The tale of two belts
When I first started riding again, I wanted to “catch-up” on the things that I had missed for the previous 17 years.  One of the worse things I could have done is get my information off an internet forum.  Don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of good information, but there is also a lot of bad information that an unknowing soul can take as the gospel of things.  There is so many “experts” and then you have the manufacturer’s recommendations, and you have those who try something, and if it doesn’t throw them off on the first ride, it must be okay.   I like to get the end to end perspective, that is, after many years of application, what is okay, and what is not okay.  I will not give any expert advice or dispute anyone else, I will only share with you my thoughts and what transpired with the original belt and the first replacement belt on my Vision.

The manufacturer recommends that we replace our belts every 30,000 miles and replace pulleys when they show wear, in a set.  I’m one to push things to the limit a little and like to find out things for myself.  When 30,000 miles came and went on my Vision, the belt still looked basically new.  Sure, I know there was some wear, but it was not discernible to the naked eye or touch.  When I got to 45,000 miles I wanted to check out the bike a little closer and it seemed to be the time to replace the belt.  Actually it was 44,500 exactly when I pulled the Vision into the shed for the shake down.  The ride I had always wish I could do was to go across the country.  My work was sending me to the California desert so I made the arrangements to ride.  Having heard all of the horror stories about belts breaking, especially out in the middle of nowhere, I didn’t want mine to break because of wear.  I replaced the belt, and since the pulleys looked near new, I did not change them out.  So, with the new belt on I went to California via West Virginia, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Kansas, Colorado-Utah-Arizona-New Mexico, (saw the south rim of the Grand Canyon), and then on into the Mojave Desert.  Man what a ride.  When I was done, I took a swing up through the Sierra Nevada on into Utah and back the same route I came.  Sometime after I return home and I had to replace the tire, I noticed some abnormal wear and the pulley, and of course on the belt.  My first thought, riding in the desert would generate a lot of sand, plus, when I was in the Rockies the interstate was full of sand where they would treat the roads for ice and snow.  I surmised that is what happened and hoped I could get a lot more miles out of this belt.

Then it happened.  I had changed my tire and put everything back together, so I thought.  About two weeks later, I was shifting without using the clutch, don’t ask why, and when I down shifted I felt the rear of the bike hop to the right.  I tried it again, and it did it again.  Upon inspection I found the axle bolt loose, so I tightened it down.  No problem, right?  Wrong.  About a day or two later I’m riding home and I feel a bump in the engine.  I thinking something is going wrong with my transmission, I’m at 100,000 miles, so what else could it be?  I stop and look, and I see a broke lug on the belt, folded back.  So I remove and continue on my journey.  The next day I ride to work with the mixing lug, but before I get home I have several missing lugs.  Time for a new belt!!  Well, I thought, what is wrong with the original belt, it looks new?  And I spent the next couple of evenings putting on the new old belt, which already had 44,500 miles on.  The belt that I had just trashed the lugs on had about 56,000 miles on it.  Remember too, I’m on this worn pulley that has worn the pattern into the belt.  I wasn’t long that the new old belt picked up the pattern.  While the belt never gave me any trouble, I could feel the looseness in the lugs in the pulley grabs, but I was still riding “hard” whenever I would live a light, or had to accelerate, I did it without hesitation.  Even riding two-up, I thought to myself, “These belts are near indestructible.” 

When I recently had the belt guard incident, the belt jumped to the inside of the pulley, bending the outside edge of the pulley to the point of separating at the jump point.  With an inch gouge on the back of the belt, worn, and a little nicked up, the belt did not break.  I was able to get back home using that belt before I put a new rear pulley and belt on.  I did not replace my primary pulley as it still looks near new without a blemish in it.

So, in conclusion with my new belt and pulley I hope to get at least 100,000 miles out of it.   I’ll stand by the manufacturer to recommend changing a belt at 30,000 miles, in the true world of motorcycle owners that is about 10 years.  That belt will break due to dry rot.  In the world of motorcycle enthusiasts and bikers, 30,000 miles is about 2 years, tops.  Both of these belts had over 50,000 miles on it, with one being about 5 years old.  Neither broke, but each was severely damaged and still had fight in them.  

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