ahha..i stand corrected...never even bothered to look at one....ive seen SO many on the side of the road..unreliable pigs imo

That's odd. Once I fixed all the minor things a retarded mechanic did to mine (like the throttle cable touching the fan so it would blow the fuse), I've had no issues. It has over 22,000 miles on it, too.

Same - I built a 916SP engine from scratch and rebuilt the top end on my 916 SPS. They have their quirks like any bike and if you stay on top of the maintenance then they are gold. From a mechanical standpoint, the desmo valve system is fascinating.

You will always get the odd few that you never have to touch.same with any bike i guess..but as ive seen/heard of so many problems with them(well maybe the early days of 851's/916's)i wouldnt!!desmo is facinating true.and a lot less mass/friction compared to normal valvetrains but you do need to fettle more..

richyrd5 wrote:You will always get the odd few that you never have to touch.same with any bike i guess..but as ive seen/heard of so many problems with them(well maybe the early days of 851's/916's)i wouldnt!!desmo is facinating true.and a lot less mass/friction compared to normal valvetrains but you do need to fettle more..

Yeah, I must be one of the lucky ones. Just oil changes for me and not a problem. Next spring will be time for belts and valves tho.

richyrd5 wrote:hhmm,so it was you who outbid me on that ebay head!!! .i was just going to get it as a spare to go with my rear and rvf cams but seeing your predicament i will bid no more and hope you get it for the £30 its at now.good luck .also 16 valves on a ducati!!!,surely you mean 8?unles of course you have a desmosedici??

Yes, managed to win it in the end. Not sure if it was good value but have not got the time to wait around. Your restraint on the bidding is much appreciated, kind sir :-) I'm just hoping it is not warped.

As others have said, the twin cam V2 Ducatis have 8 valves but 16 shims to play with. The closer shims are a right bugger to change.

Keith

vfrman wrote:

richyrd5 wrote:You will always get the odd few that you never have to touch.same with any bike i guess..but as ive seen/heard of so many problems with them(well maybe the early days of 851's/916's)i wouldnt!!desmo is facinating true.and a lot less mass/friction compared to normal valvetrains but you do need to fettle more..

Yeah, I must be one of the lucky ones. Just oil changes for me and not a problem. Next spring will be time for belts and valves tho.

I have had an 888 and currently have an ST4S. The maintenance is a challenge/expense (depending if you diy) but those engines are very tough and high mileages are not rare. They do suffer from electrical issues which tend to cause most breakdowns. I have had a few electrical issues but nothing major.

Keith

The new head arrived today. Firstly the new head appears only a tiny bit warped - certainly much less than the 0.1mm limit specified in the Haynes manual. In contrast, the old head is approx 0.15 mm warped on the side with poor compression. Secondly, on the old head it is now clear that both of the engine mount lugs have been welded back to the head. It is a neat job (well at least on the side that didn't fracture) but it is now obvious in comparison to the new head. The bike is sporting non-original side fairings and has non-standard rear sets. Thus, accident damage seems to be the likely reason for the the broken lugs.. I'm much happier if that is the case as it means that the blown gasket is likely from weld distortion rather than from over-heating. I can now happily leave the rear cylinder head alone and just sort the front one...

Its not all good news as the exhaust studs in the new head are bent and in a bad way. Also the four dowels have all been removed with some associated damage to the upper mating face - it should clean up OK though. No shims with the new head will also mean a fair bit of messing with the shimming when its back. I feel much happier that I am on the right track now though.

Keith

Excellent news!

But also:

WE WANT PHOTOS!!!

OK, I get the hint. This is what it looked like when I got it;



This is what it looks like now :-)



The old and new heads compared (with broken lug);





Keith