Ducati 900SS - Valve Maintenance (Part 1)

[@donjohnson8627]

A couple (well, 3 things) of things I do to make the whole task easier and more accurate: (1) I like to lay the opener and closer shims out on a piece of paper and take good notes that are marked RIGHT THERE by the parts so I can keep everything straight....especially nice info to have if anyone comes in and interrupts you!. (2) If anyone comes into the shop and interrupts me while I am in the middle of all this, I RUN THEM OFF so I have NO distractions.,as I KNOW how easily I can get this all mixed up! (3) I don't care WHAT the shims are marked as or what the package (if any) says...i ALWAYS measure them all with a MIC to be ABSOLUTELY SURE that I'm attempting to use the right ones.....I have found that often the marking bears no resemblance to reality!! (and DON'T even ASK me how I found THAT out!! LOL!!)

[@ANDY5]

Don Johnson thanks mate

[@peteyoung9755]

"Well it looks straightforward but I guarantee it wont be". There, ladies and gentlemen, is the entire philosophy of working on old Ducatis encapsulated in less than 80 characters. Priceless.

[@davefish9282]

Awesome, thank you Andy. Have just bought a very straight and original 1995 900SS with 16,500 miles. Love her much already : ) after a break of 25 years without a bike. Your explanations and experience are gold. I won't be doing this depth of maintentance work on her, will leave it to a local expert, but it's great to have an appreciation of what's involved. Thank you, Dave

[@roonstar9]

I've been watching as many of these Ducati videos as I can find as I'll be tackling valve checks over winter on mine. This is by far the best Ducati Desmodue valve work video I've seen so far in both quality and instruction. Looking forward to part 2.

[@ANDY5]

Thanks mate, part 2 should be up in a week or so. Stay tuned, Andy

[@hdrk59]

I'll admit I was sceptical about visiting this site for the first time ...as I do watch Del Boy as well but have to admit I'm truly impressed . Well done and I'm a new subscriber now.

[@ANDY5]

+Roadking 2003 G'day mate, and welcome aboard. I'm over the Delboy thing. Thanks for taking the time to comment and thanks for the sub.

[@konny5173]

What a great trick for turning the crank! Will try and do the same once i have my project here!

[@ANDY5]

Car Karl and what project would that be mate? Anything exciting?

[@konny5173]

that would be a very early 1994 Monster 900 which i managed to find for 2000€ (3000A$). It has only got 16000k's on it and i am buying it from it's first owner. Only downside is that it was kept in a garage for 10 years and has not been ridden or run since, due to a family member passing.. so this saturday i'll have a look at it.. will take a little endoscope to look inside the tank and cylinders and am allowed to try spinning it by hand. Will however put some oil in the cylinders first. I hope it will turn freely, if it does i'll buy it. Quick sidenote, as i noticed that your Australian, i found my love for Ducatis in your country. I flew to Sydney after finishing highschool here in Germany with the aim to work and travel around the country. Little did i know the motoscene was pretty big over there and after seeing so many Ducs i had to had one myself.. so i bought a Monster 900s and put around 11000k's on it riding up and down the eastern and southern side of your country. (i actually have 1-2 little videos of that on my channel). Made a few good friends on the way and alot of memories. I loved Sydney for its beaches, beautiful scenery and nice roads like the old pac hw. Where are you based?

[@ANDY5]

Car Karl Hobart Tasmania, although I'm originally from south east Queensland

[@konny5173]

I really really wanted to take the ferry to Tasmania, but when i was around Melbourne the weather forecast wasn't the greatest and also taking the ferry cost into consideration i did not make it over there. Regret it heaps though, a friend of mine who rode all over Oz and even to Uluru an a 1199 Panigale went to Tasmania as well and he absolutely loved it

[@nigelren3719]

To turn the crank. Remove the spark plugs, put it in 2nd gear, and turn the back wheel.

[@LS-oh8kv]

Very helpful. Doesn't look easy, but doesn't look hard. Just bought a Ducati 900 monster from 95, (naked bike version of your bike) and people kept telling me I'll be spending thousands for a simple bit of maintenance. I call bologna! I can do this myself. Thanks for the helpful videos!

[@LS-oh8kv]

Do you do this every oil change? Or every 3? How many miles between valve checks?

