I know this will raise the ire of some, and shouts of blasphemy will be heard, but I de-clacked my 1100S clutch.
When I put the Speedy Moto clutch cover on the noise was just too much. While I have always liked the ring-ring noise when the clutch is disengaged, the clackity-clack-clack noise was just too much. Idling in traffic on a nice day I felt guilty if there was a car with an open window to my right. One day a painter in his work trucked asked "WHAT is that NOISE?". It sounds just like it is: a motor pounding itself to death. And I knew in the back of my mind that there were a lot more whirring noises that could be heard if the clutch would just shut up.
Starting with the instructions at
http://wolfcentral.net/multistrada/quietyerclutch.htm, I did a little more research and found a thread on the Seattle DesmoWorks site that I thought was a better solution. After 30 minutes of work, I had successfully de-clacked my clutch.
What I did, after removing the entire clutch pack, was take the outermost friction plate and place it into the clutch basket first, followed by the rest of the clutch pack in normal order. The two outermost steel plates are next to each other, potentially increasing the ring-ring sound, but there is no ill effect because they are both driven. The best part is I did not need to add a plate (per Wolfie's instructions), and the only change was slightly earlier engagement which was corrected with a half-turn on the adjustment knob.
Upside? Oh, yeah...
1: My Termis have a nice pure basso-profundo bark now. All of the high-frequency "interference" from the clutch is gone.
2: There are lovely hypnotic whirring noises coming from the motor now. I love whirring noises.
3: My clutch used to "gronk" when taking off hard. For whatever reason, no more gronk.
4: The motor is smoother in the dead-throttle range. Before the mod the clack-clack became audible when road speed matched engine speed, particularly in the lower gears, i.e. around town. No longer an issue.
I have not read about any downside, and have not experienced any downside. When I took the bike to my local Ducati shop (Motor Cafe in Sunnyvale) everyone's reaction was the same: a double-take "whoa - that is cool!".
Yes, I know: I am a Philistine, but I am a happy Philistine.
