I bought new engine mount studs from TPOparts after reading all the cracked case horror stories. My bike has the 10mm studs and they sent me 12mm studs. Nowhere did they say they were 12mm, only that it would fit my bike and install easily in 15 minutes with readily available hand tools. Nowhere did they mention that drilling might be required.
I contacted the seller, who advised drilling out the frame and case holes to 12mm. I posted the text below for reference.
I'm skeptical that this is a good idea and am as skeptical that I can do it myself without totaling my bike.
Any suggestions or thoughts? Feedback, as always, is much appreciated.
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The 12mm studs are usable on the models which had 10mm studs from the factory, you simply need to drill out the mounting holes to 12mm size. This does not weaken the bike--in fact, it has the opposite effect as the 12mm studs are much stronger than the factory 10mm studs. There is plenty of "meat" in the engine casing to support the 12mm hole. The engine castings are designed for 12mm studs, though for some models Ducati did not drill the holes out all the way, and they used the smaller 10mm stud instead. Usually the only thing you have to drill out is the frame tabs, as the factory fit between the engine casing and the studs is very sloppy and the 12mm studs will fit the engine with minimal fuss. All you need to do is drill out the frame tabs with a 12mm or slightly larger drill bit.
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Drilling long holes in cast aluminum with a hand-held drill motor does not sound like fun to me.
I am also skeptical of the claim that the engine holes are really 12mm on the 10mm frames.
Yeah. I'd be inclined to decline. The frame holes would be one thing, the motor mounts seem way riskier.
"you simply need to drill out the mounting holes"
It doesn't sound simple to me BWDIK. I would hate to mess up the cases when the intent was to protect them.
To be fair to TPO:
It is probably a typo. They probably meant to say; Some people can easily drill out the cases. I would assume those people do bit more than run a hand drill through the cases.
IMO not without drill guides, a press and most importantly, a lot of balls. That kind of work with aluminum scares me a bit.
I didn't include the entire email for the sake of brevity and I wasn't sure what this conversation would look like. Here's most of the rest of it:
The directions are simple:
Start with one of the factory bolts installed (doesn't matter which). Remove the other one, and drill out the frame tabs and the engine hole from both sides of the bike. This is easily done since there is already a hole there. All you are doing is enlarging it slightly. You don't have to worry about drilling crooked as your drill bit will follow the existing hole. You don't need a fixture, just run the drill bit into the existing hole to enlarge it.
Once one hole is drilled out, clean out the chips from the hole and install one of the new studs. Torque it down. Then remove the last stud and repeat.
This comes down to your confidence in being able to follow the instructions. Buy a brand new super drill bit at the least...
Quote from: D3vi@nt on November 10, 2014, 02:25:09 PM
I didn't include the entire email for the sake of brevity and I wasn't sure what this conversation would look like. Here's most of the rest of it:
The directions are simple:
Start with one of the factory bolts installed (doesn't matter which). Remove the other one, and drill out the frame tabs and the engine hole from both sides of the bike. This is easily done since there is already a hole there. All you are doing is enlarging it slightly. You don't have to worry about drilling crooked as your drill bit will follow the existing hole. You don't need a fixture, just run the drill bit into the existing hole to enlarge it.
Once one hole is drilled out, clean out the chips from the hole and install one of the new studs. Torque it down. Then remove the last stud and repeat.
Yeah, you can do that. Your should probably have a bit that has ~7in/175mm of working area... that's a long bit. Sure, you're only taking a 1mm bite, but a hand drill will easily still go fast enough to gall the bit, so make sure you have a variable speed motor and take your time.
http://www.mcmaster.com/#88455a88/=ujeyq3 (http://www.mcmaster.com/#88455a88/=ujeyq3) This bit is long enough, but is not rated for aluminum...
Make sure the holes stay lined up on both sides of the bike while this operation is going on... if one bolt won't come out while the other is tight, this operation has a higher chance of tweaking something irrevocably during the process.
I'm just saying it doesn't sound like fun to me.
Well, the directions are indeed simple.
Welding is simple too, you just heat up both parts until they're both melting and then start adding filler rod.
:-\
I've measured a handful of early cases that I've got, rear holes are ~11mm, front holes ~10.5mm.
So it's highly likely that it's going to be necessary to drill the cases, not just the frame.
I've done it, and I wouldn't describe it as particularly easy to drill the cases or the frame by hand, as it's a large drill.
Not particularly hard either, but I've been doing that kind of thing for a long time.
Perhaps there's someone that can help you in person, preferably someone who's done it.
Or send 'em back and get some 10mm ones.
http://nicholssportbikes.com/products/N10MMBOLTKIT_WOS.html (http://nicholssportbikes.com/products/N10MMBOLTKIT_WOS.html) No drilling required.
Quote from: howie on November 10, 2014, 03:19:41 PM
http://nicholssportbikes.com/products/N10MMBOLTKIT_WOS.html (http://nicholssportbikes.com/products/N10MMBOLTKIT_WOS.html) No drilling required.
THIS! ^^^^^
Do *NOT*
simplyl drill your cases & frame. :o
Thanks for all the feedback, folks. Informative, as well as entertaining. :D
I plan to RMA the TPO bolts and probably go with the Nichols or a new set of the OEM's and replace them every 30k or so.
I'm a little peeved I'll likely have to eat shipping both ways. I never would've bought the things if I knew they were 12mm and/or required drilling to install. But that's just me b1tching.
Thanks again. I really appreciate this forum and the folks in it. [bow_down]
Quote from: D3vi@nt on November 11, 2014, 07:27:57 AM
Thanks for all the feedback, folks. Informative, as well as entertaining. :D
I plan to RMA the TPO bolts and probably go with the Nichols or a new set of the OEM's and replace them every 30k or so.
I'm a little peeved I'll likely have to eat shipping both ways. I never would've bought the things if I knew they were 12mm and/or required drilling to install. But that's just me b1tching.
Thanks again. I really appreciate this forum and the folks in it. [bow_down]
Don't return them, put them up for sale here! I'm sure someone needs a set...