Strada Camshaft Oil Ways

[Duccout]

Thanks for the link Bill.

[Duccout]

While we are throwing ideas around about the upper bevel bearing housing, could Ducati have solved this problem by making the lower lip of the steel sleeve much wider, say 10 mm, and securing it into the head with three countersuit screws? I am not an engineer and I know that any extra production operation cost money, but this could have been fixed.

It would be interesting to see how the factory Singles racers were modified in this area (I'm thinking of the production-derived Desmo's of Farne and Parlotti) I can't believe that they just left things as they were and shrugged their shoulders.

[Duccout]

I've received the new exhaust thread insert from Nigel and dropped it and the head off at the engineers that I use. It does not appear to be an easy job! We will have to see how things go.

I have thought some more about the top bevel housing; the lip at the top of the bevel tunnel on my engine is worn and damaged, due to the bearing breaking up, and I don't think that it would be possible to get an even pressure all around the bearing, but instead of turning it off completely, I have machined it back down to a clean surface, leaving a lip of 15 thou. I will have another go at using Nigel's method of sealing the flange; when I tried it last time the silicone never sealed, but I think that was due to poor quality silicone; I have some Loctite stuff now that seems stronger and more rigid when set.

[Duccout]

I have the head back with a nice new exhaust thread. I picked it up this morning and have the engine back together, so hopefully, I will be able to start it tomorrow and see how my top bevel work sounds.

If anyone needs any engineering work done in the Essex/Hainault area, Gary at Middleton Engineering (0208 500 2551) is a great guy to deal with; here are some photos of the superb exhaust thread repair that he did on my 250 head.

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[Duccout]

She runs! Engine started second kick, but is still incredibly noisy; typical Ducati Single rattle, I don't know if it is piston slap, bevel rattle, or primary gears, but there is an enormous amount of play in the primary gears.

Hopefully the little bike will behave itself for a while and give me a chance to sort out the big beastie (900 bevel) which is also in pieces. I need a bigger garage!

[DBDBrian]

The thread repair certainly looks a good job, it's satisfying to overcome these problems in a professional way.
Good you have your engine fired up, they are definitely not the quietest, I'm not far off firing mine up for the first time.

[Duccout]

Sometimes when at a classic race meeting, someone will fire up a Ducati Single and the engine will sound like it has a handful of nails in it, but the noise seems normal.

[blethermaskite]

Glad to hear (no pun intended) you have it running again ......so when I bought my 350mk3 new it seemed quite noisy at the top end, for me I chased my tail for quite some time trying to determine where the noise was coming from, eventually I discovered the coil ends of the valve springs were making contact with the head casting at full valve lift I ground maybe 2mm out off the head where the springs were rubbing and this reduced to some degree the head rattle. As a further experiment I sourced from a Honda dealer the little rubber? buttons that they fitted between the cooling fins on their air cooled engines, fitting these to my engine really did quieten it done significantly........just a couple of ideas for you
Cheers,
George

[Duccout]

Thanks George; I reckon that is a good idea about the rubber anti-ring washers, those alloy fins certainly amplify noise.

I think that a lot of Ducati noise comes from the primary gears, mine has a lot of backlash. When I bought my 750 Ducati bevel new, the engine was a right old rattler, and it did have some backlash in the primaries, but when I bought my 900 bevel new it did not rattle at all, but whined quite badly. Later when investigating clutch problems ( a normal occurrence) I found no backlash in the primaries, so that was the source of the whining.

Years ago, when I bought my new 350 Mk 111, it had a diabolical knock under acceleration, which was obviously the big-end, so I took it back to Vic Camp and told him; he laughed and said that 'they all do that'. Not believing him, I went home and stripped off the top-end and there was no play in the big end, but God knows what caused that knock. Years later, I rode up to Lincoln from London with the intention of buying another 350 Mk 111, and when I test rode it, low and behold, it had the same knock! I did not buy the bike though, it had a bent frame.

[Duccout]

Finally managed to road test the latest work - took a chance on the filthy roads. The engine, although still rattling badly, seems to run really well, so hopefully will be ok for a while. I've still got 'issues' though. The fuel tank leaks around the filler cap, which I had solved by building it up with araldite and filing it flat, but the fuel has rotted the araldite, so now it is a case of trying the same method with JB Weld, or cementing a Monza cap over the top with the same stuff.

The carburration is still a slight problem, in that the engine wants to die when pulling away, and the idle screws will not lower the tick-over, nor adjust the mixture, so I need a new carb. I fancy a Mikuni so I'll contact Allens to see if they have anything, but the frame of the Strada makes fitting difficult.

I also have a problem with the selector box, in that the gear lever will not return half the time due to play in the mechanism, up or down. There is wear in either the eccentric or the coffin that holds the spring, which leaves a small amount of play that is not taken out by the eccentric adjustment. I need a new coffin, eccentric or both, but not too difficult to solve.

Lastly, the riding position is awful; footrests too far forward, handlebars too high and seat too far back, I feel like I'm riding a chopper! I think some lower bars might help.

Colin