Afternoon all, I'm in the middle of a complete winter strip-down, service, stainless/titanium bolts replacement therapy session on my 1098R (too much time on my hands) and today i reached the swingarm and hub/axle assembly. The Axle popped out with no issues thankfully and is as mint as you'd expect from a 5500 mile bike, so a big relief there. Good to see it'd been properly greased, as i've read a few horror stories about axles corroding into place and refusing to budge. The hub took some mild persuading but eventually it popped-out, along with a load of rusty water from the swingarm cavity The hub outside surface hadn't been greased at all, in fact, there was bugger-all grease present except for where the axle slides through it. Looked inside the actual swingarm through a port where the hub sits, and it's not a pretty picture. A fair amount of water was present, and corrosion has set-into the swingarm inside. I soaked up most of the water with paper towels and microfibre cloths, and i've packed out the swingarm cavity with warm kitchen-roll and microfibre cloths to try and soak up the rest. Once it's properly dried i'll go at it with a rust-stopper to try and put a stop to it going any further. Will try to take some pictures later, i'm seething bloody mad at the moment, so need to calm down a bit! Just a word of caution if you've ever ridden your bike in the rain or have drenched the swingarm whilst cleaning, it might well be worth a strip-down of the hub assembly to check for water and that it's been greased properly!
Yup Nelson's right common fault either due to prolonged spray from riding in the rain or pressure washing. I took my swinging arm to bits about 3 years back to get it powdercoated black. Inside after the eccentric hub was removed there was somewhere between a 3/4 to a pint of water, alongwith swarf not cleaned out from machining. A right old mess. You could drill a small hole at the lowest point but I'm a bit sceptical about how useful that would be, it may just allow more to get in. I cleaned mine all out dried it up then lashings of ACF 50. I suppose I should check it again, that said I rarely ride in the rain and I'm careful where I point the hose now. Not very helpful in terms of a fix but does let you know that "they all do that sir" John
I was quite disappointed the hub hadn't a single spot of grease on it, and wasn't moving as slickly as you'd want it to. Shame on you Ducati, especially on a 1098R. Rust issues aside, i'd heavily recommend a hub strip and re-grease to everyone before things start corroding into place!
Can't help IDB Didn't take any at the time as I recall most of the water and swarf I found was at the hub end. On the old Ducati UK forum Topolino 65 (if I have it right) also posted up the same thing and I've heard of a few other cases, so I reckon its a pretty generic fault. Whipping out the hub isn't exactly an engine out job. Cleaning and drying the arm lots of ACF 50 and waterproof grease will go a long way to protect it, as IMHO it gets in through the hub edges and can't get back out. John
Oddly enough i've just bought a tin of ACF50 after hearing good things about it. Stripping the axle and hub out was easy, a nice simple job and it gives you a good opportunity to clean-up all the areas around the swingarm too which are usually covered in chain-lube etc :wink: Definitely a job well worth doing
Argonaut, you may have been better off with the bottle of AFC-50 with the pump dispenser bottle, it seems to remain thinner and give reasonable coverage, I bought a can a couple of years back, and despite keeping it inside and shaking the hell out of it it always came out like shaving foam with not great coverage, the bottle and trigger combo was/is much better, just gave my engine a soaking in it to ward off moisture in our garage. May have to get JHP to check my hub at its next service.
Curses, foiled again! I'm sure i'll get the damned stuff in there somehow, by hook or by crook it won't beat me!
Obviously I am concerned about the safety of this old wreck that you've bought and will gladly take it of you FOC as a favour :smile:
What are friends for eh? Aaah, she's good as gold really. It's my overly-demanding standards in that i'm expecting a 5 year old bike to be showroom-fresh-as-new (hence the replacement of anything looking even mildly worn, dirty or iffy). The winter strip-down has been well worth it so far, i've found a few examples of poor maintenance, a few broken/damaged items and obviously this ungreased hub really boiled my piss more than anything else (old Naval expression before anyone asks). To be honest, i've never had more fun! :biggrin:
My opinion, ACF50 is alright as long as youre not spraying it anywhere where dirt can get to it. So inside your swinger should be fine. I used it on my CB1300 commuter and found that shit sticks to it like it does a blanket, forming a nice grinding paste on my shocks. Cleaned off easy enough but I dont bother with it any more, particularly as the tin ran out of gas with half the liquid left. I spray GT85 liberally after each wash now. Much better. And cheaper. Even smells nicer. Ive dosed the 848s shock and under the fairing a couple of times but it doesnt get the same abuse the Honda gets.
Agree with the above, they all do that sir..... I have to crack the rear hub open every few weeks to let the water run out. It holds quite a lot in that swingarm! After a rain ride or wet track day it will have at least a cup full of water inside. Design flaw really..... but it has never affected the concentric hub.....
