Hi, anyone experienced noises, a groan and shuddering when pulling away from a stop? What I've seen in the old posts(grease, etc) hasn't helped. There is a detent on the "pin" (part # 38 on Fiche page C3), is there supposed to be a ball bearing in the detent? There isn't one shown in the microfiche, but several bikes I've worked on in the past have had one in a similar location. None of them Ducatis, however...

This is somewhat "normal" for dry clutch ducatis. My 748 does it too and my Paso will also do it tho infrequently.

Pull the cover and clean out the dust. The clutch must be assembled in the proper sequence. That is list in the tech faq post.

Thanks Jon, I already did copy the "clutch sequence" from the FAQ and restacked the plates, cleaned them, blew them out w/compressed air after running for a while. I pulled the clutch slave piston, and the pin spins freely in the piston. I tried to pull the pin anyways, but it won't come out. So I repacked the bearing with grease, reassembled and bled the clutch really well.

Noise is still there. My other thought is to pull the slave piston from my spare motor, whose pin does come out. Then, change the bearing and put that one in, see if it helps? Or spring for a new clutch (ouch!)

Bearing can be also worn.... Did U check those matal plates between friction plates. Normal colour?, NOT blue(what means U have to trow them away, cause they have been "glaced") and then they touch only some part of them to friction plates :toofar: Those plates MUST be in good condition.... If You have to change hole clutch assembly, go to STM 48 teeth basket with very good package of all plates :thumbup: That is good choise, if basket "holes" are worn too big and start to make too big that "rattle and hum" :thumbup:

If it's the groan when slipping the clutch I doubt messing with the slave will help. This is just like squeeking brakes...in reverse. The friction discs slip and grab against the metal discs. It really a shuuder/judded of very slight slip-grab-slip-grab-slip-grab within the disc stack. It's not (supposed to be) bad for the clutch. It's just annoying!

Thanks Jon, what I've been reading elsewhere confirms what you're saying, that it's most likely the basket tabs having grooves, and the clutch drive plates getting hour-glass shapes! I had this problem with my 900ss, and the final fix was a new clutch. (a Barnett, after the offical Ducati fix didn't fix it) I may try to file the basket and clutch tabs flat again, but that's a short term solution at best.

Anatti, your idea is probably best, replace the 12 tooth with a 48 tooth (more surface area, less load per tab), but that's an expensive solution! More than the whole bike cost me to change over all the parts....

And you're right, it sure is annoying! Trying to drag race granny off the red light, and the clutch grabs, grunt, groan, grunt! and the rpm's fall below 1500, rendering all the performance of a Vespa! Damn do I look cool!