| Author |
Message |
    
Blake
| | Posted on Saturday, June 16, 2007 - 04:00 am: | 
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Brett (WantXBR),
Do you think there is added wear to a tranny using a chain instead of the belt?
Due to the chains stiffness opposed to the belts ability to flex (alittle). Or maybe vise versa?
Probably so. The slop in the chain would seem to tend to subject the transmission gears and bearing to more severe impulse loading like during on-off throttle or hard upshifting and downshifting. The belts, especially the newest version, offer some cushioning and on the XBikes, zero slop or backlash as the mechanical engineers would call it.
I doubt the chain is a problem though, since the primary is an even stiffer chain, albeit somewhat sheltered from rear wheel induced shock/impulse loading. |
Tdiddy
| | Posted on Saturday, June 16, 2007 - 04:11 am: |
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I worry more about my clutch cable than my belt. |
Wantxbr
| | Posted on Saturday, June 16, 2007 - 05:12 am: |
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Blake
Thanks for your response.
I was just curious, I thought of it as I was reading the posts. Never came to mind that it would be an issue. |
Gentleman_jon
| | Posted on Saturday, June 16, 2007 - 07:08 am: |
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Blake -
You are too modest as always.
Thank you for everything you do for literally thousands of Buelligans.
Diddy -
Actually I have had one clutch cable and one belt break, so I would worry about both.
A little preventive maintenance on the clutch cable is often overlooked. A little oil in the cable, and especially a little grease on the ferrule that goes in the brake handle makes a big difference in the life of your cable.
The ferrule and the handle are made of different metals, and can easily corrode to the point where the ferrule doesn't turn, and bends the cable until it fatigues and breaks.
But of course you knew all that, right? |
Tiburondriver47
| | Posted on Saturday, June 16, 2007 - 10:47 am: |
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Gentleman-jon. Your just to damn smart. Don't you get head aches or something? JK/LOL. |
Bombardier
| | Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 06:31 am: |
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Correct me if I am wrong but would not there be more centrifugal force on the belt traveling around the larger rear sprocket/pulley? Also, would this not promote stretch/failure of the belt? |
Gentleman_jon
| | Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 07:04 am: |
|
Not a correction exactly, Bomber. More of an explanation.
The problem with the belt is not the centrifugal force on the belt, as the speed of the belt is only slightly faster in terms of feet per minute with the larger pulleys, because the gear ratio is doesn't change.
The problem, which has been well known for years, is that the Kevlar reinforcing threads lose strength when they go around small diameter pulleys. This is due to the fact that Kevlar is a brittle and abrasive fiber.
Perhaps a Kevlar, Spectra combination might work, as the Spectra is less abrasive, although it is less resistant to creep.
Using Kevlar is the classic bargain with the Devil in engineering terms. There is no fiber that is as light as Kevlar that is as strong, and as resistant to stretch and creep, ( slow stretching over time that would require periodic tightening of the belt). On the other hand, sudden failure of a drive belt poses a real threat to rider safety.
The Goodyear belt is thicker and stiffer than the Gates belt, and, one assumes, has more Kevlar in it, so it needs larger pulley's even though the gear ratio is the same.
In addition, it uses bigger and stronger "teeth" that also require larger pulleys.
Ironically, the original 2003 solution, with the smaller pulleys, and the thinner more flexible Gates belt, was a "better" solution, dynamically speaking, than the current "unbreakable" set up, as the pulleys were lighter, and the belt absorbed less energy, being lighter an more flexible.
Unfortunately, they were not able to make the belt strong enough to prevent an unacceptable level of failures, although later versions of the belt, while not perfect, seem to be better. |
Bdabuell
| | Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 08:18 pm: |
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OK...I have not read this whole thread nor do I care to...so forgive me for missing whatever has transpired in the last 3 pages of posts
...but...
Saintly/Fritz converted me over to the chain gang a few weeks ago (my original 03 belt was finally showing some wear and I'm paranoid) and I am VERY happy with it...thanks Fritz! |
Mikexlr650
| | Posted on Sunday, June 17, 2007 - 08:40 pm: |
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except for the shorted headlight |
Bdabuell
| | Posted on Monday, June 18, 2007 - 06:26 pm: |
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LOL well, yes, there's that... |
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