[@Shadow0fd3ath24]

@@LS-oh8kv i know its been 6 years but valve checks are check after 100mi, then every 15,000 miles after that. So MANY YEARS if you ride as often as me

[@jennylloyd1436]

Much appreciated, learning a lot from you. You are a talented engineer Sir.

[@ANDY5]

+Jenny Lloyd thank you for the kind remarks

[@pacman9047]

Andy, I like the wooden device you made to jack up the engine. Nice!!!

[@tylerleavitt2715]

My condolences mate… T. 2005 800SS Owner

[@cheezwiz7]

Great video, I wish this was around when I did the first valve job on mine

[@Nowherenotime]

Plastic tools are a plus , buy and or make . Metal screw driver or pick will cut a seal . I used valve stem seals from Felpro Gaskets . Stem Dia. - seal seat dia.on head - hight of seal , give them a call and their tech dept will be glad to help . Long lasting and able to withstand high temps.

[@chrisfarrell8175]

Another great video Andy.

[@ANDY5]

Thanks Chris

[@mikeskidmore6754]

I have not worked much on motorcycles for years .. but I am going to save my car jacks for sure never thought about using them

[@nigelren3719]

To turn the crank. Remove the spark plugs, put it in 2nd gear, and turn the back wheel.

[@daniellavrencic3127]

Hi Andy, just got myself a 96 900ss, what fuel do you use in your duc 96? Regards Daniel

[@leeengelsman1855]

To stop the valve from dropping into the cylinder you could fill the cylinder with air from a compressors and keep it at constant pressure.

[@andrewwarrender7310]

Excellent videos Andy.

[@ANDY5]

Thanks Andrew

[@custardslastcake123]

to stop the valve dropping to far into the cylinder insert a piece of old ht lead into spark plug hole

[@ronnieboucherthecrystalcraftsm]

great bike and nice video ! i want a 600 ss 1997 model = are they worth chasing ?

[@ANDY5]

Don’t know mate, I’ve never ridden a 600SS

[@PvPeach11]

I just picked up one of these bikes... Do you know anything about lowering it? I look like a ballerina on it 😅

[@RogerBadgerDSFlyer]

Very useful video, thank you. A tip for helping prevent the valve from dropping into the cylinder. Fashion some wire with a small hook on the end, that you can feed through the spark plug hole and position under the valve. It will stop the valve from dropping too far down. A technique they suggest in the Haynes Manual. Question: How did you get those pipes looking so beautifully shiny? I want to pretty mine up like that.

[@ANDY5]

Thanks mate, and thanks for the tip. This bike is very low mileage and the pipes are untouched. Fine steel wool and elbow grease usually cleans that type of thing up well. Cheers, Andy

[@RogerBadgerDSFlyer]

Andy's Motorcycle Obsessions Mine are awful. Looks like I have to put in a lot of elbow grease then! I’ll probably take them off and use a buffing tool with some paste. Safe rides and big smiles, cheers!

[@harriedeboer]

Hallo Andy , good stuff for mij SS900 1993.I'm not ready with you yet.Thank you for the time being.Unill later.. ! I'll tell you

[@heybra8941]

How long should it take for a competent mechanic to do the whole job?

[@mikecallaghan6377]

Hi Andy love the videos mate... Might sound like a stupid question but how the hell do you get the bike up on the table to be able to work at eye level?

[@ANDY5]

Mike Callaghan the only stupid question is the one you don’t ask. It is a home made lift made from an old hospital bed so it lowers almost to ground level, and I just use an aluminum ramp to wheel it on.

[@roythearcher]

And I thought my Triumph was a pain to get to the plugs and shims, you need the seat and rear fairing off to get the Tank off, then dismantle the airbox but at least I don't have to dismantle the rear suspension or remove the battery+box to do it! And, what were they thinking when they came up with that valve design?? far too much metalwork there, It's no wonder they go wrong!

[@Nowherenotime]

Buy a Light mate . Feel your struggle , engineers care more about production issue rather than maintenance . FYI Sir Don't forget to do a visual inspection on your clutch and clutch basket (known wear area , steel plates rattling on a aluminum basket)

[@sierabravo215]

Andy I've got 900ss 1994. It backfires can I pay you for a service. I'd appreciate that.

[@powercord123456]

This video is literally 10/10 helpful thanks! But I thought that to access the vertical cylinder inspection covers you could just remove the battery tray insert and not the whole battery tray/airbox assembly?

