Desmo Uno

SEIZED!

noreply@blogger.com (Desmo Uno) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 19:27:00 +0000

During a recent warm spell, I went to visit my 748. With the battery installed, and key in ignition, I thumbed the starter and she came to life. For a brief second she burbled and choked--finally seizing up before I had the presence of mind to hit the kill switch...

Rest In Peace Ducati 748.

Ducshop Review

noreply@blogger.com (Desmo Uno) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:21:00 +0000

Vital Info

Rating: 4.5/5 Flaking Rockers

Website: www.ducshop.com

Product: Lightweight flywheel

Price: $87 shipped

My Review

Recently, I ordered a lightweight flywheel for my 748 from Ducshop. My new, beautifully machined, flywheel arrived quickly via UPS Ground. In contrast to other flywheel offerings from Nichols and Slingshot, Ducshop machines down a stock flywheel. As such, a core is required. I picked up a used flywheel on eBay for $5 to send Ducshop so I have the option of switching back to stock if I don’t like the new flywheel.

My only complaint is that my tracking number was not automatically sent to me when my item shipped (as is customary). However, the true measure of a business is not the lack of problems or mistakes, but rather the lengths to which the business will go to fix any problems. Ducshop’s customer service is outstanding; I exchanged emails with both the general manager and the parts department. In both cases I received a response in less than 24 hours.

Top 5 Ways to Beat Winter Withdraws

noreply@blogger.com (Desmo Uno) — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 20:43:00 +0000

1. Buy lots of parts—ship them to a friend's house, you don’t want to get in trouble with the wifey

2. Bookmark products that you can’t afford to buy—mmm BST wheels

3. Polish and repolish—now I am out of micro fiber cloths

4. Compulsively watch YouTube videos—this is a good one: http://ow.ly/EmCU

5. Be a troll on ducati.ms—great place to ask “what type of oil is best?”

Top 5 Dumbest Ducati Crashes

noreply@blogger.com (Desmo Uno) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 00:41:00 +0000

G2 Throttle Tamer Review

noreply@blogger.com (Desmo Uno) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:20:00 +0000

As you may recall, I installed a more aggressive throttle cam at the beginning of this season. One of the only drawbacks to the new cam is that the on/off throttle response is jerky. Per chance, I stumbled on the G2 Ergonomics site, and read about their “Throttle Tamer.” The Throttle Tamer replaces the linear cam on the throttle tube with a progressive cam. In this case the cam is less aggressive than stock for the first half of throttle opening, and the same as stock for the second half.

The installation was easy, and took less than ten minutes. The hardest part of the installation was getting a 10mm wrench to fit between the horizontal cylinder and the radiator when adjusting cable slack. The Electraeon throttle cam that mounts on the throttle bodies is smaller than stock, and the G2 Throttle Tamer is in essence slightly smaller than stock, as such the throttle cable is nearing the end of its adjustment. When it comes time to replace it, I may consider getting a custom cable made that is slightly shorter than stock.

I wasn’t sure what to expect on my test ride, as I don’t think I’ve ever ridden a bike with a progressive throttle. But, I am happy to report that the throttle pick up is very natural. Further more, the G2 Throttle Tamer cured 99% of the jerky on/off response. In fact, I won’t pursue any other fixes (e.g. tuning). Thus far the only downside I can see is that the slight increase in the distance from fully closed to fully open. It is, however, still much less than stock. On the other hand, now that the throttle response is more manageable, I can proceed with my plans to add a lightweight flywheel.

It’s worth mentioning that both the quality of the product, and the quality of the service (both phone and email) that I received from G2 Ergonomics easily meets my criteria for excellent.

Visit G2 Ergonomics: http://g2ergo.com/

Ducati Needle Bearing Disaster: Part Two

noreply@blogger.com (Desmo Uno) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:40:00 +0000

In theory replacing the clutch slave, pushrod, and pressure plate is an easy job, but putting in a new needle bearing is a tad bit more difficult. Good luck finding a bearing puller that is small enough to fit inside the bearing—I ended up grinding down the claws of my bearing puller to make it fit. Unfortunately, the bearing internals came out, but the casing did not. I tried a blind hole bearing puller with no luck either. In a moment of desperation, I used a 7/16 tungsten carbide burr to shave away the sleeve. Luckily, the burr knocked the sleeve loose, and I was home free.

The new bearing slipped right in, and with the new pushrod, slave, and pressure plate I bled the clutch. For some reason I ordered a pre-2000 pushrod, which is shorter than the newer ones.Oberon was nice enough to supply spacer so that I could use the new slave with the pre-2000 pushrod. But, even with the spacer the slave was reaching the end of its travel before disengaging the clutch. I used a section of the old pushrod as a second spacer—and it worked!

After a quick test ride, everything seemed to be holding up nicely. My only complaint was that the friction zone of the clutch was at the very beginning of the lever travel. I must have made the second spacer too long. Instead of shortening the spacer, I shimmed the slave off the case cover using 2 thin washers on each bolt.

First impressions of the Oberon slave are excellent, but I will have to wait until spring to fully test it.

Ducati Needle Bearing Disaster: Part One

noreply@blogger.com (Desmo Uno) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 18:39:00 +0000

Traveling down the highway after a long day in the canyons, I prepared myself for the exit onto highway 14. It’s a tight, slightly banked, second gear turn. I started braking from 85mph to 40mph, grabbed the clutch and nothing. It was hard as a rock. I blipped the throttle,

downshifting without the clutch, and somehow managed to avoid crashing. The clutch worked intermittently as I limped home, then finally gave up the ghost about a mile from my 5-by-10.

The disassembly of the clutch revealed quite the mess. The slave cylinder is fried, the seals are blown, and the bearing that is supposed to keep the pushrod from spinning is filled with metal flakes. On the clutch side of the bike, the needle bearing is missing several rollers, and the pushrod is chewed up.

New parts on the way:

-Oberon slave cylinder

-Pushrod

-Paulimoto pressure plate

-Main shaft needle bearing

-Various o-rings, etc.

Such is the life of a Ducati owner. Stay tuned for the fix…hopefully before it snows.

Electraeon Ducati Superbike Throttle Cam Review

noreply@blogger.com (Desmo Uno) — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 00:02:00 +0000

After high siding my CBR a few years back, my right wrist has never been the same. I love my Duc, but it is brutal on my wrist. I think having to regrip to hit full throttle contributes to the pain. So at the beginning of the season I installed the Electraeon throttle cam. With the riding season drawing to a close here in Colorado, I have had some time to reflect on this mod.

Bike: 1999 Ducati 748

Price: $47

Installation:

Remove right side fairing
Unbolt stock cam
Replace with Electraeon cam
Adjust throttle cable slack
Test ride!

Pros:

No need to regrip to get to full throttle.
Hit full throttle faster (Read: FUN!)

Cons:

Jerky on/off throttle response exacerbated by the new cam.
Need to be more careful on cold tires, or in the rain.
More effort needed to twist the throttle.

Bottom Line:

Thus far this is my favorite mod—it is certainly a hell of a lot of fun in the canyons. But, as with many mods there are trade offs. In the off-season I need to work on some ways to eliminate the glitchy on/off throttle response.

Buy it here:

http://www.electraeon.com/throttlecam.html