How hard is it? I'm not bothered about the stamp in the book so fancy doing it myself ultimately to learn and save money. I've seen it being done on my 749 so have a rough idea of what to do, do i need any specialist tools? The main stumbling block i think could be me looking at parts and not knowing what they are or how they should look (if anything is not as it should be). I'm hoping you guys will be sat at your keyboards when /if i attempt it to help me along the way! The bike is a 2010 1198s.
999 was easy enough. I'll be doing 996 next spring. Can't see 1198 being much difference. Only real advice would be to take your time. Don't do it if you are in a hurry. Don't answer the phone and carry on with your mum twittering in your ear. Just slow and methodical. And watch lots of YouTube. Paint pen for marking belts required but i expect you could use something else. I bought a cam holding tool but it was more of a pain using it than not so didnt bother.
I'm still waiting to do my first, been buying already serviced bikes so not had the opportunity. :Angelic: See video's on my web site.
Ive done the last 2 belt services on my 996 myself. Even though im quite handy with the spanners, it was still a bit daunting the first time around. But as others have said there are plenty of youtube guides out there and even though I was doing the job at 5am in the morning whilst half asleep (5am was the only spare time I could get before the kids wake up) it was pretty straight forward. The biggest headache is stripping all the bits off the bike in order to get to the actual belts. Use a paint pen or tipex to mark the old belts against the timing marks, then when you take them off you can transfer the marks to the new belts so you know exactly where they need to go back on. There are several ways you can tension the belts afterwards. The 5mm (if i remember correctly) allen key is one way. Twisting the belt 45 degrees is another. What I used was a guitar tuner app and checked the belts tension was 110hz.
No need to mark the belts, if the timing marks are in the correct position you can't go wrong. A full tooth out moves the timing mark way off. Steve
110Hz is too much for quality belts (as a nominal) as they don't stretch as much :Angelic: 99Hz nominal 110Hz max for our belts. There's a Carbon Drive App for your phone that is seemingly as accurate as the OEM kit when used with a cheap plug in microphone.
I'll be pm'ing you shortly Stu for a set, once i've decided when i am going to do it. Time is scarce at the moment.
I have done 996 and 1098 (similar to 999). For 996 the cam holding tool is useful. For 1098 the cam holding tool is a pain and is not needed, as @Cream_Revenge says.
I've done the belts on an 851 and a Monster 900. 851 was first cam belt change I'd ever done so thought I'd start with 4 cams and 2 belts! In all honestly if you're mechanically minded you'll find it easy. As said mark the pulleys as one cam (I think exhaust from memory) on the vertical cylinder will move when you take the belts off, however I'd be surprised if they're not already marked up. Also watch which way you turn the tensioners as if you turn the wrong way it'll still work but the 2 runs of the belt will be too close - although I doubt damage would result. On a 851 by the time you've got to the belts you've done most of the work and fiddly stuff.......and I'd guess a 1098 will be the same.
The only Ducati ones I’ve done are old 2 valve M900 and 900SS, but have done several cars. The advise I’d give is to make sure you have plenty of time, no hassle from others, and to make sure you fully understand what mark should line up with what before stripping off the old belts. Take pictures and use them for reference. The existing belts are very unlikely to be stretched, so everything will line up properly to start with. The various methods of finding the correct tension come down to what you find most confident to work with and get right. On the 900 engines I’ve done I like the 5mm and 6mm Allen key method for foolproofness, but I am happy to work by feel with these like a feeler gauge. You might feel more confident trusting the tuning App on your phone. The last two car belts I’ve done were scary even though I’ve done a few. The one in my TDV6 Discovery 3 was difficult to get to line up correctly, although I’ve had it so long and done so many miles now that I’ve done it twice. The previous one was my Subaru Legacy GTB Twin Turbo Estate. Being a Boxer engine just made everything look so much further away from everything else, and the belt seemed like it was ten feet long. When you’ve finished make sure you turn the engine over several times by hand to make sure everything lines up OK again. I also always whip the plugs out, or disable the ignition somehow, and turn it over ‘at speed’ on the starter to listen for anything ‘touching’ before starting it properly. Nasher
After reading all of the above i've decided i might be having a party in my garage this weekend and you are all invited!
I've done belts on Monster 600/750/900SS models, 748/916/996/998, ST2/3/4/4s, 749/999, 1098, MTS1000/1100/1200, Hyperstrada 1100, Monster S4/S4R/S4RS/795/796 and god knows what else. The early 2Vs and the Desmoquattro engines all have marks that you can line up. The Testastretta engines, from the 749/999 onwards have marks on the cam pulleys but they don't line up with any reference points on the engine. You are meant to use cam locking tools with them but you can make your own marks before removing the old belts. The Dual Spark and later 2V engines, and the ST3, have a removable plug in the camshaft bearing housing that you can insert a rod into to lock the cam at the timing position.
It states on all our belts packaging 99Hz but they are ok up to 110Hz. Remember they will read less after use and shouldn't be re tensioned to new spec.
