Hi all, just wondering if anyone has any experience with these? BARNETT CLUTCH KIT DUCATI 900/SS/IE/916/998/999 | eBay I'm guessing the way to go would be with the Barnett basket as well, but funds are thin at the moment. Any problems fitting to a generic basket and is there a better and/or cheaper alternative. Thanks in advance
I wouldn't mix alloy plates (as these are) with a steel basket but otherwise there should be no problem fitting to a generic alloy clutch basket. I recently bought a Sigma alloy clutch basket and IIRC it was only (!) about 15-20% more expensive than the OEM steel part (900SS)
I keep Barnett kits and alloy baskets in stock...in fact have a special offer on the baskets, they are normally £186, now at £150...a Barnett kit is £186 posted......and its not a difficult job, but you'll need a holding tool to get the centre nut undone...or we can fit it for you......
Hi Nog - do you do the Barnet friction plates only or do they just come as kits? Am up to my ears with plain plates!
Sorry Lindsay, they come as a kit........I think Surflex do just the frictions but I've heard of a number of them snapping, and we certainly used to have that happen on the R6's we ran in Supersport......
Why wouldn't you mix alloy plates with steel basket? Ive had a Barnett clutch in a standard basket for a couple of years with no issues. It has started to slip after approx 7000 miles though. I'm not sure what other people's experiences are...
Its worse the other way round...ie original steel friction plates in an alloy basket.....wears the basket v quickly.....
There is more chance of steel basket knocking hell out of alloy plates and vice versa than alloy/alloy or steel/steel
All depends how they ride...some ppl ride the clutch all the time and they'll get much less from a kit than someone that doesnt...I have customers who wear them out in 5000 miles and others who get 17000 from them......its amazing how those that get low mileage complain that it must be the kit......and yet they consistantly get low mileage......I see a broad spread and get repeat customers...its always the same ones that get both high and low mileage...so it has to be their riding style.....
Surprisingly I've just been quoted £171 for a Standard Ducati clutch pack. They were £220 last time I enquired a few years ago! Always worth checking ducati prices as they do go up and down....
Greyman, I have the Barnett alloy basket with the stainless inserts fitted to my 748, I fitted it with a set of new Barnett plates when I put it on the bike. The basket is a nice bit of kit which wears better than the original steel one (badly notched at 14k miles) and at 16k miles since fitting it has no notching. However the alloy friction plates flatten off where they impact the basket inserts a little quickly for my liking (clearances over 2.5 mm after 7k miles). I think the clearance between the steel inserts in the basket and the friction plate tangs is too great from new and they don't seem to meet the service clearance limit Ducati specify. I have tried three different alloy plate sets with this basket over teh last 4 years and the Barnett plate tangs wear better than the Ducati ones, however the Barnett friction material did not wear as well. The cheaper (£70-80) plate kits that are supplied on ebay work ok but don't give you the mileage as the plate tangs and friction material wear faster. Ducati ones are thicked at the engagement face. From my experience the alloy basket is great and the OEM alloy plates are the better option, however I am not sure the slightly longer life over the Barnett ones is worth the extra cost over the Barnett plates. The cheaper plates I am currently running look like they won't make 4k before the rattle becomes too loud so I will be going back to the better qulaity ones soon. It seems I am doomed to need a new set of plates every 7k miles or so. If you get the Barnett plates remember that the Barnett plate installation may not follow the normal Ducati OEM order and they usually include an installation instructions sheet in the kit. For mine they sent me this
Thanks Denzil, I think! What you're saying is which ever way I go I'm screwed, right? Stick with the stock stuff and it's gonna wear out (in this case, after 8K ish) or go for the all singing all dancing Barnett setup and I'm still not likely to get an improvement? No particular way is a good way? Bugger! In the meantime I've ordered an Oberon slave cause my bloody arm is falling off!! A mate told me Ducati's eat clutches and I told him I couldn't care less, I'm still getting one, glad I did!
Not strictly true Greyman...if you want a race clutch go for a full slipper set up....IN WHICH the Barnett plates can be used successfully. They can ALSO replace the std road going plates in the std clutch, and make a viable alternative to OE clutches which historically have been ridiculously expensive. How long a clutch lasts depends on how you use it....I have sold hundreds of Barnett kits...and its always the same people that get low mileage from them, and the same people that always get high mileage...irrespective of the bike...as the same kit fits 99% of all Ducati clutches....its down to the rider.....
The Barnett basket weighs substantially less than the OEM steel basket which gives a slightly better response to the throttle, if my experience is common then they seem to last better as well. Also when I bought it, it was an ebay import from the States when the £ was worth $1.95 so I saved nearly 200 quid on a full clutch basket, plate and spring replacement (which was desperately needed when I bought the bike with 14k on the clock). I would have to say that the reason I change the plates when I have done is not due to slipping under high torque load but mainly due to the noise and rattling. Although I do like the noise they make, its a Ducati thing after all, when they are worn it simply sounds alien to my mechancial engineer brain (impact noise on a mechanical system is usually a bad thing). Also IMHO the dry clutch set up is a crude and ancient solution to the problem for a bike I want to drive as often as possible. Whilst it has its benefits for easy plate changing it cannot be the best solution for bikes used primarily on the road. Anyway I would not drive anything else, rattling clutch is a small price to pay.
Now then, update time, Oberon slave and Barnett clutch duly arrived and fitted and the results are: Worse Fitted the Oberon first, bled it through, dragging like a SOB, worse than the stock item in direct comparison?? Curious. Fitted the Barnett and am still at square one!! I've dialled in the adjuster on the lever to allow the pushrod a little more movement but feel this is not the correct way of doing things. One thing I notice with the Oberon is that it comes with a small perhaps 5-6mm pushrod adaptor that Oberon say should be used in the new slave if your bike is of the older variety. Older than what?? Talk about ambiguous!! What I'm thinking now though, if I use the adaptor and dial the lever adjuster all the way out, which is where in my eyes it should be with new plates, I should perhaps be almost there. All theory this. I will also bleed the slave again on the assumption that there is still some air in there, because the dragging is worse when the bike is properly hot, which indicates this. Have to say I'm disappointed, at this point, with the Oberon. I had hoped it would make the action a little lighter but there appears to be no real noticeable difference, perhaps marginable. Is this other peoples experience of Oberon or am I going to have to purchase a new master cylinder as well? Good fun all the same if not a PITA. :biggrin:
Maybe I've missed something but I've not seen any mention of the bike and year. This is important as the pushrod length was changed (can't remember when doh...) hence the spacer. I sure someone will be along to refresh my failing memory.
Soz, MY02 748. The expression, "Oh my, a fool and his money" spring to mind. I am now stuck with an Oberon slave with the adaptor (7-8 mm) situated nicely in its final resting place. In the slave with no way of getting it out!? I didn't even check to see if it was magnetic so I could pull it out, I assumed it was, are you laughing yet . What a plank. Put the old one back on in the meantime until I decide what to do with the nice useless shiny new slave. Can't even test ride it coz of the drought. I will not swear.
