Another question on Jet belts

[Jim Reasoner]

When I read the post below about the jet belt thing it reminded me of
something I have been wanting to know. Will those link belts work on the
Jet lathes. If so it sure would make putting on a new belt a LOT easier.
But with my luck that is probably to much to ask for.

Jim R

[Bernie Weishapl]

In a word, no.

[Dario Octaviano]

NO and not just on Jet but to all Reeves drive machine as well.

[Bill Boehme]

I think that some people have used them, but I think that the regular belts would be preferrable. My reasoning is based on the following:
The speed of the spindle on a Reeves drive is directly affected by belt length. Since the belt tension in a Reeves drive lathe like the Jet or the Delta is rather low, but subject to how much torque is being delivered to the spindle, I can see the belt length increasing a bit under high torque. This situation would increase the torque load on the motor more than if the belt did not stretch and therefore, I think that it is possible to have poorer speed regulation with the link belts.
The vertical cross section of a belt used on a Reeves drive is ideally very shallow (like 3/8 inch) while the link belts have a rather thick vertical cross section which is not uniform, but periodic in nature. This should not be much of a problem for ordinary pulleys, but for a Reeves pulley, I think that this may lead to speed "noise" -- NOTE: I am not talking about acoustic noise. What I mean by speed noise is a low amplitude periodic variation in speed superimposed on a constant speed.Bill

[Bill Boehme]

In a word, no.



NO and not just on Jet but to all Reeves drive machine as well.

Awww, come on guys, I am sure that we can try to reach a consensus of opinion!;)

Bill

[Andy Hoyt]

In a word, no. Hey, Bernie!

Didn't you get the memo?

The Outtens have decided to stop charging members monthly word count fees.

Gotta be more words (okay even just a few letters) in your keyboard somewhere.

[Bill Boehme]

Didn't you get the memo? .... The Outtens have decided to stop charging members monthly word count fees.

Thank goodness, I have been running way over budget.

Bill

[Dario Octaviano]

Not sure how link belts work when "pressed" on the side but I don't think they are designed to be.

Reeves drive work by making one of the pulley bigger (or smaller) by compressing (or expanding) which in effect changes the size the V belt rides on.

Will link belt work as well? I don't think so (as well as most people who thought of using and those who tried it and I've read a lot of posts about it).

Even on non-reeves driven lathes, I don't think it will work as well as the regular belt.

Do I have first hand experience on it? NO. And I bet I won't.:D;)

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Hey, Bernie!

Didn't you get the memo?

The Outtens have decided to stop charging members monthly word count fees.

Gotta be more words (okay even just a few letters) in your keyboard somewhere.

Hey Andy......You know Bernie.....Never beats around the bush!;)

[Bill Boehme]

Not sure how link belts work when "pressed" on the side but I don't think they are designed to be.
Dario,

All V belts including link belts are designed to run on the sidewalls. The wedging action is what gives them their ability to transmit torque. A belt is worn out when it begins to run in the bottom of the groove on the pulley because that is when it will begin slipping. If you have ever heard the belts squealing on an automobile, it is because the belt has worn to the point that the belt is running in the bottom of the groove and no amount of tightening will fix that problem. You will also see annealing on pulleys where worn out belts have been allowed to run for too long. This constant slipping condition heats up the pulley to the point where the bottom of the groove will turn blue on steel pulleys. An annealed pulley can also be unsafe because it has lost its necessary hardness and can deform and fail.

The speed noise problem that I described earlier has to do with the irregular sidewall height. I think that the partial tension load carried by each incremental overlapping segment can be a factor in this.

Bill