| Author | Message | ||
     Moboy516 |
I broke another 03 belt yesterday. Had to push the bolt home 3 miles in the 95 degree heat. This belt had 1000 miles on it. Should I expect the dealer to replace it for free? The dealer I bought it from said that they hadn't heard of any problems from the 03 belts. What? I told them that there was a reason why they were redesigned. | ||
| Daveinm |
Just be thankful you didn't get stuck pushin' it in South Florida. I would pass out after 100 yards  | ||
| Lazyme21 |
I second that....too hot down here | ||
| Curtyd |
"Just be thankful you didn't get stuck pushin' it in South Florida. I would pass out after 100 yards" Not true, I pushed mine a measured mile and a half to my house from the I-4, and it's a lot hotter here being inland and no Atlantic Ocean/ Gulf Stream breezes to help you out. I've lived in both areas and from a weather standpoint I'll take S. Fla. anyday. | ||
| 420at145mph |
ive put over 6000 miles and a backtire on my belt no problems when SHOULD they be replaced? | ||
| Curtyd |
When they break or when you can see road debris scars in the belts or other evidence of separation of the belt cords, I believe. As I said I had over 35K on my original M2 belt, the book claims you replace at about 15 to 25 K, but if it ain't broke, then why.... | ||
| Aydenxb9 |
Sounds like you have some other kind of problem. Have either you or your dealer carefully checked pulley alignment? Is there any damage to either of the pulleys? Are all parts of the belt guard system in place? Something's amiss for sure. My 9 has 10,000 miles w/o any problems and I can be accused of being hard on final drive parts. | ||
| Moboy516 |
The first belt had 11,000 miles on it and I am very hard on them. The second belt looked just fine, but I think it was defective. It had a very clean straight tear. Yes, I took the guards off, but there was no wear or marks on the belt whatsoever. I had someone inspect the pulleys about 6 weeks ago when my rear wheel bearings went out while I was riding. | ||
| Roc |
The belts fail if they are twisted, the manual cautions against this during install. I wonder if your first belt twisted some when the wheel bearings went and the second was installed with some twisting. Is it a trained Buell tech working on your bike? | ||
| 984_cc |
I was told (by my dealer) that the main reason the '04s have a new belt is because they are now made by Goodyear instead of Gates. Their contract with Gates (which I was also told had been making the H-D/Buell belts since forever) had expired. They said Goodyear put in a better bid to manufacture the belts. When I spoke to a Tech on the Buell hotline, they wouldn't say the new system is better than the old system, just a different pitch with the Goodyear belts. The Gates belts have been known to last 50,000 miles or more if not abused, so I've heard. I haven't had any problems yet, and hope I don't. I originally wanted an '04, but couldn't find one. I was a little disappointed about not getting the new belt system. Now I'm glad I got an '03, because I've read about people getting pebble holes in their belts. The '03 belt guards seem like they will protect the belt a bit more. Looks like a pebble could land on the belt easier on an '04. Sorry you're having belt troubles though. | ||
| Fdl3 |
Moboy516, four(4) questions: 1. When you say you are "hard on belts", what do you mean? 2. It is possible you have a defective belt, but.. 3. If you have the belt guards off, how can you truly know if #2 is true? It is my understanding that the belts are susceptible to debris. 4. There has been mention of a belt "break-in". I think 100 miles or so is mentioned to "break-in" a belt. Did you observe any kind of belt "break-in" with this new belt? All others: I ask these questions because, at 13K and a flat rear tire, I had the dealer go ahead and replace my belt since the manual suggests to replace the belt every 15K. The reliability of my 03 Firebolt is paramount to me (yeah, yeah, no wise quacks about buying Buell then  ). It is hard, therefore, for me (and I presume other Buellers and non-Buellers, alike) to objectively assess the reliability of the XB belt system if modifications are made to said belt system (specifically the removal of the belt guards). Since we only hear about belts breaking, I can see how someone might conclude (wrongly?  ) that the XB belts are not reliable. What is my point? I am not sure now... ...except maybe that I will leave my belt guards in place, thank you very much. And for those of you who have removed the belt guards and are breaking belts prematurely, um, do I really have to say what you might want to do?   | ||
