| Author | Message | ||
     Senna6094 |
Hi all, When determining the slack in the belt should the bike be unloaded on the side stand or held upright? Also...when in neutral should you roll the bike back slightly to take up the slack on the top run of the belt to ensure that your are measuring all the available slack at the bottom? Thanks, Dana-C | ||
| Lornce |
Dana, I'm not sure what the official factory advice is on the belts, but I do know that they don't mind being left a little loose, which I think is safest for the health of wheel and trans output bearings. When setting the tension keep in mind: The further the suspension is compressed, the tighter the belt becomes. I seem to remember hearing somewhere (maybe on this board?) that the early factory info sent out for the bikes simply echoed Sportster tension info which was all wrong for the Buells because the relationship between the drive pullies and the swingarm pivot point was not the same as the Sportsters. Many ruined rear wheel bearings resulted. Check your tension while seated on the bike. Bounce it up and down as much as you can to compress the suspension and check the tension at the tightest point. Then allow an even greater amount of slack, as the suspension will compress further when hitting bumps under way. I can deflect my belts on the lower run at least two to three inches when seated on the bike. No allowance needs to be made when in neutral. When you check the tension of either the top or bottom of the belt, the drive sprocket is free to rotate which allows removal of slack from the opposite side. I've experimented with belt tension a fair bit and the slack has to be ridiculously loose before the belt will skip on the pullies (5 or 6+" of slack). I've also ruined a rear PM wheel riding two up with a belt tensioned too tight by an official tech. (was able to save the rear wheel later in a buddy's machine shop). My S1, which sees track time, still has it's original belt after 33k miles. Oh yea, you've gotta go through it all over again when you carry a passenger. Well, I do, anyway. Hope this is clear enough to make useful sense, and maybe someone will post the revised official tensioning information.... best, Lornce | ||
| Senna6094 |
Thanks Lornce, I fear that mine is WAY too tight. Dana-C | ||
| Xlcrguy |
Take it from someone who's been there: An S2 with a belt too tight WILL sieze the rear wheel bearings. Mine did at around 45 mph. Kinda scary to feel the rear end get all wonky, look down and see the axle spinning in the swingarm because it has fused to the wheel/bearing assembly. Now, it's loose - real loose. I keep mine with about 1 to 3/4 of an inch slack while sitting on it. Have not had any problems now for 5 years (~}80k miles and almost ten years as the original owner). |
