Drive belt / chain upgrade

JJay · Mar 26th, 2008, 09:45 PM

So I have an '02 Sportster 1200. Since I started ridding I've heard nothing but bad things about them. I've had my bike for about 10 months, I've put about 10,000 miles on the bike, I love everything about it, but I've now gone through two belts. I'm PISSED how easily they bust. I REALLY want to change it over to a chain, does anyone know about a chain swap for my bike? If it's a power increase, SWEET, if not SWEET! Thanks for all your help.

chucktx · Mar 26th, 2008, 09:53 PM

there are places that will supply you with what you need to convert.....but i have a question. why are the belts breaking???? the belts are very strong and durable. either you are riding it pretty hard or getting rocks in the belt do to missing belt guards or are badly misaligned....before spending the bucks on a chain conversion, i would find out why i have to change my belts every 5000 miles...............

JJay · Mar 26th, 2008, 10:11 PM

You know, I've looked into that. There is/was wear showing on the belt and I asked the service center about it when I took it in for service, they had installed that belt and the one before. The transmission blew the second week I had it and they rebuilt it. I haven't had a problem with the tranny but I asked the service department and the guy said not to worry about it.

chucktx · Mar 26th, 2008, 10:21 PM

i would try another service dept. it sounds like "lip service" to me.........breaking belts at 5k is unacceptable....and there is a problem. how is the rear tire holding out.......even wear?? center worn and the sides like new??

Art_NJr · Mar 27th, 2008, 02:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JJay

You know, I've looked into that. There is/was wear showing on the belt and I asked the service center about it when I took it in for service, they had installed that belt and the one before. The transmission blew the second week I had it and they rebuilt it. I haven't had a problem with the tranny but I asked the service department and the guy said not to worry about it.

What a crock. If the belt is aligned correctly, it'll last indefinitely - my '95 Sportster still has the belt that came with it & the odometer is around 80,000 miles now. Guys are making 100 HP @ the rear wheel with 1200 Sportsters & drag racing them without breaking & I know of one 1200 Buell that made 120 HP on the dyno (I was there) & set a record @ the Bonneville salt flats with the stock belt.

1st thing to check is the axle spacers - I mentioned this in another discussion - it seems a large number of bikes came from the factory with the rear wheel offset & that will make the belt wear quick. Doesn't take much offset either. And obviously the place you've been going to is not the place to go.

Ask other riders in your area where they go for things they can't do themselves - you'll find that the best independent shops don't advertise because they don't need to. And for example, the 1st time I went to an indy shop for new tires (Metzelers), the guy said go get that coffee-can off the shelf over there - it was full of axle spacers.

At 1st glance they all looked the same but they're not & he said he checks that on every bike because the rear wheel being off is so common. Another guy had a wheel bearing going bad & that caused his belt to track wrong. H-D ended up giving him a new wheel, sprocket & belt, but I wouldn't count on that every time.

What it boils down to is that if you're breaking belts there's a reason & it ain't the belt itself - something is making it track wrong.

JJay · Apr 3rd, 2008, 09:40 AM

Yeah, the tires are great. And it tracks straight It's got something to do with the Engine sprocket.

hotroadking · Apr 3rd, 2008, 10:54 AM

One of the largest contributors is incorrect belt tension, HD has a tool that allows you to check this, if they are installing it and not setting tension properly you can pop a belt.

Missalignment
Rocks
etc

Belts are every bit as good as a chain, and they don't sling oil all over

I'd find a competent shop and have them check everything, alignment, tension pulley, maybe you have a bad spot on a pulley, sharpe edge etc.

Now if you're the burnout king, that's another issue

JJay · Apr 4th, 2008, 02:04 PM

Yeah, I'm the burnout king, let me tell you what! I found a shop right down the street from my house, I'm going to have them fix it. Thank you for your advise.

SPORSTERBOY · Apr 6th, 2008, 09:33 AM

Hey, Well Let Us Know How Much That Change Over Cost And How Hard It Is, Because I'm Thinking Of Doing It To My O3 Because Of Clearance Issues, I Still Have The Original Belt On Mine Also

voodoochild · Apr 6th, 2008, 07:52 PM

Hey Sporsterboy, (Of course I have a big twin) but the changeover was not hard at all. On the TC88, you remove the primary, then change the trans sprocket, and put it all back together. You need to change the rear pulley to a sprocket as well, but it wasn't hard at all. The chain goes on easy. The only thing I had to figure out was what offset I needed for the trans sprocket. I got that info from ReeseSS, who did the same conversion before me. Go for it, with your skill it'll be a piece of cake.

recentjester · Apr 7th, 2008, 07:01 AM

I found some original cast wheels for my 97 electraglide. If just installin the stock spacers may not be in align close enough how close should u get? Not to much wiggle room on account of the caliper has to be centered. how do u determine spacer size. The book shows two identical spacers an a longer one on caliper side. It was like 20.00 dollars at the dealer for the spacer they didn't have it in stock.

