Modified Belt Tensioner

[Stevenc150]

Maybebuell has been MIA off the board for quite a while. He didn't even have a Buell, had just been thinking of getting one (hence the screen-name). Very often, he liked to think he was as smart as the Engineers that built the bikes...

Edit: BTW, I can't recall ever hearing of anyone taking off their tensioner.

 

[jakestolar]

BTW, I can't recall ever hearing of anyone taking off their tensioner

I have taken mine off. ...to put a nerw belt on

 

[gsxr1k]

[smirk]

That explains it. Aftermaket tensioner it is then

 

[maybebuell]

just for shits been looking threw other buell sites...there not happy with tensioner eather...eats up wheel and front sprocket bearings and creates unwanted heat ..plus belt tension with no tensioner changes so little it makes no diffrence...all bikes with sprockets have tight high spots and low loose spots....steve i been around awhile with all kinds of bikes....a buell is nothing but a motorcycle...tensioner does more harm then good.....im wondering do you see a tensioner on erics race buells

 

[firefighter1c57]

Erik(learn to spell) uses chains on his race bikes. Not belts. Do me a favor, pop your car hood, remove your belt tensioner from your serpentine belt and report back how that worked out for you....

 

[maybebuell]

nice come back another word you have nothing to offer...how about if i look at millions of other motorcycles with belts and take there tensioner off...O wait they dont have one...nor does a car have sprockets...nice try fire pants

 

[firefighter1c57]

yea, replace serpentine with timing. You knew what I meant.

Nice try... most belt drive bikes have adjustable rear axles. You tension the belt with the axle adjuster just like you would tension the chain on a chain drive motorcycle. Fuel frame Buells do not. Belt tension is kept constant by the tensioner pulley.

Trying juvenile come backs like fire pants makes you look like a fourteen year old know it all...

 

[firefighter1c57]

for those slow among us
The circled bolt is for adjusting the belt tension on a Harley

and here's a similar set up on a chain drive

here's a Buell fuel frame swing arm. NO BELT ADJUSTMENT

belt tension is set by the idler pulley. However, due to swing arm arc, tension is not kept constant with the fixed pulley. IE tension is increased as the suspension unloads and decreased as the suspension is loaded(decreased to the point where the tensioner can actually be removed with the rear tire attached).

The whole topic, before you decided to throw in a useless two cents, was about a self adjusting tensioner to not have the tension decrease/increase as the suspension travels.

I'm still waiting for links to all these rear wheel bearing/secondary bearing failures you keep talking about.

 

[oh9bolt]

[up] fire pants is right.

Lol sorry firefighter I had to.

 

[Red93stang]

The tensioner is designed to carry and or spread the load between three bearings. Trans output shaft bearing, rear wheel and tensioner, in the tuber years they were having trans output shaft bearing failures when the belt was too tight. The tensioner was designed to solve this issue.

 

[maybebuell]

red are you saying at one time there was no tensioner..im not sure what tuber years where...if no tensioner then how was belt adjusted

 

[firefighter1c57]

ONCE AGAIN. With a axle adjuster.

Tube frame Buell swingarm

The bearing problems with tube frame Buell transmissions was a over tightening of the belt by owners/incompetent mechanics problem.

Thinking back. It seems like the tube frame mounted the swing arm pivot a couple inches further aft than the fuel frames. That was part of the belt problem too as I recall. Do to the pivot point, the rear pulley arc was "exaggerated" compared to what it is in the fuel frames with the swing arm pivoting closer to the front sprocket.

Even the New Harley XR1200 uses a tensioner instead of a adjustable axle.
XR1200

Did you take the tensioner pulley off your timing belt yet?

 

[maybebuell]

thanks for the info and pics fire pants;;;i had no idea the axel was fixed on the newer models ..yes i took tensioner off my truck replaced it with a buell tensioner and the belt laster 30 miles...thanks a lot

 

[anrkizm95]

wow

 

[firefighter1c57]

Yep. 14 year old f@%&* know it all.

 

[maybebuell]

wow
thats what you said when buell went under

 

[maybebuell]

firepants..i thanked you for your pics and said i learned something about buells..and you still act like a punk on the tax payers dime...you live close to boston ill buy you a coffee and a water to put the fire out thats burning your axs...i like the new xr models shown in the pic...when i grow up and can handle the power of a 1200 storts im getting one

 

[rhcp]

Hi guys! Is this belt tensioner prolongs the life of the drive belt? For us in Russia it is a real problem because the cost of the belt is $ 300, and its lifetime 10000-15000km. Pre-petition asking for it, all translated with Google)))

 

[bobaganoosh]

your belt should last alot longer then 10 to 15,000km unless you have a 2003 model. in that case you should upgrade to a 2004 and newer style

 

[rhcp]

I have a 2003 model XB9S, but many guys on the more recent models have the same problem. I saw by chance a modified belt tensioner on solobuell.com, and therefore decided to ask those who used it.