Ducati Monster Forum

well not really.
But I do have an oil leak somewhere which when parked seems to run down the kickstand.

It's very odd tho.. it didn't leak at all over the weekend  I commuted on my bike friday, got home, threw a piece of cardboard under the bike to see if it leaked, not a drop from friday to sunday morning.  I went and got gas today before meeting someone, rode about 10 mins on city streets, got to my meeting.  parked.  stood around for 10 mins, and blam, leaking oil.  Not a lot, but enough that it dripped out in 3 nickel-sized spots, also near the kickstand area.  Also there was oil on the bottom of the engine case

Road all morning, got home.  It dropped one little drop of oil after sitting for an hour.  And there's no oil on the engine case now.

I thought maybe it was just OEM chain grease heating up and liquifying, but it definitely has the feel and consistency of motor oil.

So anyway, any good way to track down an oil leak that seems to be intermittent?

Mine does that when the slave leaks.

Easiest way to track down any fluid leak is with aerosol foot powder.

Clean with detergent and water. Let dry, and cover with the powder. The source of the leak should be evident, or at least you can eliminate sources.

That is my vote...Mine did the same. At least it is cheap fix. Slave rebuild kit was like 15 bucks from my local Duc dealer.

I had a small oil leak running down the kickstand and some new clutch pushrod o-rings fixed it right up.

BK

I too had what I thought was an oil leak right there that was the slave instead. Either way, oil or brake fluid, DPs suggestion should let you pin it down.

+1

Most common fault is the clutch push rod O-rings as listed above but I have seen the transmission output shaft seal start leaking with similar results.

I always thought the "kickstand oil leak" problem reakkt came from a bad turn signal fluid seal.

Stu told me it was from overpacked muffler bearings

Yeah, but only if you have a worn Knudsen Kneutson valve.

He forgot to tell me that - must be proprietary info - those experts don't want us hacks to know everything

As another helpful suggestion - you might try a wrist band on the kick stand - I prefer Adidas

go for a child size. the adult sizes dont fit too well.

If you can't find a child size, you can always secure it with an adjustable power band.

All of these great products are available from Kale Auto at...

kalecoauto.com (http://kalecoauto.com)

Thanks for the responses.

I'll eliminate the o-rings as the cause first and hope it's not the output shaft.

If it's the o-rings, would that present itself as oil coming out near the clutch slave?  Is there anything else I should replace while I have it all apart?

I have the desmotimes book.  It seems pretty straight forward to remove/replace.  Anything I should look out for?  How many difficulty wrenches would it be?  (1 wrench, easy.  5 wrenches, leave it to a pro)

actually, it isnt oil. thats one of the first things you need to make sure off.

ITs dirty clutch fluid that leaks out and looks like oil. chances are the stains on your engine are not removable without some heavy duty stuff like 100% pure stem cell based cleaner.

If you remove your slave clutch (just take the 3 bolts off) you can look inside of it and see the orings. it should be the ones that are cloest to your body as your looking into it.

Honestly, just replace it with an aftermarket one. they are cheap these days and always on sale if you buy the not so well known brand ones ( honestly they all seem to be high quality copy cats of the original 2, yoyo and evo since its hard to deviate from their design.)

If it's dirty brake fluid, it's the slave.

If it's engine oil, there is a good probability that it is the clutch pushrod o-rings.  The two tiny ones.  You can't see them until you slide out the long pushrod.  Cheap and easy to swap out.  Mine were done at about 10k miles.

Less likely is the output shaft seal or the alternator cover near the clutch slave mounting bolt, due to repeated flexing.

Be optimistic and change the little o-rings  [drink]

BK

thanks
so one of these http://www.monsterparts.com/pc/90041/CB-Parts/90041.html (http://www.monsterparts.com/pc/90041/CB-Parts/90041.html)
and some push rod orings from the dealer it sounds like.

so... drain clutch line, disconnect clutch line, remove slave.  Replace orings on push rod.  install new slave, reconnect clutch line, fill with fluid and bleed?

i just found a speedymoto wrist band with billet adjuster ring. i'm going to get it in gold......shinny gold. ;) ;)

If you want to cover all your bases, or you are sure the leak is brake fluid and not engine oil, or if you simply want an excuse to get a fancy slave cylinder, then by all means get a new slave.  All are good reasons!  Pushrod o-rings are cheap and quick, and just might solve your kickstand issue.

