Replacing Planer drive belt

[Glenn Kotnik]

I've had a Ryobi 12 5/16 in. surface planer for going on 15 years. It gets hard use surfacing rough cut hardwood. Recently the drive belt broke. Ryobi told me the belts have been on backorder to China for ages so I should try a Delta belt. I had one here in 3 days courtesy of Amazon. Getting it in place over the two groved pulleys is another matter. Can anyone tell me how to do this?
Thanks

[Chip Lindley]

Glenn, got your owner's manual?

If not...Maybe the motor can be loosened and pivoted enough to slip your new belt over the pulleys? If there is no tension adjustment, remove the motor pulley from it's shaft, add the new belt over both pulleys, and slip the motor pulley onto it's shaft again. You may have to tug and stretch the belt a bit to replace the motor pulley. Make sure everything is aligned and all nuts or setscrews are tight before closing up your machine and running it.

[Glenn Kotnik]

Well, the planer is 15 years old and, although I usually save owner's manuals forever, this one has fallen by the wayside at some point. The problem is that to really expose the pullys requires disassembly of the whole cutter head and motor assembly from the housing. I'll check online for a manual. Thanks for your help.

[Josiah Bartlett]

One way would be to pivot the motor. The other way is to pull both pulleys off their shafts, put the belt on them, and replace them, much like installing a chain over sprockets. This may be a difficult way to do it though, depending on the belt tension.

The Delta planers have a pivot on the motor.

[Hentie Potgieter]

I may be 7 years too late to reply to this, but here goes anyway: After battling needlessly to fit the belt over the two grooved pulleys, I put the belt over my cut-off saw's vice, and turned the vice out to stretch the pulley. Don't stretch it too much, just enough to equal (approximately) the tension the belt would experience on the pulleys. (Note: If the belt is stretched within its tolerances, it should return to normal size before long and give the correct tension on the pulleys.) Leave it in the stretched position for about half to one hour, then fit the belt over the smaller pulley, and muscle the belt onto the larger pulley using a smooth instrument like a tyre (tire!) lever to push the belt on WHILE turning the pulley slowly by hand. If the belt (now fitted) is not in the correct grooves, it can be pushed laterally (horizontally) while turning the pulleys by hand. It should climb the grooves and slip in fairly easily. Test the machine BUT KEEP FINGERS AWAY from pulleys, belts and chains. With the machine open, take the opportunity to oil/grease the chain drives as well.