| Don't forget that it's down to wear issues as well as how good you ride!
A ramp system, while working, only operates because the two surfaces slide against each other under the pressure of the back torque, causing the clutch to slip. Because the Ducati uses a dry clutch, and you change gear quite a lot, under a lot of pressure at the ramp points too, this causes a lot of wear on those surfaces. Keeping it greased and free of dust is good, but it will still wear.
The whole point of the ramp and bearing design is to reduce the amount of wear on the ramp surfaces by using those ball bearings to help the ramps slide. You'll also get a much smoother action because the friction (or stiction!) in the action is far more constant with the bearings. This obviously helps to reduce wear and keeps your clutch working better, and helps to reduce the rate at which your Ducati empties your wallet...
So yes, a plain ramp slipper does work BUT it's the cheapest and least desireable version of a slipper clutch which suffers from the worst wear rate. If it's a 3 ramp design (as AndyB says) then all the power coming out of the engine is transferred on those 3 ramp surfaces under load .... not a pleasant thought!
If you're going to spend the money on one, spend as much as you can and get something decent. An STM 48-tooth may be expensive, but because it uses a six-ramp (instantly doubling the contact surface area thus halving the load so wearing less) and bearing (for smoother action) means that it will last a lot longer. The 48 tooth refers to the clutch pack, where it has 48 teeth in the plates rather than the standard 12, so this too spreads the contact areas over 4 times the standard amount and results in a lot less wear than your standard clutch. Add the fact that it's all aluminium and not only is it lighter for improved accelleration, but the surfaces are hardness balanced and so will wear more evenly too.
So in reality, sticking in a cheap slipper can be false economy in the long term, as you may end up replacing it three times over for the cost of a more effective and better performing but more expensive one.
Hope this helps...  |