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Message started by marty62253 on 11/17/04 at 10:56:33

Title: squeeky drive belt
Post by marty62253 on 11/17/04 at 10:56:33

i'm new to his bike - or the other way around - either way - i have a 2002 savage that needs some t.l.c. to make worthy of putting on the street.
one of many things in my way is the drive belt squeeks. - the belt looks to be riding/rubbing on the outside edge of both pulleys - how do i get the belt to stop rubbing against the side of the pulleys? again, it is rubbing the outside edge of both pulleys??
also-the belt looks dull - is it ok to use anything to brighten it up a little - like armorall??

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Kropatchek on 11/18/04 at 03:42:26

Do NOT spray anything on the drive belt. Clean it with saop and rinse with water. When dry put some talcum powder on.

Think your belt need aligning.
Get the rear wheel off the floor, loosen-up the rear axle, loosen-up the adjusters and push the rearwheel forward a bit.

Start tightening the rear adjusters while rotating the wheel and look if the belt stays in the middle. Correct tension is when you can rotate the belt 90 degr. on the bottom. Use the lines as reference.

Tighten the rear axle and lock the adjusters, done
greetz
Kropatchek

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Greg_650 on 11/30/04 at 03:07:25

Kropatchek wrote:

Very correct. Good adjustment advice.

Also, it has been my experience that the drive belt squeaks more when it is too tight rather than being misaligned (not severely misaligned?). The belt does tend to rub one side of the pulley slightly even when the wheel is evenly positioned in the swingarm...after all it floats against rubber bushings in the hub.

If you have a 2002, maybe you are also lucky enough to have the tension gage and the owners manual to check the tension. The tension and alignment adjustments are done at the same time.

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by red2k1 on 11/30/04 at 13:09:41

Ditto, ditto.

Proper belt tension is critical. If you feel compelled to "lubricate" the drive belt, Harley does sell a drive belt lub. Personally, I just keep the belt and pullies clean with the belt aligned at proper tension.

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Greg_650 on 12/05/04 at 06:23:12

red2k1 wrote:

Just gotta remember that lubing the belt could allow dirt and crap to stick to it which will cause abrasion to the belt and pulleys. After all, you don't lube the belts under the hood of your car either.

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by bobo383 on 02/05/05 at 10:38:27

I agree with Greg_650, don't put anything on that belt that would cause grit to stick on it.

After my repaint, I had noise coming from the rear of the bike. Turned out I had the drive belt too tight. Loosened up the bolts on the rear axle and scooted the tire forward about one "mark" on the swingarm and the noise went away. I've bid on an original Savage tension tool on ebay, as my bike came with no tool kit. Don't bid against bobo383, and I'll let you borrow it.

I centered the belt on the rear pulley by lifting the bike with my engine hoist (by the shock mounts, with the seat off) and letting it idle in high gear, about 20mph or so, while adjusting the tension bolts to get the belt dead center. Definitely not for the faint of heart - you could get really hurt if you don't pay attention. Just like riding I guess.

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Mr 650 on 02/06/05 at 19:45:50

Hey! I was gonna bid on the toolkit.
My bike did not have one either. :-/

That is the 1st time I have actually seen the contents;
http://i17.ebayimg.com/01/i/03/50/a0/dc_1_b.JPG

Would the kind Savagsters could confirm this photo is all all there is to the tool kit. I could get by w/ just the tensioner, however looks like it is the bulk of the cost of the kit so might as well get the whole shootin match.

96220-24B00 CHECKER DR BELT $18.62
09800-21012 TOOL ASSY $26.69

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by bobo383 on 02/06/05 at 20:28:18

Looks alot better than the tool kits that came with my 3-wheelers in the 80s. Good luck, one of us will hopefully wind up with it.

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Kropatchek on 02/07/05 at 03:24:04

@mr650
That's exactly what you need, the complete contents of the Savage toolkit.
It's not of the greatest quality, but the sparkplug socket saves you from chasing around for one.
Good buy for the complete kit.

