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Blowing belts - Hot clutches discussion

74K views 356 replies 99 participants last post by  Gallust660  
#1 ·
Please post questions and fixes here!

Jester:bc:
 
#4 ·
Just my observations. What a clutch should be is warm to to the touch around 120 degrees can hold your hand on the face forever and feel like putting you hand in a nice warm glove but temp goes up with conditions and use. On my sled without a heat gun 30-60 mph in 15 inch light snow for miles. Drive,driven and belt too hot to touch for more than a second. With a little snow on the finger tips it melts so I assume less than 212 degrees but still too hot. Slow tight trail 25 and under mph in 2-3 foot light snow for miles by touching hot is hot. Little snow on the fingers though it sizzles so above 212 degrees. Got a chance to to run some packed snow 30-70 mph for 10 miles with the side panel removed. Still too hot to touch but has to be at least some degrees cooler but not enough to tell without a temp gun. So venting isnt the answer. Maybe heavy sled longer track big power account for higher than perfect clutch temps :dunno:. The only good thing if you call it that not putting any rubber on the clutch faces
 
#3 ·
Please post questions and fixes here!

Jester:bc:

thanks Jester...just seemed to make sense to me to try and get all the info in one place....

Unfortunately...I don't have any valuable info to add.... :wall: I am going to try and add some venting this week...but that is no means a fix...just trying to apply a little ointment to the open sore that is these clutches.
 
#10 · (Edited)
Changed to 13 offset had clutches balanced they were good so no correction needed. Primary has mds weights 89.6g with speedwerx green spring and stock helix with dalton g/s spring and running gforce 082 replacement. Clutchweights jackshaft support and evo 215 mountain tune with header and turbo blankets along with intercooler fan. Belt temps dropped from 150s on used 082 to 120s on new gforce belt. Have a 120+ miles on gforce and looks good very little belt dust and can hold belt with bare hands and no burns. This after on-off-on throttle conditions at slow speeds and some 60-70mph bursts with temps in mid 20s F. Never could find room for highspeed runs of more than a mile due to trees down after the storm. I'm on a proclimb 153 and had burning hot belts and clutches last year but never pulled a cord or blew a belt in 850 miles. FWIW.

No spacer in secondary also!
 
#12 · (Edited)
My thoughts....I got 550 miles on my belt. I bought the sled from "Love the mudd" on here.He was tossing them every 100. I woofed the belt on a full throttle pull. Just tore it in half.

I wrapped my downpipe and installed a home made can which took alot of heat out of the engine compartment...Kens sports said my clutch alignment was way off and a bearing was going out...Which bearing? IDK yet I have to get home before they close to call.

I have frogskins on it also. The heat isnt much the problem now. After I tossed my belt I could grab my clutches and roll a new belt right on. I really think its a power issue.200 HP 4 stroke is diff then 200 on a 2 stroke...Id really like to find the tear strength of these belts.

I do alot of stop and go riding or 50 MPH riding around here to get the 550 miles. On the full throttle pass off kilter and it hooked is when the belt tossed.
 
#15 ·
anyone done any more testing with the STM tuner secondary. My selling dealer installed one on his demo last year after blowing several belts....he tells me he has not had an issue since...and has done a few customers sleds and they are happy as well.
 
#18 ·
"Turbie " has both primary and secondary STM on his sled I believe. Last season we could ride together and he could stop and hold his hand on the clutches when I couldn't even touch mine. Pm him and see if he checked temperatures.
 
#19 ·
"Turbie " has both primary and secondary STM on his sled I believe. Last season we could ride together and he could stop and hold his hand on the clutches when I couldn't even touch mine. Pm him and see if he checked temperatures.
There are a few on here that can do that too without the STM combo. I thought that Price Performance was onto something?
 
#20 ·
i dont have my first ride until next week. i am bringing my IR heat gun with me and will check both clutch faces as well as the belt. but since i have no reference point i dont know if what i have on mine is good or bad.
if anyone has checked theirs with a gun please post what actual temps you saw, what your engine and clutching set up is, what the conditions were and exactly where you checked the temps. then maybe we can compare some actual useful info
 
#23 ·
Just my two cents on this issue. I had my sled up on the stand today running it with the panels off and a new gates belt installed under hard deceleration the belts are hitting the belt guard hard and its just like a knife edge. I think this is why some people are blowing belts under decel at 7000 plus rpms its just like a sharp knife. I know at least one other person has said this on here too.
 
