M8 Belt Issues????

[Rucky]

Have a couple buddies that have been having blown belts. One had 5 blow last season. Is this simply a mis-alignment issue, or is ventilation the resolution? I know that probably half of M sleds out there have the side panel vents installed..... Belts are expensive, so looking for precautions to take now!

 

[gotboost]

never blew any on my hcr u better check your clutches

 

[Rucky]

never blew any on my hcr u better check your clutches

Haven't had an issue with my sled yet, as I haven't ridden it. It's brand new. Just wondering if I should be concerned, or if this is something that the dealer didn't set up correctly, etc. I think I'll be purchasing the alignment tools and a shop manual. It seems like doing things yourself is the ONLY way to ensure all is set up properly.

 

[rusty]

i ve had mine for 2500 milrs and no issues unitl this spring. high heat was the reason. if the pdi was done correct it should be fine

 

[TravisFader]

If you think you can do a better job then the dealers well then why dont you let them know and see what's what. They are the dealers for a reason, they know what they are doing, main reason i do things myself is not because its better but because its cheaper. Another reason guys might be blowing belts is one not many people follow. Dont exceed 40 km/hr for about 40 k on a new belt, if you just torque on er off the get go then you stretch the fibres in the belt way to hard and too fast. This smooth stretching out going slow provides, is much better for the belt and improoves its lifespan twofold at least. Just my two cents

 

[dezmitchell]

If you think you can do a better job then the dealers well then why dont you let them know and see what's what. They are the dealers for a reason, they know what they are doing, main reason i do things myself is not because its better but because its cheaper. Another reason guys might be blowing belts is one not many people follow. Dont exceed 40 km/hr for about 40 k on a new belt, if you just torque on er off the get go then you stretch the fibres in the belt way to hard and too fast. This smooth stretching out going slow provides, is much better for the belt and improoves its lifespan twofold at least. Just my two cents

I 2nd this :d

 

[dooryder]

If you think you can do a better job then the dealers well then why dont you let them know and see what's what. They are the dealers for a reason, they know what they are doing, main reason i do things myself is not because its better but because its cheaper. Another reason guys might be blowing belts is one not many people follow. Dont exceed 40 km/hr for about 40 k on a new belt, if you just torque on er off the get go then you stretch the fibres in the belt way to hard and too fast. This smooth stretching out going slow provides, is much better for the belt and improoves its lifespan twofold at least. Just my two cents

some dealers you cant trust, and some times dealers arnt always on the ball and may screw up, it never hurts to check something after you get it back from a dealer, i know half the time i can never trust the dealer i goto

 

[ZRrrr]

Check alignment for sure. Never a bad thing to have the alignement bar. Just be careful when getting one for your sled as Cat had a bad batch of bars go out. Make sure you get one of the newest ones out. Check your DD for binding. As well many of the Cat DD's had horrible offset which would cause heat and undue stress. There are some good discussions on Hardcore Sledder and Snowest regarding offset.

 

[mur190]

Most likly your clutchs
had over 900 miles on my first belt
On my 2008 m8 s/p.
and that was 3 or 4 mountain rides too.
I put the slp side vents on it too.

 

[tredeb]

If you think you can do a better job then the dealers well then why dont you let them know and see what's what. They are the dealers for a reason, they know what they are doing, main reason i do things myself is not because its better but because its cheaper. Another reason guys might be blowing belts is one not many people follow. Dont exceed 40 km/hr for about 40 k on a new belt, if you just torque on er off the get go then you stretch the fibres in the belt way to hard and too fast. This smooth stretching out going slow provides, is much better for the belt and improoves its lifespan twofold at least. Just my two cents

I have never even considered breaking in a belt and I get, what I consider, good life out of mine. The first thing you have to do is punch it to see how much better it is than your old belt.

Put it this way, you are in the mountains, you blow a belt, you put on a new one, now you putt around until you have 40 km on it. ya right!!

I really don't have the time to modify even one of my rides to break in a belt. If it costs me $100, oh well. I buy a new one to start each season and use the old one for a spare. This method has served me well for years.

As mentioned, if you are getting short belt life, I think you should have your clutches checked for alignment and belt deflection.

 

[HONDA310R]

take out all your shims behind the secondary and run you sled. keep the belt on this will give you the most accurate alignment. I had ECHO CYCLE do an alignment on my sled and i blew 5 belts in 3 day re did it my own way nad not another belt has gone on my m7 Turbo. Most of the people doing PDI's are kids off the streets geting paid minimal wage at the shops.....ALWAYS double check the work the Dealers DOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

 

[swabby]

very well said, pdi is a joke

 

[HONDA310R]

OH! and all you people that uses alignment bars......think if it has ever been droped how accurate is it? its only metal and they bend? i have seen several drop at Dealers and all sleds are not the same either.

just my 2 cents

 

[bergy]

Yea i had problems with heat. Threads came out of first belt around the 300 mile mark.I installed vents on both sides and it made a huge difference, but after a good pull it still gets hot enough to grab when comming back down.

 

[ZRrrr]

take out all your shims behind the secondary and run you sled. keep the belt on this will give you the most accurate alignment. I had ECHO CYCLE do an alignment on my sled and i blew 5 belts in 3 day re did it my own way nad not another belt has gone on my m7 Turbo. Most of the people doing PDI's are kids off the streets geting paid minimal wage at the shops.....ALWAYS double check the work the Dealers DOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

If you take all the shims out are you not getting a bit of float or locking the splines together. Most guys will remove a couple shims to get correct offset, but not all of them. YOu risk too much damage. You also need the proper deflection adjuster to be able to do this.

 

[HONDA310R]

You remove them look at how many you need then reinstall the shims. it works great on the pre diamond drive cats aswell. i have done it for years and never damaged anything yet!

 

[ZRrrr]

You remove them look at how many you need then reinstall the shims. it works great on the pre diamond drive cats aswell. i have done it for years and never damaged anything yet!

The way I read your post it sounded like you were telling people to remove all the shims. I see now that you are referring to the "floating" method of setting offsest. It's takes a few steps to set this properly but it does work well.

 

[HONDA310R]

Ill prober break in is another issue of blowing up those new cat belts make sure you take them slow for the firts 40miles. And the dealers now well don't even get me started all the edmonton ones are a joke