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belt washing? Im staring a pissing match!

POLZIN

POLZIN

Well-known member
Premium Member
Ok so ive been doing some home work on belts. I have to ask a question.

Why do you wash your 115 /22 belts that are GROUND/CUT after molding to finished dimensions? I know this is a widey accepted proctice but IMO it makes no sense whatsoever. This is done to remove mold relase that was ground or cut off :face-icon-small-con

Furthermore if you are using a molded belt(080) that may still have mold release componds on it why would you go to the trouble? performance isnt your goal anyway!


just my thoughts
 
Nah.. Did MH leave that out.. Install with Clean Hands the NEXT Day after washing..


I was thinking about those... So Cold out Mornings.. Everything has a frost.. Belt got a frost on it .. OO no ... What are we going to do.. BBBRRAAPPP BRAApp..

Going going the same day. heck 5 min after i get that belt in my hands!!
 
Kreg,

I know that. ... but still find it funny.

=======================================================================================

Belts are made on a mold and come off as a tube. They are then cut to size and ground or cut to the proper side-angle.... they DO have mold release on them... They also have dust, oils etc that are left over from grinding them.

Simple... you have a $180 belt on a $11,000 machine (that you are putting $4000 plus more labor into for a turbo that will hopefully bring it up to 220 hp).

All of that power goes into a belt that about 1" thick and transfers power thru friction to the drive system... that belt is what transfers the engines power to the secondary clutch and then onto the track... that alone.

With over 200 hp and $16,000 plus that you have into your sled moving power thru this one small power transfer device... I want to ensure that there is no silicone/wax mold release residue, dirt, oils from mfg, distributing or transport/install and that the belt is in as optimal condition as possible for the ride.

I don't want the heat and Extreme pressure of the clutch system driving any residue in to the pores of the rubber or aluminum of the clutch faces.

I will also not run the clutches without cleaning them thoroughly even when new.

Will a sled work with a an unwashed belt, ABSOLUTELY.

Will I run a new belt on my machine without washing it with scalding hot water and degreaser before installing it on the expensive investment that gets me into some deep backcountry fun and back and expect flawless performance from... not on your life... but hey, that's just me.

So Kreg... when I see you fretting over the cost of ONE belt and you invest so much money into a sled and expect it to perform.... (for a guy that would wash his clutches in the dishwasher)... you want to Pizz and moan over the 5 min it takes to prep a belt?

Now... on top of this.... The engineers at ALL the belt companies from Mitusboshi, to Gates, Carlisle to Goodyear all say to break in the belt as does the mfg. They must be crazy too (not).

Because I want the Critical ONLY link between the two clutches that drive the sled to work flawlessly... I scrub the belt with a stiff brush and degreaser and clean the clutch faces after every second ride

AGAIN... will it work with out all that...ABSOLUTELY... but the clean belt that was broken in, strongly IMO, will outperform and outlast the one that did not. Especially when I've also made sure that the remainder of the drive-line is completely up to spec, clean and maintained for the remainder of the season.

Have fun on whatever you ride this season... So pizz away... you still my friend!!






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Last edited:
i have never washed or preped a belt on any sled. my old revs i would get close to 2500 miles out of one belt with mixed trail and off trail riding. my 800 etec has 1500 miles on one belt and it looks to be fine. i would assume that riding in the mountains will eat up belts faster?
 
yas, much, much faster. i usually don't get much more than 500 miles out of my belts and i do everything listed above. but admittedly, i'm rather abusive on my belts.

pv
 
Like on anything in a sled... there are TONS of things that people like to argue about....Is 5 min with hot water, simple green and scrub brush worth the breath?? Really?????

I will say that once the belt is used, The hard compound of the 115 belt becomes glazed (look at the shiny aluminum residue on the belt after 10 rides)... it absolutely will not perform as well as clean, unglazed belt and will build heat. I HAVE tested that.

Preventative maintenance is just that... it prevents problems down the road and ensures that the sled will perform to the best of its abilities.

If you don't want to do it.. that is cool too... that is your prerogative... I've expressed my point of view... hope you find it helpful.
 
once the glaze as developed do you wash it again? or have you found a way to break that glaze? emery cloth?

pv
 
A stiff scrub brush or a medium scotch brite pad and some simple green do just fine at breaking the glaze and not be too agressive on the belt.

Make sure to rinse it well with hot water and scrub it as you are rinsing it too.








.
 
I've actually taken some 115 belts that were glazed and thrown out by RMSHA racers... measured the width to check for wear... scrubbbed them and got over 1000 miles out of the belt on my 700 RMK before replacing it for preventive measurers... my friend has that same belt on his 600 IQ-RMK for another 800 miles and still going.




.
 
Could we agree that washing a new belt would have very limited returns ?

I may agree on breaking the glaze off a used belt but I would just replace it.
 
I believe that washing a new belt is good measure on a $180 investment that is so critical in the performance and reliability of the sled. I really dont want to pound/melt that stuff into the pores of the rubber nor have any of the mold release from the belt make its way into the sheaves of the clutches.

Limited returns would be based on how much residue is left on the belt (something you wont be able to see) ... could be big, could be small returns IMO... No way to know.. I don't want to risk it though.

Especially in light of the insignificant amount of time it takes to do this.. the belt will already be off so you can clean the clutches (even on a new machine) before you use it.

I do, very much, respect your opininon Kreg.
We can agree to disagree.
 
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