| Moboy516 |
I am hard on the drivetrain, as I suspect many of us are, because I ride hard and do lots of wheelies. I broke both belts doing first gear wheelies.  Because I took the guards off, I frequently inspect the pulleys and belts for any problems. I did ride pretty easy on my belt for the first 50 or miles to make sure it was broke in properly. | ||
| 420at145mph |
my belt tensioner is squeaking when pushing the bike should i just hit it up with some wd40? or is it somehow misaligned | ||
| Johnnyxb9 |
First belt broke at 3250. 2 tires and now at 7500 no problems also took off belt guards no problems yet. If it breaks again Im going with 04 belts and pulleys. | ||
| Moboy516 |
btw.....my first belt broke and i had the guard in place | ||
| Easyflier |
My original belt last 10,800 miles, one bearing upgrade and a tire change. If it hasn't broken by the 15k mile mark it's probably prudent to change anyway and keep the old one for a spare. | ||
| Tucsonxb9s |
If you took your belt guards off and you keep having belt failures, what other conclusion can you draw? I'm only around 6k on my first belt, but I did have a tire change about 1500 miles ago. So far so good. Although a couple of the screws holding my belt guard vibrated their way out, I'm not removing the guards just for looks. Ugly as they may be, they may be saving me time and money spent at the dealer! | ||
| Moboy516 |
If you don't pull the tire off yourself,in the long run, the guards can cost you money. It costs twice as much to get someone to pull a tire off an xb because of the guards. I pull the tires myself, and it is a 30 minute job with the guards, and about a 5 minute job without. I sincerely don't think that not having the guards on my bike was the culprit of my belt snapping. You would have to see the belt though. | ||
| 420at145mph |
im thinking about taking just the top gaurd off on the bottom i could see a rock or sumthin getting stuck under it but with the top gaurd itd have to be one crazy super pebble to get itself up under there with the belt spinning the other direction but what aboot my pulley? | ||
| Rkc00 |
My 2003 belt broke at 5400 miles. It was a clean brake. The belt guards were on. | ||
| Fdl3 |
Well, since I have not had a belt break on me, I am not on the side of the fence wondering why my belt broke too soon. Will not having the belt guard in place increase the chance of premature belt breakage? Without objective, quantitative data to back it up, yes, it seems logical. Will riding habits, including but not limited to wheelies, unduly effect belt life? Without objective, quantitative data to back it up, yes, it seems logical. Moboy516: Even with your "hard" riding habits, with the belt guard on, your first belt lasted 11K. On top of that, you have now taken your belt guards off and your second belt lasted only 1K. Aside from a belt defect, I see some mitigating factors that may have contributed to premature belt life. As far as the guards costing more money on than off: most dealers charge a minimum 1 hour labor; so if the rear takes 5 or 30 minutes, you will be charged 1 hour labor. The only thing that costs more is the extra time it may take to remove the rear tire if one does it on their own. Rkc00: Please do not misunderstand, having the belt guard off is just ONE mitigating factor toward possible premature belt life. Another might be riding habits. Yet another might be a poorly designed belt. No one is bashing here, just pointing out that it may be a good idea to leave the belt guards on if belt life is important to you. Afterall, one of the design goals of the XB series has been to lower the weight without compromising the integrity of the bike. Another was simplicity of design. If the belt guards were not needed, why did they come that way from the factory? Why add the weight and complexity if they were not needed? So here are some mitigating factors that may contribute to premature belt life: 1. Belt guards off. 2. Riding habits. 3. Damaged pulleys. 4. Bad belt. 5. Improper installation. 6. Joe Blow jealously mucking up your belt because, well, he doesn't have one and thinks you shouldn't either!  | ||
| 420at145mph |
"If the belt guards were not needed, why did they come that way from the factory? " good question what about the snorkel? the 12 box? | ||