Greetz
Kropatchek ;D

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Mr 650 on 02/07/05 at 07:32:26

Thanks Kropatchek,

From left to right the kit photo appears to have:

deep socket (size?)
box wrench (size?)
pliers
socket handle/punch??
reversable screwdiver, flat & phillips
sparkplug socket ?
box wrench extention?
screwdriver handle
belt tension tool
small metric combo wrench (size?)
medium metric combo wrench (size?)
http://i17.ebayimg.com/01/i/03/50/a0/dc_1_b.JPG

The belt tension tool and the spark plug wrench appear to be the only non-std. tools that you can't get elsewhere.
The spark plug wrench is cut so that you won't have to pull the tank, that makes it worth the cost of the kit alone!
I have the reverable screwdriver, pliers and the combo wrenches already from previous kits.
Bobo, The ebay used kit price now has exceeded the Ron Ayres new, shipped price, hooray for eBay. What some will pay for eBay junk amazes me. ::)

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by bobo383 on 02/07/05 at 18:29:00

I saw it, too. Thanks for thinking of me. I didn't know about the custom no-tank-removal spark plug tool, you're right that's worth Ron Ayers' price of the kit! :P

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by reeko on 02/07/05 at 23:05:22

Please could anybody tell me the exact length that makes the belt tension tool in correct possition??

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Kropatchek on 02/08/05 at 07:22:48

The correct position for the belttool you find with your hand at the following position.
Feel on the underside just aft of the lower belt cover. There's a small bracket with a hole in it. Put the body of the tool in there. The other side on the belt at approx. 90 degrees. The correct tension is the middle of the 3 stripes on the plunjer.

Greetz
Kropatchek ;D

PS when greg has time he willpost a picture, won't you greg?

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by reeko on 02/08/05 at 23:35:53

Kropatchek.. :D
I'v got Clymer manual so I know how to do it with the tool.. but my problem is that I don't have that tool, so I wanted to know the correct lenght to make my own tool or something like that.. 8)

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Kropatchek on 02/09/05 at 05:20:20

reeko. I'm sorry if I understand you wrongly.
I could give you the length of the tool, however that's of NO use to anyone.
There's a spring inside and who knows the tension of that.
If the lool is not available tighten the belt untill you can twist it with your fingers for 90 degrees.

Greetz
Kropatchek

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by reeko on 02/09/05 at 06:29:33

Kropatchek aaa my fault too.. :-/
I didn't realized that there is spring in it also.. I thought there is just length important.. so now I know there's especially also tension important.. ;D

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Greg_650 on 02/12/05 at 09:40:26

Kropatchek wrote:

Guess that I'm way behind....yep, when I get a chance, I'll take a pic.

Don't forget the spark plug socket in the tool kit. It is handy because it is deep and you can turn it with a wrench.

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Savaged on 06/14/05 at 10:56:28

I am not claiming to be a belt expert, but I can follow direction.
See photo Belt 01 for proper tool installation

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/craig_marky/detail?.dir=9d17&.dnm=5e46.jpg&.src=ph

See photo 02 for where my belt tension was when I used the 90-degree twist method. Tool was fully extended. Way too loose.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/craig_marky/detail?.dir=9d17&.dnm=4142.jpg&.src=ph

So I tighten the belt until the gauge went to the middle mark like the manual says. See photo 03. I also aligned the axel marks again proving I can follow the manual direction.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/craig_marky/detail?.dir=9d17&.dnm=bba6.jpg&.src=ph

After I had the proper tension, using the manual and Suzuki tool, I re-checked the belt with the twist method to see how it compares. See Photo Belt 04. I would say 45 degrees of belt twist is more in line with the results of the Suzuki tool method. I pushing pretty hard as you can see the blood color squashed out for my thumbnail.