I like to swap the slave line as quickly as possible, with as little line drainage as possible.  Makes it easier to bleed all the air out and get a lever back.  I even pre-fill the slave a bit with a syringe.

BK

Your problem could be the slave, pushrod O rings or the side cover.  The disengaging and engaging of the clutch flexes the side cover in that area.  Over time the sealant can tear, causing a leak.  Follow ducpainter's advice and get out the aerosol powder.

I'm having the same leak Andy, wanna grab some 0-Rings together we can fix them at my place.. It's really easy to do the job just gotta make sure you lube the o-rings before you re-install..

Do you have to cut those little 0-rings off the push rod?

Nope, just get some pig-tail picks from the local hardware store and pop them out. One could actually do it with a tooth pick and squeeing the ring, but it's a little hard to explain on the interwebs.

Like the tine of a cork puller, that oughta work. God knows I've got plenty of corkscrews. [wine]

maybe.  I'm going to order a new clutch slave and replace that while I'm at it.  I'll let you know.

Chain oil also tends to build up in that area, I have not seen mine drip but every time I replace my front sprocket there is always alot of chain lube to clean up.

replaced the pushrod orings today.  The old ones seemed worn down compared to the new ones, at least to my finger tip.  Local dealer didn't have any aftermarket slaves, so I'll order one and replace it when it gets here.  Getting the orings off took longer than getting it apart and putting it back together.


Thanks everyone.  Hopefully that solves it.

New clutch slave arrived today (thank you monsterparts) that I ordered monday.

I've never done this before, any tips?


Any recommendations on brake fluid?

Yes, new brass washers for the fittings and pre-fill the slave with brake fluid before assembly. Don't forget that brake fluid is caustic to paint so be careful there. As for bleeding, if you are not familiar with the process, ask someone local to show you. once you learn it; it will save you lots of dealer labor doing your own brakes and such.

If you can, get a helper. They can mind the fluid level in the res, while you keep an eye on the bleeder line. It will talk a while to get the last of the air out of the line when you swap the slave, probably a couple refills of the reservoir.

One other simple trick is, after you're done bleeding it, pull the lever to the bar and strap it down. Leave it that way over night or a bit longer. That can help let any last, troublesome bubbles filter up into the reservoir.

Oh, and have everything ready for your swap in place and ready to go before you break the seal. Once you open it up fluid comes out a good bit quicker and you'd think.

so whatever DOT 3 or 4 fluid at the local auto parts place is fine?

I'd stick with DOT 4

cool, thanks.  The desmotimes book says 3 or 4, but I'll go with the 4.

May I should take pics and do a tutorial

So today when I was leaving work I noticed a spot of oil under my bike.  I'm not the only bike that parks there so I didn't think much of it.

Got home without incident, and went out a couple hours later to lube my chain.  Noticed the same spot of oil and a little oil on my front sprocket cover.  OK.  not good, but not the end of the world.  Probably the o-rings on the push rod again.

Unbolted the clutch slave (evoluzione) and about a teaspoon or two of oil poured out.  it was all trapped in the hollow of the piston.  OK.  that's not making me feel better.

So 1) what's the lifespan of those o-rings typically?  2) is that a lot of oil to be worried about?

Was it oil or brake fluid? 

Oil.

Back to the beginning:

http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=34435.msg599639#msg599639 (http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=34435.msg599639#msg599639)

I tried it, and it works great.

My oil leak is coming from from underneath my little piggie.

 ;)

yes i'm well aware of how to track down where it's leaking.  Based on what I found once I took everything apart it's pretty clear to me I'm getting blowby on the pushrod.  My questions were:

I might have replaced mine sometime in the last 40K miles, I don't recall.

I'd worry about any oil dripping potentially on the rear tire.

Just another datapoint....the pushrod o-rings the factory installed on my M695 started leaking at about 5k miles if I remember right.  I now keep some on hand and replace them whenever I have the rod out and it's been a while.  Not that they need replacing each time, but they're cheap and I have zero tolerance for oil leaks.  I also try to inspect/clean the bore in the case and lube the o-rings with a little lithium grease during installation.

BK