| Author | Message | ||
     Dbyrd3130 |
Here we go...9650 miles...not a wheelie or stoppie, ever! The belt broke on i-95- slow speed, luckily and was able to push to a downramp but was in a construction area...not a safe location. I realize the belt is the weak link(pun intended) on this bike that I love so much but I do believe the replacement interval says 15,000 miles? With no time limit? Does anyone have experience with a belt that actually goes up to and beyond the recommended replacement time? If I had known that the belt would not go the distance, I would have replaced it earlier and saved myself some aggravation and a substantial amount of time! Sorry if it seems like I am venting(because that is exactly what I am doing!) but I am now concerned that after replacing this belt, I will not be able to ride too far from home, that my comfort zone has shrunk, that I may now have to restrict my riding...And that is not why we ride!?! | ||
| Xb9ser |
My thoughts exactly I have 03 9s and had 10000 miles on it. I was changeing rear tire and thought it whould be safe to put on up graded 03 belt NOT. I rode for 2 weeks on new belt and it broke!!A friend Twig put on a new belt. Bought from same dealer the same week and his broke 600 miles!!I am running orginal belt till I can get chain conversion.Check out chain conversion saintly and full power have done!! cheaper than 1 belt!! | ||
| Diablobrian |
More and more 03 XB owners plus a few of the newer XB owners are joining "the chain gang" as their belts expire. | ||
| Brucelee |
I have 11,500 on the original 03 unimproved belt. Don't really know what I am going to do when I change it out. Likely go for the 06 kit. | ||
| Pwnzor |
for what its worth I rode my original belt for 10k miles and changed it "just because". I'm now approaching 30k miles total on the bike and this second belt still looks and feels good. I'm gonna see how far it will take me. | ||
| Cereal |
I just bought an 03 xb9r with the original belt at 23k miles. I plan on getting the improved 03 belt and the free spirits belt tensioner. My S1 threw it's belt at 14k. | ||
| Brucelee |
What is the free spirits belt tensioner? | ||
| Cereal |
 http://www.freespiritsrdc.com/catalog/transmission_en.php | ||
| Cereal |
It keeps even pressure on the belt no matter what the load on the rear suspension is. There supposedly has never been a belt break with this system. An 03 Belt + tensioner cost about the same as the 04 upgrade + 06 belt, but I've heard of a few 06 belts break already. (Message edited by cereal on July 29, 2006) | ||
| Percyco |
free spirits belt tensioner Looks like a good idea, do they work ? Where can you get them in the U.S.? | ||
| Diablobrian |
You can order them from Ronlv, or probably from DaveS, and definitely direct from Trojan in the UK. I wouldn't worry about ordering from Matt at Trojan. He has good customer service. | ||
| Aussie_buell |
IMO Buell should replace any broken belt for free. They should certainly replace old 03 belts with the new as a recall as they have already admitted that the originals were weak. I have broken a revised 03 belt with no abuse, only 1000km old. I cant stand how all the Buell advertising shows wheelies and burnouts but the belts are a weak point and if you break it your on your own. Can you imagine if car companies had continual drive shafts breaking, there would be instant recall. I love my Buell, love the belt concept but come on make a tougher, not as vulnerable belt. I also think it is one of the biggest hurdles for a non bueller potential buyer to overcome, as they here of this belt saga. Love me buell though, wouldnt trade it for the world. Might look at one of those tensioners myself as I am wondering if mine broke from the aparent over tension when at full extention of the swingarm, like going over bumps in the road.????? | ||
| Smokescreen |
I had 17,500 miles on my 03 original belt. Replaced it about a month ago just because it looked kinda bad (cracks around the perimeter). I'm keeping it because you never know when you will need a spare. Smokescreen | ||
| Kdan |
I only got 13,000 out of my original 03 belt. I replaced it, cause well, I was getting something else done that I broke and figured it was about time. I have 8,000 on the replacement 03 upgraded belt. I don't beat on my bike as bad as Smokescreen does though. But mine is faster. Cause it's yellow. | ||
| Aussie_buell |
yeah smokesrceen, i broke my belt in the 1st week of a 9 week annual leave stint, right before christmas, hard to get activity around then for a new belt and so my old but still in tact belt served me well. | ||
| Surlypacer |
who is Ronlv, DaveS. Are they here in the US? Thanks for the help. | ||
| Diablobrian |
RonLV is a badwebber. You should be able to look him up with the search feature and PM him. DaveS is with Appleton H-D/Buell and you can find him in the sponsor section, when he's not on vacation. | ||
| No_rice |
i dont beat my bikes either, all 6 belts broke while they were sitting on the kickstand parked  | ||
| Diablobrian |
I can testify to that Tim. The amazing part is when the (now green) bike started tumbling out of control from the parked position.  Poor guy is getting an undeserved reputation for being a Hooligan!  | ||
| Cereal |
What is the difference between the 03 and 04 belt tensioner? Is it the size of the tensioner wheel? The underlying question is, would the free spirit belt tensioner work for all xbs (It utilizes the stock tensioner wheel)? | ||
| Saintly |
"What is the difference between the 03 and 04 belt tensioner? Is it the size of the tensioner wheel?" I don't know about the wheel, but the 03 tensioner bracket is approx 1/4" shorter lengthwise than the 04 & up ones. | ||
| Darthane |
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ IMO Buell should replace any broken belt for free. They should certainly replace old 03 belts with the new as a recall as they have already admitted that the originals were weak. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ No way in hell could they do that when the belt was removed at any point by someone other than a trained technician. If it's always been serviced by a dealer and was under the replacement mileage, I could see an arguement being made for it (and I believe people HAVE had them replaced under similar conditions). The belts on these bikes are very susceptible to damage due to twisting/bending during removal or installation. I have an original '03 belt in my garage that I replaced at 15K that looks like it could do another 15K easily. I replaced it with the 'upgraded' '03 belt and have had no problems with it, either (though I only have about 4K on that belt). I'll never convert my Firebolt to a chain. |