[@ANDY5]

Hi Billy Jeans, thanks for tuning in. I can't speak for all Ducati models but mine is molded as part of the airbox, with no removable tray that I could see. Besides, it makes access a darn site better with it all out of the way. Thanks for the comments, Andy

[@powercord123456]

Hi Andy, that's interesting, mine has the removable rubber section which meant I could do all of them only having to the remove the shock for the vertical exhaust valve access. Nearly all of mine are bang on spec and one is off a tiny bit but well within service limits. Your video REALLY helped, thanks a lot! Billy

[@ANDY5]

Interesting, perhaps I should of had a closer look, you have me intrigued now. As I said in the video, I'd never done that job before on a Ducati so I may have missed that. Andy

[@MatelotsousMarin]

Cameo by the missus at 1:59 love it.

[@ANDY5]

Yes, she was heading out on her Scooter to have coffee with her biker chick mates, and I was in the way lol

[@massivemikeh]

I think the 4v heads look easier to work on! Atleast theres some room to get a bit of a hand in there.

[@weeverob]

Great information, invaluable, tx!

[@smarte.r.1450]

Thank you!

[@johnietaylor1817]

Hi Andy, im an old racer looking at buying a run around, i havent ridden a bike for 2 decades and im looking for something with style to keep for the rest of my days lol,pls dont laugh but im looking at the 400 ss and would like to hear what you think, cheers

[@ANDY5]

G'day Johnie. How honest do you want me to be? They look great. If you're in the UK I presume it is a '92 as that was the only year they imported them before putting the kibosh on the whole idea. I had a friend with a 750SS of similar vintage, and that thing wouldn't pull the skin off a custard, so I can't even begin to understand what the 400SS would be like dragging what was essentially the same bike as the 750SS but with only 40 something HP. I would say "try before you buy" and see how it feels. Thanks for watching, Andy

[@johnietaylor1817]

im in NZ Andy,tks for your opinion and honestly its a sweet looking bike tho

[@redtobertshateshandles]

My big bros mates had airheads. They were bevels but they always discussed shimming.

[@SuperBikeTYTY]

HEY ANDY! quick question, I have a 93' 750ss, the whole bike is converted cafe, but I am still running stock pipes. I do have some smaller pipes that could be considered "straight". I would like to run them, but am nervous considering back pressure and throwing off the valve adjustment. Should I leave the stock pipes on, or could I put the straight pipes on without damaging my overall tune. Thanks!

[@ANDY5]

+tylor torres g'day Tylor, thanks for tuning in. You'll be okay with the pipes, back pressure is bad...always. See how it sounds at idle, you may need to fiddle with the pilot jets but more than likely not. Have a look at my video on exhaust systems kzbin.info/www/bejne/m4DKYqaQnbqBmck Andy

[@SuperBikeTYTY]

Andy's Motorcycle Obsessions Thanks a lot for the info! I did the swap and it turned out great, bike sounds, feels, and performs 100x better!

[@Shadow0fd3ath24]

back pressure wont affect valves at all, not sure why you thought that lol

[@onhawaii]

Next time get a hard wood wedge or a plastic one to push the closing cam down. Works great if you got them trimmed to the right shape.

[@hadzicana1]

grande video

[@hdrk59]

I can see I have lots of catching up to do ...binge watching ..lol.. Thank you again

[@gregkoe60]

I can see why dealers charge so much to Fully sevice now. Lots to do just to get to rocker boxes just to start valve and shim adjustments.🤔

[@fpreston9527]

I think your 1\2 inch drive socket tools are too big for this job . Especially when building things back together . Not much feel with heavy tools in my opinion

[@505THATGUY]

How many miles on that bike?

[@ANDY5]

19,700 kilometers, about 12,200 miles, Andy

[@DotWorld80]

Can I pay you to do my Ducati?

[@weeverob]

and this has to be done every 5 thousand miles?

[@ANDY5]

Ducat recommend checking the clearance every 5,000 kilometers (3,000 Miles)

[@weeverob]

thanks. you're obviously a very dedicated Ducati enthusiast and enjoy its mechanics.

[@U2Jaime1317]

And my limit is reached at 11 minute mark. Unless I am very patient and know what I'm doing... won't make a 2 day job into a 2 week job

[@jammie4u]

Please....less rock, more Duc sounds. Would be nice to hear the bike after the work.

[@TXLorenzo]

What's a Doocatty? lol