Broken belt!

[DickDastardly]

A mate of mine has recently bought an 05 Buell could be a Ulysses, (what do I know I own a Sportster) with 10k on the clock.

On his way home tonight, whilst givin’ it some beans coming out of a corner, the belt snapped!

He phoned me and asked what the lifespan/mileage is to be expected from a belt.

He said there is ‘cracking’ in the rubber between the teeth, there didn’t appear to be any stone puncture damage to the belt, just a clean break.

Any thoughts/ideas?

Got me a bit worried about the belt on my Sportster as it’s 7 years old!

[Limey_Dave]

Inspecting for cracks between teeth is listed in service items.
If it was kept outside/uncovered etc it would degrade sooner.
Mine's 9 years old but like me was kept in the dark so is fine.

[yamyambuelly]

mines 2 years old and done 12500 miles in all weathers and has only ever been under a bike cover and i too tend to ride mine hard.

Was always told that they have a lifetime guarentee

[nutah]

Buells have more power than the sporty , so they can snap them .
worth trying your dealer , depends as some are more helpfull than others.

I have an 04 Firebolt , this has covered 16000 ,with one belt..

[Dave_Scott]

Just snaped mine 23,000 miles and this will be its 3rd belt. S1 lightning.

[grbrown]

I did 17,000 miles on my 03 Firebolt with no problems. I think the expression used on my 07 'bolt is that the belt has a service life similar to the bike - don't recall seeing an actual guarantee!

They certainly are long-life items, so it is worth talking to the dealer, especially if it was bought direct from one!

Snapped the belt on my '02 M2 Cyclone at 7000-ish miles due to an accidental clutchless downshift! Indie dealer suggested that 'belt dresssing' (I assume spray or brush on??) was a good thing to prolong belt life. Physical damage must have a bearing on life - any nick would introduce a stress point which may lead to a failure. From what I've seen from forum posts there doesn't seem to be any rule for belt life - just bad luck if it lets go without any obvious damage. Just inspect regularly I guess!
T.

[Gas Axe]

Hey Andy
Just seen your post about belts,don't worry ,Buells snap their belts not only because of the almost 30% more power but because the geometry is wrong .
The swinging arm pivot is around 5 inches further back than the front pulley,with the result that the belt tightens seriously when the rear suspension is depressed,factory settings for belt play are way out,the only way to get it right is to disconnect the shock and lower the bike till front,rear pulleys and swinging arm pivot are in line ,then give slight tension. The result is a very slack belt,but one that won't /shouldn't snap and you won't knacker your gearbox output bearing.
Thats for proper Buells , on XB's I believe a free spirit belt tensioner overcomes the bad geometry.
Sporties don't suffer from a badly positioned swinging arm pivot.
Cheers
Lee

[Cybertec™]

..are you f*cking joking? so a Buell XB isn't a 'proper' Buell..which isn't a 'proper' sportie which in turn isn't a proper 'Harley'.....

[Gas Axe]

Originally Posted by Cybertec™

..are you f*cking joking? so a Buell XB isn't a 'proper' Buell..which isn't a 'proper' sportie which in turn isn't a proper 'Harley'.....

Yup,Proper Buells have tube frames,
He He He.
Lee