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/craig_marky/detail?.dir=9d17&.dnm=65c8.jpg&.src=ph

Ok – now to answer some other question: Here is the force I measured at the middle line of the tool. Notice: I am just showing how I measured it. I was not talented enough to push the gauge, align the middle mark and take the picture at the middle line all at the same time. so the pictured forced is not correct, at the middle line the force is 186 oz (5257 Gr)

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/craig_marky/detail?.dir=9d17&.dnm=34bb.jpg&.src=ph

The distance is 3.27 “ (85.06mm) when the tool is at the middle line. See photo Belt 06

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/craig_marky/detail?.dir=9d17&.dnm=5f24.jpg&.src=ph

Finally – My thought is, unless you are a belt expert or really know something from someone who is, follow the manufacture recommendations. This what I tried to show here. This is my first belt drive bike “1996 Savage” so far, I see no draw backs with the belt drive and it is MUCH more quite than a chain.

Hope this was informative - Savaged

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by DavidV on 06/14/05 at 20:12:51

Just got an OEM Savage tool kit from RonAyers.com - sorry, no belt tension measurement tool included. Gotta get that one the next time around. Oops.

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Kropatchek on 06/15/05 at 00:52:14

Thanks Savaged for sharing this information with us.
And the clear pictures too.

In the Bert Heises forum i read the information that, when you tighten the belt as per manufacturers recommendation, it is too tight and will make a lot of noise.

I did mine accoording Suzuki and loosened the belt a bitand the noise is almost non existent.

Greetz
Kropatchek ;D

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by WD on 06/15/05 at 01:32:08

I know of at least 2 Savages that used the 90 degree twist method and got 60K MILES out of the belt. Cheap drive belts tend to disintegrate at around 20K miles, tops, when "correctly" tensioned. Doesn't matter if it is HD, Yamaha, Suzuki, or the old school GSR Kawasakis.

Quiet, clean, lightweight...drive belts CAN be a good thing, if you live in a relatively temperate climate. Live in the desert? You'd best swap to a chain...Tsubaki O-ring chains, when properly maintained, can go over 200K miles. Rubber/related dry out, steel doesn't.

I hate to admit it, since I rather roundly/loudly bad mouth them, but I'm coming around to the "shaft drive rules" school of thought. Like a belt, no muss, no fuss. But, impossible to misalign. There are reasons why the mileage kings (Honda GL series) are shaft driven...
-WD

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Greg_650 on 06/18/05 at 07:53:57

As posted in the Rubber Side Down section in the topic about Bird in the Bike...the belt is adjusted. And I have to admit that the Savage belt gage sets the belt too tight.

Go with the 90 degree method...so far, I have 400 quiet, squeakless, and non-chirping miles on this adjustment method.

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by MacAttack on 05/11/06 at 16:38:21

Also - about alignment - the marks on the swingarm aren't always accurate. There is a gauge sold in dirt bike stores that goes from the center of the swingarm bolt to the center of the axle bolt (the distance should be the same on both sides). It seems to me that a piece of copper or steel wire could be bent to make just such a gauge (I believe the one for sale is $50 or so).

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by verslagen1 on 04/29/09 at 22:46:48

Here's method that's worked on 3 bikes so far.

Lift the rear wheel up off the ground, bike in neutral.
Hand turn the rear wheel in the direction of forward motion.
Looking from the rear, note which way the belt goes in the track, either towards the wheel or away from it.
Now turn the wheel in reverse. Does the belt track to the opposite side?
You want the belt to track in the middle of the pulley.

If you need to adjust loosen the axle nut and adjuster nut and have at it.

Title: Re: squeeky drive belt
Post by Digger on 06/21/09 at 21:19:21

567A785A6F6F7A78701B0 wrote:

Here's one for less than 10 bucks:

Cheap Rear Wheel Alignment Tool (http://suzukisavage.com/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?board=tech;action=display;num=1183995917)