The bolt on my bike has been ground down and I want to replace it with something that looks a bit tidier and OEM I understand that flat bolts used to be available, I can't seem to find any available anywhere. One option is to put an original bolt back in and replace the spring arm with an aftermarket bypass type, however this is expensive (the bolt and spring plate comes to over £50) and IMO the bypass spring plate is a bit ugly. I do have a pal with an engineering business that could manufacture a short run of flat headed bolts to replace the original, a couple of questions, is there much of a demand for them and if so how much do you think I charge for one? Here is a photo of the original Ducati item
I've done a bit more research, below is what I would get manufactured (but in stainless steel) and could sell for around £15.00 plus postage. Is there a demand? I was thinking of an initial run of 50 with a significant discount for forum members
Mine is 'ground down' to stop the flip up, but I filed flats onto mine and then lockwired it..........As long as it doesn't come undone, it doesn't have to be under torque. If there are big flats like the one above, it could snag the spring plate and give you a flip-up when you least expect it....
I would be interesting to see if any members are using the one above and if they are experiencing any problems, plan B would be to copy the dome of the OEM bolt and just machine 2 flat sides on to it.
I would be up for one or two depending on final price P.S. - is O.E.M. screw shown above obsolete now?
The original Ducati bolt is still available, the one in the second photo which allows the stand to stay down is no longer available.
It took two minutes to file two flats onto mine..........it took longer to drill a 1.00mm diameter hole across it for lockwiring.
The solution I am looking at developing is an exact replica of the OEM nut but without the raised post but still incorporating a recessed Allen slot so it can be torqued up properly. It won't be a budget solution but it will have a quality OEM look and feel. Watch this space....
You don't need to have it torqued up...... ....you could take the bloody nut thing off and the bike would still stay on the stand..... ....all that is needed is the stand stays on the pivot, with the nut close to the stand eye.
Dont worry Al it's not compulsory to buy one! All I'm looking to do is to produce a quality alternative that looks OEM not everyone wants to use an angle grinder and hacksaw, there are also some reports of the bolts coming loose and snapping, so an Allen fitting is a sensible solution
Oh, OK........:wink: I have two OEM nut thingys......one ground down for non-flip up and one for flip-up........both lockwire-able..........I decided to do it that way after trying to get them off when they had been Loctited (or something tougher than that)........it took hours, heat and a lot of sweat.
If you can give me a few hours today to get some work stuff done, I will grab the OEM un-ground one and measure the whole thing and the threads etc....
Thanks Al, To make the end cost more affordable, I'm going to start with a simple flat head bolt in stainless steel, I'll get a couple made and test it on my own bike before selling them, I'll send you one to try.
Here 'tis........ Sorry, I haven't got many M12 thread variations to check the pitch with.........but I can tell you that it isn't normal pitch (1.75) and I reckon it must be an M12 fine at 1.5....Probably best to buy a plain steel nut and check. If you need any more just shout...........Note, There appears no need for the hole in the rear threaded part. On a ground down version, I think the allen socket can go in further when the head is ground down, if something can cut the hex shape into the 6mm hole........ On an OEM one, there is 2mm of metal inside between the allen socket and the hole from the rear. AL
It is an M12 x 1.25mm pitch thread.... ..same as a spark plug and it's in the workshop manual to confirm it. The thread on my untouched OEM one has no doubt deteriorated by the corrosion that was probably done by battery acid spills.............too worn to measure really accurately, but the stand pivot pin thread is AOK.
That's brilliant Al, should have a couple of stainless steel prototypes by mid Feb, I'll send you one to try, could you PM me your address? They will look like this
