Hi Have been thinking about doing my own belts on the bike, but am put off by all the stuff i read about increased belt tension once the bike is hot and damaging the belts. I know there have been loads of advice about how to do it, but i am still a little unsure if it is actually that easy? Going to do my oil as well but am less concerned about that, other than spilling the stuff everywhere Have looked at loads of videos (just about the bike!) so just wanted a little bit of reassurance from any of you guys that have already done a belt change, that it is not that difficult to do. Don't really want to have to rely on a dealer to do everything i should be perhaps doing my self and learning a bit more in the proccess. Can manage to do break pad changes and cosmetic stuff, so i must not be that bad Thanks alot. Mark
Absolutely one of the easier jobs to carry out on these engines. I use the 5 & 6 mm allen key method for the belt tension.
If you are worried about it, see if this helps.... AL CAM BELT CHANGE EASY GUIDE I did this as an experiment for those of you that are of nervous disposition wondering if you should change your cam belts yourself. It applies to my 750SS, but I guess it applies to many other models as well. It also applies to bikes that are running properly and don’t have timing issues. OK…..First of all make sure you have the right cam belts….earlier SSs at least up to my 1997 model had square teeth (part number 066029090), later models had rounded teeth. Get the bike up on a paddock stand and whip the plugs out. You only need to take off the right side fairing. Get the belt covers off…..the front one can be a b*******d, and you usually find you will have to undo the upper oil cooler hose union at the bottom. If you have carb heaters turn them off…..this minimises oil loss when you get the union undone…stick your finger over the end of the hose, pull the front belt cover out forwards and reconnect the oil hose union. Look for the timing marks on the three large belt pulleys and turn the engine over by hand until they all align with their respective marks on the casings etc….. (To turn the engine over either put it in second gear or use one of the belt pulley silly nut sockets to turn it). When you have the marks aligned, take a white marker (crayon or similar – chalk comes off too easy) and mark the outside of the front belt with an F (or Front), plus mark the belt where the timing mark is on the cam pulley. You can then do the same at the crank pulley (the double one) but the front belt only….if you turn the engine over slightly, you will see that each of the marks you made are in line with a tooth on the belt. Having made your marks, slacken off the adjuster bolts and swing the movable adjuster under and up behind the belt so it ends up on the inside of the belt rather than the outside. Take the belt off….it will come off easily…..when off, make sure your make your marks more visible (in fact, colour in the respective tooth on the inside of the belt). When the front is off, do the back belt….Mark a B (or Back) on it…….Then mark the cam pulley timing mark on the outside of the belt. The crank pulley (double one) is harder to do, so the easiest thing to do is mark an appropriate groove in the front belt pulley (I managed to get it next to the timing mark)…..and then pick another groove at random on the other side of the same pulley and mark that as well…. Mark the back pulley belt to coincide with those two marks. Slacken off the adjuster bolts and pull the belt slightly to swing the adjuster into the middle of the belt. Take the belt off the cam pulley – it will come off easily, but you will probably find the cam pulley pings off it’s mark because it is under spring pressure….Either remember which way it turned or turn it back anyway….it should stay there if you are careful. Then remove the belt from the double pulley. Now take the old front belt and the new front belt….for ease, turn them so that the lettering is in exactly the same position. Mark the new belt with an F exactly as the old belt. Mark one of the teeth on the new belt on the edge of the tooth and on the outside of the belt exactly as on the old belt. Now count the teeth between the two marks on the old belt and count out the same number of teeth on the new belt (in the same direction) and mark the appropriate tooth as before. Check them twice to make sure you have them right. Do the same with the back belt, only this time you have three marks to count between and you mark it B. Check them twice to make sure you have them right. When you are sure you have the marks correct, put the old belts to one side, and fit the back belt to the double pulley so that the two marks that are closer together are in line with the marks in the front pulley grooves. You will probably need to hold it in place while you fit it to the top pulley…….Don’t worry if the top pulley jumps again, just get the belt over the edge retainer so it is sitting on it…….now turn the pulley until the timing mark is realigned with the casing mark….you should see your marked belt tooth in line as well, so just push the belt on all the way so it drops into the appropriate groove. Now pull the belt out a bit and swing the adjuster back to the outside of the belt…..pull the adjuster by hand so that the belt is tight and tighten the bolts temporarily. Check those three marks on the belt all line up with the aligned timing marks. Now do the front belt in the same way. When you have them all in place and the belts are reasonably tight, slowly turn the engine over by hand and listen / feel for anything wrong….If you have done it properly, it will be OK. Tensioning the belts is not too difficult……do the back one first…..If you have a fishing type spring scales, hook it around the adjuster wheels, slacken the bolts a bit and pull the scales backwards until they read 4.5kg or 10lbs. Tighten the adjuster bolts properly. Check the belt tension also with a 5mm allen key between the fixed belt wheel and the outside of the belt….you should able to push the 5mm key between them fairly easily but not a 6mm allen key. Do the same for the front belt. Turn the engine over by hand again to see if AOK. Then plugs back in, and start the b*gger…….Let it get hot, use some throttle blips as well, then stop the engine…..(I was staggered by how much my belts tightened when it had got hot) and then let it cool and check the belts again….the key method will probably be OK on its own. It took me an hour……But I couldn’t finish it because a previous owner /s had mullered the special adjuster bolt head sockets, so I can’t fully torque them….I have to use a couple of brake disc bolts temporarily but they aren’t the same. Put your bike back together….and check the belts after 300 miles max.
That is a truly excellent posting by AL ! I have copied it into Word and will print it out with any other relevant stuff I find before tackling this job some time in the next few weeks (belts already bought, just need to make space around the bike and plan a sequence of Autumn/Winter maintenenance tasks - oil and valve clearances to be included). Now if anyone has a clever way to get at the rear exhaust valve (obscured by rear shock) I'd be interested to know. I have already concluded that I need to move the oil cooler to get at the front inlet.
When you do your belts, don't forget my thing is a guide, not an instruction.............so think before you move onto each stage....
Point taken, Arquebus. I was intending to use various sources of information such as some of the videos on the web, but I liked the fine detail in your procedure. I've done timing chains on Hondas before, and a belt on a VW, so I feel confident but will take great care bearing in mind the consequences of getting it wrong! I found a nice clear sequence of photos of 750SS maintenance here. No great detail on the cam chain job, but good images anyway: How to service a Ducati 750ss - Documented with pictures - PistonHeads=
Hi Al I would be more than happy to have the pics if you can share them. For me images make the information that much clearer. Thanks a lot Mark
There are seven pics, but they are too large to post here..........if you PM me an email address, I will email you back with them. AL
The first time I did my belts, even though I've had the machine from new, the fit of the Allen key bit in the socket of the adjuster bolts was not as snug as I would have liked. So I used a Torx bit which are slightly tapered and it worked fine. I don't have the torque setting to hand and it is not clear from the workshop manual but I seem to remember it to be about 23N/m.
So I managed to do the belts after checking a few things with AL (thanks for everything mate) and all is good. Quite an easy job, it's just understanding the order of things and the importance of marking everything before removing the belts. The vertical pulley wheel did spring back a little when I removed the old belt. So just hold it back until you have the new one in place. Used the 5mm Allen key trick to set the tension on the horizontal and 6mm on the vertical as it gets less cool air to it and so remains much hotter. Will check the tension after around 200 miles I think. Cheers Mark
600 miles belt tension should be checked after change I believe, but I'm still waiting to get that far
Confessional time......I've changed my belts 3 times, fourth is due over this Winter, and I've never given them a second look after changing them till the interim service 12 months later. Think I will this time though. Who says I never get any good luck :biggrin:
