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New user
Posts: 1
| Is there any out there knowledgeable on how to align the drive belt on my Victory Cross Country Tour? | |
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Visionary
Posts: 4278
| take bag off bike. Lift bike off ground. Spin wheel. Now with the adjuster wrench adjust as you need to. Owners book will tell you more | |
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 43
Rossville, IL | Copied from one of my previous posts. CCT and Vision belt adjustment should be done similarly but I would consult a manual to see what the deflection is called for on your bike.
Check your belt tension as it will affect your fuel mileage. Most dealers have them set way too tight and the manual sucks at telling you how to adjust them and is actually partly wrong in the description. I've seen several broken belts caused by the dealers adjusting them too tight and squeaks because they don't know how to properly align them.
Check your belt when it's cold before going on a ride. It should have what the manual calls for...mine calls for about 3/4" deflection. Anything less than that when the bike is cold is too tight. After you ride a few miles and the motor is good and hot, pull over and do a quick check on your tension on the belt. If it's so tight where you can bounce a quarter off it, it definitely needs adjusting.
I've readjusted some of the others that I ride with and the first thing that comes out of the mouth is the bike has more power now and is smooth! (not really true on the power, it's just not bound up now). Then usually a week or two later, they call me and say hey, my bikes getting better fuel mileage now too, what did you do?
The 2 keys to adjusting the belt are 1. You have to do it with the bike stone cold, let it sit overnight on the lift. 2. Adjust the belt tension per the manual WITH THE WEIGHT OF THE BIKE ON THE TIRE. Don't jack the rear tire off the table to set the tension and only use the right adjuster to set it.
Once the tension is set, then jack the wheel off the table and adjust the alignment by using the LEFT ADJUSTER ONLY following the procedure in the book. Whatever you do, DON'T TOUCH THE RIGHT ADJUSTER while setting the alignment! After you adjust the alignment, put the weight of the bike back down on the tire and recheck the tension. It should still be balls on if done correctly.
If set properly, the belt will have the the correct deflection when the bike is cold and will be snug but not guitar string tight when the bike is hot. Your belt, wheel bearings, and wallet will love you for it. | |
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 43
Rossville, IL | Sorry for double posting here.
Below is a little more detailed write up I did on another forum in case you don't have a manual to reference. This is how I do it for the guys I ride with and they won't let the dealer touch their belt adjustments again.
I broke 2 belts on my TC and there were a few others in our LC that broke them as well. In every case, the mechanic at our dealer had adjusted them way too tight. They claimed they were doing it by the book, but I have to argue that the book was/is wrong. I developed my own technique and have adjusted them on friends bikes since then without a single complaint. Some of them even had the dreaded squeak and it eliminated it as well.
It is imperative that you start with a cold engine or you absolutely will not get the tension correct. The hotter the motor gets, the tighter the belt gets. Regardless of what anyone may tell you, the geometrics of the swingarm does not follow the same arc as the belt...the belt will get slightly tighter & looser as the suspension travels up and down. I had installed a lowering clevis in my TC when I broke the first belt and it was way too right with the bike lowered. The mechanic installed a second belt and it broke on the way home.
The way I do it is pretty simple.
I put the bike on a lift and let it sit overnight so the motor is stone cold.
Ideally, you want to adjust the tension of the belt how it normally runs, i.e. with a load on the bike. I put 3 or 4 sandbags on the seat to load up the bike. Bounce it up & down a couple of times to settle the suspension. Loosen the axle nut, then snug it back down. The reason why is if you leave the axle nut loose while you are adjusting the alignment, the rear frame spreads slightly. When you torque the axle nut to spec, the frame narrows back down causing the alignment to shift and it will be off again. Snug the axle nut to the point where you have to use the adjuster to move the axle but where it can still move with light taps on the axle with a plastic hammer.
Once the axle nut is snugged, I adjust the belt tension with the right adjuster nut only. If the belt is too tight, I'll loosen the adjuster nut a couple of turns then lightly tap on the right side of the axle with a plastic hammer to move it forward. Tighten the right adjuster nut back up to adjust the belt to the correct tension. The belt deflection is correct in the book and varies from bike to bike so you will need to look it up. For example, the Vision calls for 20mm (about 3/4" of deflection at the midpoint when applying 10#'s of force. I guess at 10 #'s of force, I imagine trying to hold up two 5# bags of sugar with my thumb as my scientific calibration reference. The 3/4" of deflection seems like a lot, but believe me...it will tighten up once the motor gets hot. Again, check what the deflection is for your bike as they are different.
Once the belt tension is adjusted, I then take the sandbags off and put a scissor jack under the rear of the motor and raise the rear wheel off the lift table. I set the belt alignment with the left adjuster only and don't touch the right one from this point out. I roll the tire in the forward direction of the bike and usually the belt is riding tight against the right or outside edge of the pulley (side away from the tire). If it is, I loosen the left adjuster nut 2 or 3 turns, then lightly tap the left side of the axle forward with a plastic hammer. Rotate the tire in the forward direction again and the belt should be running on the inside or left side of the pulley. Once it is, lightly snug the left adjuster nut to take the slack out.
At this point, rotate the tire in a backwards direction and take tiny baby steps tightening the left adjuster nut. You are looking for the point where the belt just starts to move off the left side and starts to move to the right. As you continue to rotate the tire backwards it should not go all the way to the right side of the pulley. If it does, then you need to loosen the left adjuster nut, tap the left side of the axle forward, and start over again. Looking for this point where the belt starts to shift to the right takes patience and tiny adjustments in the adjuster nut. If you imagine a watch face, I tighten in increments of 1 digit at a time, i.e. 12:00-1:00, spin spin spin and check. 1:00-2:00, spin spin spin and check. You may need to go through a couple of complete revolutions tightening the left adjuster nut but you will get there. Just go slow and easy with lots of spinning the tire.
Once the alignment is set, torque the axle nut. I double check the alignment rolling the tire backwards and it should still stay the same and just barely off the right edge of the pulley. Lower the bike so the rear tire is on the lift, put the sandbags back on, bounce it up & down a couple of times, then double check the belt tension. It should stay the same unless the rear of the bike was really out of alignment to begin with. If it's ok, roll the bike off the lift and go for a spin.
You will notice on returning after the motor is hot, the belt deflection will be lightly snug, but not super tight...that's the sweet spot. The belt will also be lightly kissing the right side of the rear pulley, that's where you want it too run. When you put power to the belt from the motor, that's what causes it to slightly shift to the right. If you adjust the belt alignment so that it initially rubs the right side, it puts too much side pressure on the belt when under power and causes the annoying squeak & vibration.
Also notice when you are on the ride, pull in on the clutch and let the bike coast. You will see that it is noticeably quieter, smoother and coasts effortlessly for a much longer distance. I guarantee you will say wow, what a difference.
Everyone that I've adjusted their belt for calls me back almost immediately and says that their bike is night and day different, what did you do? Their strange noises are gone, the bike is smoother, and they say it feels like it has more power (no, it doesn't, it's just smoother now). Usually after a few days, they will call back again and say that they noticed their mpg has even increased. Don't know about that either, but it might if the belt was super tight before and putting the driveline in a bind. I would imagine the rear wheel bearings would last much longer also. | |
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Cruiser
Posts: 190
| Finally remembered I wanted to ask you about this. Any time I've adjusted the belt on my Vision I had it on my lift. According to my manual...it calls for 32 mm, give or take 5 mm on the belt. How can you make adjustments when the weight of the bike's on it? I mean, I guess I can see doing it but it'd be harder that way wouldn't it or does the Cross Country manual say to do it that way? | |
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align drive belt