Sorry to bring up this tired topic up again. I've done a ton of research regarding the drive Belt squeak/chirp/squeal and have tried everything I found on this site and others.

I'm riding an 1987 Savage with 15,000 miles on it and the chirping is starting to drive me insane. Seems to make the most noise while cruising at slow speeds. Probably can't hear it when riding faster due to the noise of the Trapp. The belt is starting to show very "slight" signs of wear on the inside so I thought that maybe I need to realign the rear wheel. The marks seem to be even, so I tried the twist method and got good results. The pulley teeth looked fine also, although there is some oxidation on the pulley nuts/bolts when you look inside of the tranny cover. I would really like to squirt some lube in there, but am concerned about it spreading to the pulley teeth.

I decided to stop at a couple of local shops today to get a diagnosis.
One shop is well respected in the riding community so I stopped there first. They said "it's the original belt and needs to be replaced. It should run about $300-350, do you want us to order the belt?" Ok, I could deal with that but don't order it just yet. Since the bike is 21 years old, they may have a valid point.

Rode over to shop #2. They took a look, and confirmed that the alignment is spot on. They looked at the belt, checked the tension which they said was fine, and thought that it would run for many more miles, "with" the squeak of course. They suggested buying some belt dressing from an auto parts store since they didn't have any on the shelf. They didn't seem to think that I needed a new belt, which was a relief.

My two previous bikes (both old Iron Head Sportsters) were chain driven so the belt drive is new to me. Seems like there are so many do's and don'ts. Do use dry lube, don't use "any" lube. Use soap, use belt dressing, don't use anything, etc.

I could probably buy the belt and do it myself with the Clymer, a bit of sweat and a few choice words. I would be doing it on the street outside of my third floor apartment. My neighbors hate me anyway due to the oil changes, noise from the Trapp and the oil spots from my old Audi which are now a permanent part of the street.

Any suggestions on belt dressing, or anything else that may help would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Ron Ayers lists this belt at $146
It's listed under transmission
http://fiche.ronayers.com/Index.cfm/Module/Main/TypeID/26/Type/Motorcycle/Mak...

That belt should go a looootttt longer unless it very old and showing signs of cracks in the rubber like old tires do. Then the rubber has hardened and probably needs replacement

One thing it's not is "dry." If anything, it's probably a bit too wet. Probably from the plug cap leak that spits oil where it wants every other day. You know, covers, exhaust etc. Did notice some oil on the belt guard yesterday. Have the cap on order as well. Only the inside of the belt has a little bit of wear.

I hear ya. I'm 8 blocks from the Atlantic Ocean, not the best environment for anything with moving parts. Add to that the sand.....
What kind of dressing do you use? I've read good things about Krylon 12293 Ace Silicone Lubricant Spray on the Harley Forums.

I like that idea!

Reelthing wrote on 04/23/08 at 19:01:39:
AND a reach 'round!!

[quote author=6F525A4858627E555859595C4F3D0 link=1208973048/0#13 date=1209005288  You know you wanna wrench it.   [/quote]kinda..
got a sound sysem for xmas and B day last dec...hooked it up to a fused switched hot via headlight relay at the front forks( it was cold and i was lazy)didnt look forward to pullin the seat (pass back reat and bag on rack(long multi attached tool to get to hex head nut for rear bolt[06 1 piece seat])saddle bags in way of getting to side seat  boltsn then pullin the tank...well got tired of not bein able to stop and listen to some tunes stopped w/o key bein on...
(got a new battery yesterday  $72 @ batteries plus had left key on too many times 2 years on oem) SO yesterday pm tore into er 3 hours later got a new switched fused wire up to the amp mounted between the fly screen mounts...point is "you gotta want to wrench"