| Davefl |
The snorkel is good for noise abatement bad for performance. It has a purpose. | ||
| Fdl3 |
Snorkel: IMO, the snorkel is better for performance with the stock ecm and air filter. Seat of the pants tells me that low-end response is better with the snorkel than without. 12 Airbox: This does come from the factory, just for the 12.As to why it is not on the 9? | ||
| Darthane |
420, mine does that as well (squeaks). I thoroughly inspected the entire driveline and couldn't find anything wrong. It's not the pulley itself that is squeaking, it's the belt ON the pulley. That was over 6K miles ago that I noticed it. I'm gonna have to agree with Fdl3 here, guys, I'm sorry. I've got 15K on my belt with no problems. I'm the only person that's removed my rear tire, I have all my belt guards, and while I'm not a wheelie monster, I love whacking the throttle. Find someone who's broken an '03 belt that is absolutely positive it wasn't mistreated and still has the guards in place, and then I might, MIGHT begin to feel a worm of doubt. | ||
| 984_cc |
I don't think the belts are unreliable. I think mine will last quite awhile. In fact, how many miles can you get out of a chain? Not as much as these awesome belt drives! And that's not mentioning that when you replace a chain, it's usually a good idea to replace your sprockets too.I don't see why more manufacturers use belts. But it's too bad some people have had some breaking problems. Seems like most people don't have any problems though. | ||
| Stealthxb |
Moboy516... The belt was most likely handled improperly during installation. IMHO I seriously doubt if your riding habits or lack of belt guards had anything to do with it. | ||
| Moboy516 |
Thanks for the confidence in my mechanical abilities, but the belt was handled and installed properly. I had the directions and also printed out the bulletin regarding handling of the belts. I full well knew how important it was not to bend, twist, or bind the belt during installation. If I mishandled the belt, wouldn't it have broken before now? | ||
| Stealthxb |
I was'nt dissing your mechanical abilities I just figured some ignorant bar hopping stealership employee who had'nt read the service bulletins did the work. edited by stealthxb on July 13, 2004 | ||
| Rosko |
"subliminal: chains...chains...chains" (you didn't read that...or did you?) | ||
| Kaese |
I have to agree with Darthane, I have had 3 rear tires replaced and I was the only one that took off the rear. 1st time I followed the book and removed the guards. Last 2 times, I was gentle and left the guards on. 17K on my original and still kicking. No wheelies on purpose and sensible riding. My luck after bragging, it will fail. | ||
| Theshape1978 |
Buell tech told me not to get sand on the belt that it would break easy then. | ||
| Fdl3 |
Kaese: "My luck after bragging, it will fail.". Oh so true! I am going to be quiet now...  | ||
| Xb9er |
When you say the two replacement belts were '03 belts, are you talking about the upgraded belt by Gates part # GO500.2A8R? Maybe your dealer is trying to get rid of a couple older belts he had in stock? Wonder if the parts gopher knows that you're not supposed to twist these belts? Is the rear pulley warped or misaligned, or does it have any damage on the mating surface? Was the rear wheel inspected for runout and the axle checked after the bearing blew out at 10,300 mi.? I suggest checking for problems with your rear wheel assembly when you have it off for belt replacement. I have no doubt that other XB riders that are harder on their belts than you have not broken belts prematurely. The belts should handle the riding abuse, it's debris and mishandling that will do them in. Mike. edited by xb9er on July 14, 2004 | ||
| Fullpower |
my idler pulley bearings failed. very easy to replace, just remove inner snap ring, gently tap out two 6203 bearings, gently push in a couple new ones. just make sure and get good quality ball bearings, not chinese or korean manufacture. for a good local bearing source, call a alternator rebuilder. they get the best prices and quality bearings. DO NOT BUY BEARINGS FROM NAPA, CARQUEST, SCHUCKS< or any automotive parts houses. they sell overpriced 3rd world junk bearings. the best brand names are NTN, NSK, KOYO, Fafnir, SKF. look for japan, USA, german, or canadian manufacture. a fair price for american 6203 bearings is 5 or 6 bucks each. |
