Having recently re-tensioned the belts on my ST4s, I am now confident enough to change the belts next time it is required (next year). However, for those who do most of their own home maintenance, what else should be done with a belt change? Valve clearance check? TPS adjustment? CO level adjustment? Throttle body balance? Any other jobs? What's practical? WHat requires specialist tools? Cheers A
belts are pretty easy to do, the crank turning tool is 25 quid off the amazon Laser 5181 Crankshaft Locking Tool for Ducati Motorcycles: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike
ST4s is is a desmoquattro right? You can manage without a crank turning tool, use right size bolt and washers or easier still, the back wheel with bike in gear. Valve clearance check? feeler gauges and patience really. TPS adjustment? don't think you'll need to do that TBH CO level adjustment? likewise Throttle body balance? vacuum gauges, checked mine last time but they were fine. Any other jobs? very useful to get a tool for measuring closing shims (correctly shaped to fit in side them, got mine from place online in America) and a micrometer. Belt tension gauge would be nice but think the 'by feel' method is OK, just don't overtighten. would be nice to have front paddock stand to remove forks without hanging from the rafters.
Cheers for all that. Yes, the 4s uses the 996 desmoquatro with a few tweaks. The twang method was what I used in tensioning the belts, with the gStrings guitar tuner app on an Anroid smart phone. I also used the top gear and back wheel method to turn it over, and a long allen key in the plug hole to ensure TDC on the rear cylinder. Having a look at the valve access panels, it looks bloody tricky to measure, let along adjust the valve clearances. I thought that a TPS and CO level check were pretty standard with new belts? Or is that just a dealer justification for charging more? A
If you've got a dry clutch model, just pop the spark plugs out, pop the clutch cover off (good time to blow the inevitable clutch dust out too) and rotate the engine using the clutch, its even easier than turning the wheel. Be careful not to breath the clutch dust though.
