[Speeddog]

S4 owners, if you've raised your forks in the triples, you might want to reconsider!

All pics are with the forks fully compressed. Fork position in the triples is per Factory Service Manual specs, 195.5mm above the top of the lower triple!

(Oh yeah, I know my bike's dirty, so get over it. : )

This pic shows the fender - radiator area. The fender is not just touching the radiator, it's pushing on the radiator. Scratching that pretty CF fender is one thing, but having the tire snag it and suck it through the forks is mayhem you don't need. Especially when you're pinching hard on the brakes and bottom the front end on a bump. Keep in mind that the forks and frame will be flexed back in that scenario, and there will be even less clearance....

A big warm thanks goes out to Ducati for designing an interference fit on moving parts....fu<kers.

This shows the fender to triple clearance, it's about 3/4" from the horn bracket 'beauty cover', and about 1" from the bottom of the triple itself.

 

[kevdusmc]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

Nick,
Thanks for this info! I'm just wondering the likelihood of the forks compressing that far down while riding on the street. Have you ever heard of anyone bottom out the front forks? BTW, how did you compress the forks for the pictures?

 

[infoage1]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

Nick, great pics. Thanks.

Question:

What is the clearance between the exhaust cam and the front tire under full compresion? I need to know with some precision for those SBK heads I'm playing with.

Thanks,
Tom

 

[Speeddog]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

Nick,
Thanks for this info! I'm just wondering the likelihood of the forks compressing that far down while riding on the street. Have you ever heard of anyone bottom out the front forks? BTW, how did you compress the forks for the pictures?

I've come within about 3/4" of bottoming on hard hits, with the OEM (way too much) high speed compression damping. My RaceTech valves I'm installing will have less compression damping, so I'm counting on getting very close to bottoming occasionally.

Fork springs are on the bench, so I can put the forks anywhere.

Tom, the clearance to the exhaust cam area of the head is about 0.700"...those SBK heads could be a little close.

 

[infoage1]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

.70? Cool. I think I'm ok. Those SBK heads are .46 taller and Stig Petterson said our forks might flex 5mm (.2) at the most with a big-time, championship racer very hard on the brakes...so I should be ok .

http://www.ppsracing.com/history.htm

 

[i7of9]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

Just a question about the forks with removed fork springs. When the s4 forks are full compressed with springs vrs without springs is there a difference in total fork displacement? Does a compressed spring keep the fork from going as low as a fork without a compressed spring? This may make a difference in actual clearance.

Just a thought.

 

[Speeddog]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

borg_girl,

Maximum compressed position is when the fork slider (inner tube) bottoms out against the inside of the fork cap. That happens way before the spring reaches 'coil bind', where it's stacked solid, coil upon coil.
Coil binding a spring is really bad for 'em, especially on a real long spring like a fork spring. It would likely buckle and bend several coils, then it'd be jammed inside the fork slider. Ugly.

 

[DucGasm]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

Nick, You raised your forks through the triple, right? Was that to put clip-ons..um..on?

Maybe this is why we got the ST version bars. I see these Vortex clip-ons for $100 or less on ebay all the time, but with the S4 set up I gotta send cyclecat my right arm to get clip-ons.

Wish I could help with your problems, and thanks for the info on my pic problem. Now I gotta get a pic "stretcher" to make it big enough to see.

 

[Speeddog]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

No, the forks are at stock height per my Ducati Service Manual.

About your sig banner, look at the filename. If it starts with 'tn_', erase that 'tn_' and your pic should expand out.

 

[infoage1]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

Nick,

I was looking over my front end to see if I could run a lower aspect ratio tire if I needed to for my SBK heads, and I noticed that the fender mounts are not symmetrical. Meaning, you can take them off, swap them left to right, and lower the front fender about half-an-inch. I just lowered mine, and I see no problem, other than it leaves that much less protection for your fork sliders. And, I think it looks better, not that any one would notice...

 

[Speeddog]

Re: S4 Owners: Warning on Front Fender Clearance !

Thanks for the tip, Tom.

I just checked that out and it looks very promising.