‘Modern Slavery’ Troubles

[Martin C]

I’m on a 3-week tour of Spain & Portugal, solo on my 2001 ST4, as in many recent years. Today the clutch slave cylinder suddenly failed and leaked empty, making my bike unrideable, for the first time in about 15 years of annual M900 & ST4 Iberian trips.
After some bureaucratic breakdown service delays and a 5 hour roadside wait for recovery in 30C heat (I found a shady tree and I always have plenty of water & cereal bars!) I was eventually taken at my request to a nearby small town which has a highly recommended bike mechanic. Unfortunately he doesn’t want to work on a Ducati!
Whilst waiting, I discovered grom the ever-knowledgeable Tim at Ducati Coventry’s Parts Dept that the Ducati slave cylinder (19540031A) - which is fitted to loads of models - is discontinued: it seems you now have to fit the later type plus a new non-rotating pushrod. I rang the very helpful Oberon, who can expedite their own upgraded cylinder to my unplanned hotel, where I’m going to fit it myself in the carpark! It should be 3 allen bolts and some messy bleeding….
I have no idea how anyone without a fully charged smartphone would ever be able to cope with this stuff!

 

[Bitza]

Well hope it all goes smoothly, and an easy bleed. (Just as well it's not an upside down r/brake caliper)
Had an equivalent problem on an early Le Mans, but it was remarkably easy to ride clutchless, London to Yorkshire no problem.

 

[utopia]

I have ridden abroad a few times but only ever within a group and with the added benefit of a van which could afford emergency return transport.
I have never had a breakdown on these trips although other members of the group have on more than one occasion.
A solo trip without back-up strikes me as being fairly brave (although I am probably getting less adventurous in my older age).
Fair play to you.
Hope you get it sorted without further stress.

 

[Dukedesmo]

A solo trip without back-up strikes me as being fairly brave (although I am probably getting less adventurous in my older age).
Fair play to you.

Have to agree, in my advancing years I'd be wary of travelling abroad by bike without some serious backup plan.

As a youth it didn't concern me though, I remember my first proper roadtrip - from Florence, Italy to Zurich, Switzerland and return (around 800 miles) to see a Led Zeppelin concert almost half a century ago.

A couple of us went by bike with no preparation, no plan, no luggage, no proper gear. We just set off early morning and came back after the gig.

Luckily, being summer the weather was good though we did see some rain in Switzerland but my jeans had dried by the time we got into the concert.

I was on a scruffy old Ducati 250 Scrambler with no real service history, a knackered voltage regulator that caused all the bulbs to blow so only a dim 6v headlight that brightened (very slightly) with revs and a non-working speedo.

We got there and back with no issues though, other than my ****-poor headlight meaning I had to follow on the dark, return journey.

A few weeks later the big-end bearing went and it died with a 'dugga-dugga-bang' noise, luckily not too far from home.

Happy days eh!...

 

[jerry]

in thailand in 2014 when some berk smashed my S4's Clutch master cylinder with his Truck due to careless parking i had to ride 280 mile home with no clutch , stopping on inclines , timing traffic lights , and making sure the fuel stop was on a hill ,, it was nerve racking but i made it all gear changes were clutchless up and down the box ,,,