#24 ·
I fixed the whole up by the a arm on mine tonight and I have so much room in between my clutches and guards that there is no way the belt can touch them so some must be different. I also don't see the white spacer some have in the secondary. Hopefully I don't have it then. I did about 8 miles slow going around in the ditches and couple pulls in the fields stopped and opened guard to feel clutches I could put my hand on them for probably 3 seconds then about 5 minutes later I could leave my hand on them so I hope it's all good for this weekend.
 
#28 ·
It doesnt matter what clutching you have you have to make sure the clutches are alighned the way I do it is shift both clutches out with the belt on and look down the back of the secondary and if there off a little you will see the belt running on a angle . uasally you have to take shims away from the back of the secondary and if thats not enough you have to cut the post on the secodary to them to lighn up. The second thing i reccomend is to get the clutch side panel vented with frog skins to get cold air going across the clutches this helps more than some people would think. Third make sure your primary is not binding I have seen where they dont bind when there cold then when they heat up they are very sticky this causes allot of belt heat. shimming in the primmary is also a big help with belt heat i use 090 on the post and 090 on the big shim what this does is untuckes the weights and gives the weights a run at the belt this will also lower your engagaement . The post shim gives you belt to sheave clearance hope this helps .

Jason
 
#31 ·
Just checked 2 2012 turbos the one i had to cut the secondary 090 thousands and the other one 080 thousands to get the secondary lined up with the primary at full shift . I had a guy come in yesterday that was running 25lbs on the trail and fraying belts we cut the secondary 090 thousands and he rode another 65 miles at the same boost with my clutching and didnt have a problem so this seems to be allot of the problem . I will be testing this whole week just to make sure that im on the right track ill keep you guys updated.
 
#36 ·
I'm running the 2013 offset spec. I'll have to see how the belt looks aligned to the primary at full shift. The 144-4640U4 only made it 70 miles, shredded the belt vs. snapping in half. Left little pieces everywhere. I think these sleds need a stronger belt.

I assume you are running Jason's clutching? Normal riding or top end runs? Just curious as to why it failed so quickly? I ran that belt for around 100 miles no issues but I was just trail rididng because mine was 1/2" to short and
.100 to narrow. Impressive Quality Control Carlisle has...........
 
#50 ·
Yes, Jason clutching. I was trail riding on a grade not doing a top end run. Think it just built up too much heat and let go...
 
#37 · (Edited)
guys blowing belts who have not seen Gates threads....at least use Gates Kevlar Gforce belts since they are only 69 bucks you wont go broke til you get your setups worked out.

Or their new CARBON CORD belts for 78 bucks.

Fleet discount LINK: ATV Snowmobile Belts

Call them if you dont see size you want they can get any size, 12 shipping USA , approx 35 to canada...cant beat their pricing.

turbo size in a Gates Gforce KEVLAR CORD - 38G4494 , $69
turbo size in a Gates Gforce CARBON CORD- 38C4494 , $78

actual measurements have been shown by members to be 1.41 X 46.25

Gates also has many other sizes and they make just about every OEM belt made, so NO these are not cheapo belts...the CC belt is best you can buy at moment and their Kevlar is the standard of all OEMs hi HP sleds.

Dan
 
#38 ·
Where can you find a Gates belt chart? I don't want to run one that short. I did some searching and they have applications but no actual specs I can find.

FWIW, I hope the G-force is better than the Xtreme. I switched to the Carlisle Pro based on recommendations form others who said the Xtrmee was good for about 100 miles and the Pros were lasting 5 times that. They are $70 as well.
 
#40 ·
the specs and links have been posted at least 4 or 5 times on this forum with all sizes.

extreme belts from gates were designed nearly 8 yrs ago. I would never have run one of those.

as I said, ALL OEM belts now are built by gates, so why pay more? there is no magical belt composition. with the exception of the newest carbon cord which is new to the market.

Dan
 
#41 · (Edited)
Gates has more distributors then just about anyone.....most all auto parts stores can get them. Napa and others too.

But for best pricing I have never seen low as fleet....even for canuks adding 35 shipping is probably far less then getting it up there.

Dan
 
#43 ·
MBL used to make many OEMs back 5 yrs or more ago, from the guys I spoke with at Gates, they make ALL newer OEMs, at least that what their rep says

either way, kevlar belts were the top line, now carbon cord is

Dan