Replacing open belt shovelhead

[geof]

Hello guys,

I was wondering if anybody has some info on this. I run a 3” open belt from BDL and now recently bought a 1,5” inch belt. I like the smaller belt a lot more. Its going to be my first time replacing this. Is it easy to do so because shops will charge me a lot i think and would rather learn myself to.

[geof]

My bad,guess i look stupid now lol..should of read it first..this needs to be on other part of the forum

[ridgerunner1965]

it wont be any different than removing and reinstalling what you have now. just make sure the pulleys are aligned correctly.

I ran a 3 inch belt for several years. never had any prob with it but it was always right there wanting to jerk your pant leg off. then one day on a ruff road it did.

I then went to a chain primary but often wondered if a 1.5 in belt would of been as good.

[Phail]

I run the 1.5" setup on mine. Love it.

I had an oil leak in my primary that I just could not stop for the life of me. Finally I just went open with dry clutch on my 99 custom. I never did it before, but did it and it was pretty easy.

No more leaks now.

[Tattooo]

I run the 1.5" setup on mine. Love it.

I had an oil leak in my primary that I just could not stop for the life of me. Finally I just went open with dry clutch on my 99 custom. I never did it before, but did it and it was pretty easy.

No more leaks now.

A 99 is a TOTALLY different setup from a Shovel.............

Glad it worked out for you............

[geof]

Ok guys last night started it and all worked exept the belt is to short and wont fit..its a 132 tooth belt 8mm from bdl. I guess now i need a longer one or change front pulley?

[geof]

[geof]

[Tattooo]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]100172[/ATTACH]

Is that a pic of you trying to put the belt on???????????

If so no wonder it's to short you can't put a belt or a chain on for that matter like that..............

[geof]

Noo was an example foto feom someone here on the forum

[Tattooo]

Noo was an example foto feom someone here on the forum

I guess you should have said so....... Plus why would you post someone else pic if your having the problem? Because that pic shows a problem.......

Can you post a pic of your bike???????

[geof]

Yes i should off but it was an example. My problem is the same. My tranny pushed all the way up and is to the point it is not centered and there is tooo much tension. I orderd a new belt from primo supposedly 0,50” stretch but its the same tooth 132 and does not fit either. Saw in this thread he put on 138tooth belt maybe thats my ticket?

[farmall]

Since you already have one belt which does not fit and is useless to you, I would do what I do with worn rear drive belts and cut it neatly between two teeth. ( Snips or cutting disks work nicely.)

Then align your transmission, align the pulleys so the transmission is straight, adjust the transmission so it's in the MIDDLE of the adjustment range, then drape the cut belt so the ends meet on the clutch basket and with say four teeth at least of each belt end resting in the basket teeth.

Count the teeth that are missing then add those to buy accordingly but before you do, take clear well lit photos of the cut belt in place! Pics of the top of trans in relation to the seat post help too as we have many calibrated eyeballs.

Remember if the nearest available size doesn't match where you set the transmission, you can adjust the tranny and count teeth until the resulting total matches an available belt but get a feel for how much tranny movement equals a tooth before guesstimating. Then save your "test belt" among your motorcycle tools.

We ask for pics because we may see something you don't and different 33ers may see different things! Do it OUR way if you want better quality FREE advice.

If in the slightest doubt, position your closest non-fitting belt before cutting and post pics first. Pics are fucking wonderful. We like them and so should you.

[Tattooo]

Saw in this thread he put on 138tooth belt maybe thats my ticket?

You should NEVER guess or assume what you should buy unless you like wasting money...............

That choice is up to you............

[JBinNC]

geof,

If you bought a complete kit for your bike, it should fit with the belt supplied. On the 8mm, 132T belts, the BE belt is about .05" longer, for a little better fit with inner primary in place. (That would be for the typical 4 speed shovel chassis.)

If you have just a set of used parts, it's possible the stuff is mismatched and that is the source of your problem.

On a typical 4 speed shovel, you mount the clutch hub and the motor pulley, and then with the belt around the clutch shell, you offer the belt to the motor pulley at the same time you offer the clutch shell to the hub, and work both belt and clutch shell home. Sometimes you can have both the motor pulley and the clutch shell in the belt, and offer both to the motor and clutch hub, but starting the pulley on the sprocket shaft splines can be tedious.

You are limited to the tooth counts available for belts, and a jump from 132T to 138T is a big change. That won't work, unless the 132T belt was wrong to start with.

Kudos to you for taking this job on yourself, and welcome to the sometimes frustrating world of wrenching on old bikes.

Jim