SPORSTERBOY · Apr 7th, 2008, 08:09 AM

Your Better Off Geting Your Spacers Somewhere Else Like A Hardware Store Or Making Them Out Of Some Pipe. If You Have Caliipers You Can Get Closer The First Time. The Spacing In Between The Brake And Bearing You Can't Change Prob Like 1/4 Or 3/8 Can't Remember. Measure The Distance From The Inside To Inside Of Frame. At The Rear Axle Measure The Axle Measure Hub With Brake And Spacer Then Subtract And Devide By 2.

chucktx · Apr 7th, 2008, 03:59 PM

please dont use pipe....it is way to soft!!!! (i am sure sportsterboy did a missprint) and will distort.....if push comes to shove, have a machine shop build what you need.............

Art_NJr · Apr 8th, 2008, 06:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chucktx

please dont use pipe....it is way to soft!!!! (i am sure sportsterboy did a missprint) and will distort.....if push comes to shove, have a machine shop build what you need.............

Chuck is 100% right. I had to make some axle spacers for a racing application & that was done on a lathe, by boring a hole down the center of a piece of round bar-stock steel & then cutting it to the desired thickness. Didn't take but about 5 minutes though.

We've done chain-drive conversions on Land-Speed-Record bikes due to the amount of HP they make & the fact that Sprocket Specialists makes a zillion different sprockets so you can adjust your overall gear ratio for any given rpm @ any given speed, but honestly, I don't know why you'd do it on a street bike - I sure wouldn't.

I know the stock belt will handle 120 HP - if it's adjusted right & is tracking straight. Only belt breakage problems I've ever seen were from something other than the belt itself - not adjusted right, not tracking straight, a rock got in-between the belt & sprocket 'cause the lower belt guard was removed, etc. & you'll have the same problems with a chain not setup right.

- Art

voodoochild · Apr 8th, 2008, 08:08 PM

I bought a piece of chrome spacer stock from JP cycles I believe, 6" long, and I cut my own spacers on my grandfathers lathe. I set everything up and measured the distances using inside calipers, I then cut the spacers and installed them, tightened everything up and checked my alignment again, then cut and re-fit as needed. I got my spacing/alignment to within .003 using some steel spark plug gapping tools. My buddy at the custom shop said close is as close as you can possibly get to perfect and I thought .003 was perfect enough for me. My bike tracks better and straighter than it EVER did from the factory....I can ride at any speed and take my hands off the bars and it goes perfectly straight. I guess all my persistence paid off. Good luck!

ironhorse · Apr 8th, 2008, 08:35 PM

hands off the bars...are you crazy

thats how bikers get bad reps

i was steering with wind resistance against the wind when i got my new rear thats how i felt something wrong with the alignment, didn't feel right, course the tech called me before i called them, and got it right right away .enough babble, and as chuck says, the spacers are thicker, and more precise, so i definatly, would not use pipe, the spacer material isn't that expensive and you won't need a lathe just a hack saw file, and slide square. as bare minimum

SPORSTERBOY · Apr 9th, 2008, 11:14 AM

Sorry, I Work In A Machine Shop And Round Comes Out As Pipe, I Take Solid Round Stock And Put It On A Lathe, But Being To Soft I Wouldn't Think So Depending On The Metal And Thinkness For Some Thing Like A Spacer Which Only Hold Preasure From The Bolt As Long As The Id Of The Hole Is Good, I Would Think A Bearing Would Give Before The Spacer Would, Considering What They Use For Your Frames And Your Brakes I Think Your Ok With A Spacer. Jmo
considering what they use to do before after market parts and the www.

recentjester · Apr 9th, 2008, 11:21 AM

yeah I know the spacer has to have an od an Id that is equal to stock. I have a lathe as well. trying to determine how well lined up your rear pulley with so much in the way is hard to do.

ironhorse · Apr 9th, 2008, 09:51 PM

the problem with pipe is it is not as accurate not as temperd and is seamed which is subject to split, i use 40 and 80 pipe all the time for spacers, and such, but wouldn't use it myself for anything that would be for human weight, unless it is certified

SPORSTERBOY · Apr 10th, 2008, 11:18 AM

Your Probably Going To Have To Pull The Pipes, Brake Cylinder, Foot Controls, Just To Get That Cover Off To Get A Good Eye View Of The Pully, I Would Start By Making Both Sides The Same, Your Main Thing Is To Get The Drive Side Right And What Ever Is Left Put In The Other Side, Make Sure Your Tire Alingment Is Right, Made That Mistake With Mine Because The Axle Bolt And Tention Spacer Where Differnt Diamiters, Which Gave Me A 1/8 Angle In The Tire, When Adjusting 1/8 Makes A Big Differnce In The Alingment, With The Swingarm Frame You Should Be Able To Use A Strait Edge