v belt comparison

[Tom Bender]

Went looking for results for v belt testing and didn't find it. There is a lot of marketing, mostly by Gates. And lots of opinions based on personal experience. And there is good engineering info on sizing and design etc. But independent and rigorous testing seems hard to find.

[Jerry Bruette]

I don't tink you'll find any results for v belt testing. There would be way too many variables to consider. Temperature, humidity, how clean is the operating environment, does the drive train have a soft start feature, are the belts properly tensioned,were the belts installe properly, are the belts properly aligned, are the proper belts being used, what is the spine of the belts made from etc.

All that said, I was a millwright for over 30 years and replaced or installed miles of v belts. Gates belts are top of the line and they've been making them for a long time.

[Edward Weber]

I've been in the same situation where the OEM belt works but could last longer, spall less rubber, etc. There are lots of options within the same size, with no clear consensus other than "our" brand is best.

On my 5' mower, I went with a kevlar belt rather than the OEM, it lasts longer (still working long past the originals lifespan) and actually cost about the same.

Hope you find what you need

[Richard Coers]

I'm not certain what kind of testing you are asking about. Are you looking for comparative company material endurance testing, or endurance testing vs general material specs? Just about any v-belt will last a long time, so hard to find comparative data for consumers to use. I find that consumers know little about proper belt tension and most import machinery companies spend little time engineering machinery with proper cross section sizing and wrap angle. But still a v-belt will last a decade.

[Andrew Hughes]

I have bando belts on all my machines except the jointer because it’s direct drive and doesn’t use belts.
The bando belts are very flexible.
I recommend them.
Heres a pic

[Brian Runau]

I have bando belts on all my machines except the jointer because it’s direct drive and doesn’t use belts.
The bando belts are very flexible.
I recommend them.
Heres a pic

Sold Bando for years, good belt good company. Brian

[Ronald Blue]

Not sure what you are looking for. Unless you are designing a machine then one has to accept the manufacturer equipped the machine with a belt size that will supply the needed power. Gates is a leading supplier. They aren't the only supplier of course. There might be a better belt available depending on the application. I changed a lot of belts in my career and the biggest improvement I saw was on multi-belt sets the one piece 3, 4, or 5 rib banded belts were a huge upgrade. The issues with imperfect matches was eliminated. If you have a belt that isn't holding up for you make sure the pulleys aren't worn out. The sides of the belt engage the pulley and the bottom should never touch. If it does it's either an incorrect belt or a worn out pulley.

[Warren Lake]

havent taken the time to really learn about belts and pulleys one machine had link belts and was fine. Two shapers have smaller size corg belts, they turn so smooth no resistance then ordered corgs for the general cabinet saw and they are horrible compared much larger and stiff as hell then leave them a few days and memory city. Actually run rough a few seconds then smooth out. Supplier claimed right belts for pullys part number etc my memory the much smaller fine ones on the shaper are what I want. Never had an issue with belts wearing out fast they do wear out but not seen it happen quickly Main ones the table saws that passed tons of material and not in the kindest way.

[Brian Runau]

Not sure what you are looking for. Unless you are designing a machine then one has to accept the manufacturer equipped the machine with a belt size that will supply the needed power. Gates is a leading supplier. They aren't the only supplier of course. There might be a better belt available depending on the application. I changed a lot of belts in my career and the biggest improvement I saw was on multi-belt sets the one piece 3, 4, or 5 rib banded belts were a huge upgrade. The issues with imperfect matches was eliminated. If you have a belt that isn't holding up for you make sure the pulleys aren't worn out. The sides of the belt engage the pulley and the bottom should never touch. If it does it's either an incorrect belt or a worn out pulley.

Depends on the engineer and company guidelines. How much service factor they used and how cheap they went., will directly affect belt life in use. Cogged belts offer more life transmit more HP, but you rarely seem them on original equipment because they are more expensive. Probably 5 different ways to design a single drive and majority of oems go least expensive every time. Planned obsolescence is a real thing . Brian