2

Hi there i have a few heads in the shed if your looking for belt drive ones email steve sb007g9411@blueyonder.co.uk am in wiltshire

#3

got my hi comp pistons from cal cycle works £228 delivered way good

#4

Well, there was a bit of a nervous wait to see if the seller was genuine but, 7 days after ordering some high comp JE Forged pistons from the states, they arrived - all shiny and bright and ready to make me bangs punchier :smiling_imp: and the cost? inc pins, clips, postage, everything … 150 quid - :astonished: Couldn’t pass up a bargain so also bought a set of 94mm HC for when things need another little tweak next year :smiling_imp:

Not gonna fit them just yet as May is a busy riding month, but June scheduled for a top end strip and rebuild - heads, pistons, and a set of FCRs… then, hopefully, gear changing should be ‘SKY, ROAD, SKY, ROAD, SKY, ROAD…’ :laughing:

#5

Wilbert I’ve just sent you a P.M.

Steve R

#6

Well, June has become July - and nearly August, but, I’m there - rebuild time :slight_smile:

Now I have to ask you lot a favour - If you see me approaching any member of the Ducati design team, step between us, for their sake … in the name of what god did some Itlaian numpty think it was a good ideaI to make it necessary to remove the engine to get the rear head off ??? :unamused:

I asked a local, but highly experienced (ex-Duc/Laverda works mechanic) for a quote to fit H/C pistons in me bike - he said “providing nowts wrong, 12 hours labour” - oh how I wish I’d let him do it … I have a sore back, scraped knees and knuckles, and thank god I had a lathe, grinders, and welder handy to make the necessary tools just to get the buggerin’ lump out of the frame - and I’m nowhere near finished… just delayed whilst I await delivery of some parts … on the plus side I now have a narrow width 15mm socket (to remove frame bolts) and a cylinder head socket/spanner combo for torquing up head nuts… anyone near Warrington needs a loan, let me know…

I’ve encountered a few (!) problems along the way - not least of which is one that raises concerns for everyone. Whilst taking off the old cambelts, I noted one belt was almost worn through. The adjuster / roller was backed right off, and the belt had clearly been flapping around merrily shredding itself against the covers… rubber dust everywhere… The adjuster was rusted solid (I’m waiting for new bearings as I type!). A condition of me buying the bike in Summer 2005 was that it had a full service including valves clearances and new belts - the receipt was in the service book when I got it. I assume the garage found the rusted adjuster and just backed it off to get the thing back on the road :astonished: Bit of a double edged sword here as (a) the robbing gits could’ve cost me a wrecked engine and possibly a high speed crash, but (b) to back up what others have told me about belts being robust, after over 6k miles, including regularly running the thing through to 9k revs, the belt hadn’t actually snapped, or even skipped a tooth … tuff little things really. :slight_smile:

Hopefully, by the weekend, It’ll all be back in one piece, and I’ll tell those who care (!) what the difference is like now it’s got HC’s and ported heads…

#7

And here is what will hopefully be the last of the sself indulgent aga of “Pete tries to make his SS make more power” … or, how italian design drove a sane biker to the edge :laughing:

First time of everything bolted back together, and the resu;lt - 10 seconds of smooth running followed by plumes of white smoke billowing form the exhausts … so everything got torn back down again … and I now know how thin the castings are around the guide boss - I’d obviously ground the horizontal inlet port so thin that, under running pressures, it blew a hole through a blister in the casting … luckily, and it was due to pure luck, I’d just rebuilt the old (original) head, including porting and shimming the valves - so, just a couple of hours later (and another hour getting the old oil out of the exhaust system :astonished: ) , it fired back into life with a vengeance, and after only about 20 seconds at 3k revs, settled back to a steady idle at the 1200 rpm it had done when standard… and no smoke!!!

Hows it feel to ride? Well, I don’t know yet as the ffeling right now is a mixture of relief, acheivement, and a huge need for beer :smiling_imp: But, as soon as we get a dry 10 minutes tomorrow morning, I’ll be back in the saddle. As for increased power - that’ll have to wait until I can put a few hundred ‘gentle’ miles on the new pistons/rings…:smiley:

If you’re thinking of doing the same to your 900SS, please, get ALL the tools ready beforehand… and have at least spare 12, 13, 14, and 15 mm spanners that can be ground thinner so they fit in narrow places, together with having a welder and grinder handy for emergency toolmaking … and a hacksaw, a length of M10 rod, and some M10 locknuts will save you having to sit around waiting for replacements for the aliminium bolts in the swingarm and brake brackets that some heavy-handed grease monkey will almost certainly have snapped prior to you buying your pride and joy :imp:

I can’t finish off the topic without offering a heartfelt mass of gratitude to those who helped, either with parts (Duc904), advice (all the Steves, Jonno, and DM), or simply by not laughing when things went wrong :laughing: Oh, and if you’re putting off doing the belts, for whatever reason - DONT … it’s quite an easy job to do, and without checking, you wont know if the dickhead who ‘serviced’ mine three years ago has been near your bike :astonished:

Still got the lightweight clutch and FCR’s to fit, but, as with all things Ducati, nowts straightforward and ‘special’ tools are needed :angry: