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Orange belts

Started by Magicman, August 18, 2009, 09:59:13 PM

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Magicman

Before I bought a mill, I had sent off for information from 'bout all manufacturers.  From Timberwolf? or Suffolk? or somebody, I got an advertisement for orange belts to replace the WM B57's.  Well I ordered two for about $50.  I put them on, I thought, as per the instructions.  I experienced a vibration I guess caused by the belts not "seating" correctly in the V groove.  Maybe I needed more lubrication?

Anyway, I removed them and have been successfully using B57's since.  Has  anyone used these belts on a WM?





Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

bandmiller2

Majic,those belts are very tight on the pulleys and tough to twang on.You are right about the lube if not used in copious amounts the belts will stretch uneven and have thick and thin places causing the vibration.Probibly you could remove them relube and put them on again they do work if installed right we tried them but found no advantage over the standard loose belt on the LT-70.Frank C.
A man armed with common sense is packing a big piece

Chuck White

Question on the subject of belts!

Are the B-57 belts sold by Wood-Mizer the same as an "auto-parts" B-57 belt?

I've been told that they're not the same, and then someone says they are the same!

The book says "Use only B-57 belts manufactured by Goodyear and Browning"!
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

Ed

Those look like the Timberwolf belts.
Our Dynatech mill uses them. I did overheat the drive wheel belt a month ago and had to replace it. Other than that, no problems or vibration.

Ed

pineywoods

Quote from: Chuck White on August 19, 2009, 09:26:01 AM
Question on the subject of belts!

Are the B-57 belts sold by Wood-Mizer the same as an "auto-parts" B-57 belt?

I've been told that they're not the same, and then someone says they are the same!

The book says "Use only B-57 belts manufactured by Goodyear and Browning"!

It all depends on just who manufactured the "auto parts belts". The goodyear and browning belts have a flat top, most others have a rounded crown. I have used napa (gates) B57s on my lt40. They work in a pinch, but blade tracking is a whole lot touchier. The rounded belts have a lot less contact area with the blade, slipping could be a problem. I bought a set of no-name belts from surplus center and they are flat-topped. I once in desperation put a round top B58 on the idler wheel. It sorta worked until I broke a blade and the end of the blade went under the belt. Made a real tangled mess..
1995 Wood Mizer LT 40, Liquid cooled kawasaki,homebuilt hydraulics. Homebuilt solar dry kiln.  Woodmaster 718 planner, Kubota M4700 with homemade forks and winch, stihl  028, 029, Ms390
100k bd ft club.Charter member of The Grumpy old Men

petefrom bearswamp

Tried these on my old mill which Chuck White now has.
Couldn't get rid of the vibration.
I tried lubrication and beating them into the wheel with a wood block and hammer.
Timberwolf sent me a new set, same problem.
Broke a couple of blades using them they now hang on a nail in my pole building.
bought Goodyear b57 belts from an outfit in I think Ohio or Indiana at a fraction of he amount charged by WM.
I'll try to find the paperwork and post again.
Keep the sawdust coming.
Pete

Kubota 8540 tractor, FEL bucket and forks, Farmi winch
Kubota 900 RTV
Polaris 570 Sportsman ATV
3 Huskies 1 gas Echo 1 cordless Echo vintage Homelite super xl12
57 acres of woodland

petefrom bearswamp

Well I found the supplier, Indiana Fan and Fabrication.
I bought 4 for $51.84 $12.96 each  last year but when I tried to access their site I got error messages.
maybe they are no longer in business.
Pete
Kubota 8540 tractor, FEL bucket and forks, Farmi winch
Kubota 900 RTV
Polaris 570 Sportsman ATV
3 Huskies 1 gas Echo 1 cordless Echo vintage Homelite super xl12
57 acres of woodland

petefrom bearswamp

Well shut my mouth!
Further investigation turned up an address and phone #
Indiana fan and fabrication, 2045 E Washington St. indianapolis IN 46201 Phone 317/634-7165
Pete
Kubota 8540 tractor, FEL bucket and forks, Farmi winch
Kubota 900 RTV
Polaris 570 Sportsman ATV
3 Huskies 1 gas Echo 1 cordless Echo vintage Homelite super xl12
57 acres of woodland

Magicman

I guess that I was just looking for a better mousetrap when I bought these.  Actually the WM B57's last so long that it really is not an issue.  I was just wondering what luck others' had with the orange ones.
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

gmmills

  I tried them years ago on my LT 40 . Had the same problem with vibration on the initial installation. Took them off and reinstalled them using  straight dishwashing detergent as lube. This was on a Fri. evening. Left them seat in all weekend with no blade or tension on them. The following Mon. installed a blade and sawed. No vibration at all.

  On the neg side. A broken blade rubbing against a free spinning idler wheel will melt the belt. It will glue itself directly to the blade. Had to use a utility knife to separate the belt from the blade.  >:( >:( 
   
     In my opinion, these belts are not worth the extra money compared to a standard B-57 belt. 
Custom sawing full-time since 2000. 
WM LT70D62 Remote with Accuset
Sawing since 1995

Tim/South

We bought a set of these a few years ago for our LT40. I like them, have never experienced any vibration.
I do get by with running less blade tension than is recommended.

I have a friend who also runs an LT40 and he tried them and could not tell a difference in how his saw operated.

sparks

The B57 belts we use are made for us by Goodyear. Goodyear makes another B57 belt but not with the characteristics we ask for. Browning has one that will do to get you by until you can get B57's. Remember to rotate the belts every 50 hours to insure even wear. The drive wheel belt wears faster and rotating them keeps them equal. Thanks
\"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.\" Abraham Lincoln

ely

dads lt 40 uses the b57, we tried the orange belts and had about the same results as yall.

i use the orange belts on my norwood and i love it, no problems at all. idler wheel that is.

customsawyer

I have used the timber wolf belts back when I was trying the diesel fuel and bar oil for lube it worked ok but I didn't notice any improvement so went back to regular belts and water. I do use a size smaller belt then WM says so that saw dust doesn't get under them and I get about 400-500 hrs out of a set of belts.
Two LT70s, Nyle L200 kiln, 4 head Pinheiro planer, 30" double surface Cantek planer, Lucas dedicated slabber, Slabmizer, and enough rolling stock and chainsaws to keep it all running.
www.thecustomsawyer.com

Polly

cincinnati belting and transmission cincinnati ohio ,6th st , you want them they gotum  ;)

musikwerke

I run the urethane belts on my LT 30 because I use diesel for blade lube.  I have found that a liberal amount of straight dish detergent is necessary when installing them.  Run the blade up to about one-half the rated speed for a few minutes a couple of times to allow the belt to seat.  If you immediately run the mill at rated speed you can see the belt lifting out of the groove from mere stretching due to centrifugal force.  I had vibration too until I figured out how to get them to seat.
John

ARKANSAWYER


  I use the B57 from the parts store.  They seem to run just as long as the ones from WM and they keep them in stock in town.  Since we go through a set about every 3 months it makes it handy. Also if a band breaks and cuts one I will but on an old one till I can get to town for a new set.  I always change them in sets.  My mill seems to track the same but then it has well over 2 mmbdft and worn out.  ;D
ARKANSAWYER

WH_Conley

Something I have noticed, after 3600 or so hours, is the belts don't stand up above the rim of the wheel like they used to. Does anybody know what the average life of the wheel is?
Bill

Magicman

I hope that the wheel life is a lot more than 7000 hours.  I replaced the bearing in the "driven" wheel this year.  Started "rumbling".  Mine are plenty shiny and polished in the V belt grove, but I've never thought about wear. 
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

Chuck White

I would think (and hope) that the blade wheels would last as long as the mill anyway!

As far as the blade wheels being shiny in the groove, it's really no different than any other pulley that works with V-belts!
~Chuck~  Cooks Cat Claw sharpener and single tooth setter.  2018 Chevy Silverado and 2021 Subaru Ascent.
With basic mechanical skills and the ability to read you can maintain a Woodmizer  LT40!

ARKANSAWYER


  They last longer then 10,000 hours and the first engine is all I know.
ARKANSAWYER

Tom

My mill went over a million board feet with the original wheels.  It depends, I'm sure, on the cleanliness of the logs as to how much the wheels wear. 

What happens is that the belts rub the sides of the grooves (that's where they get their grip) until the wear is so great that the belt bottoms out on the bottom of the groove.  As the sides wear, the belt moves lower and lower into the groove.

You can prolong the life of the wheel some by grinding down the outside perimeter of the wheel.  That works until the belt finally hits bottom.  Since balance is so critial, be concerned that the wheel remains in balance if you grind parts of it away.  It might be something that you would feel more comfortable having a machine shop do.

aksawyer

I have ran the factory advised b-57,have ran the orange belts.What has worked out best for us is to stretch a b-56 on.It eliminates all band vibs and they never work out of the groove.Also our blades last longer as we dont have to set strain as high.over 200,000 on factory wheels,and still show very little signs of groove wear.                          starting to cool off here in Fairbanks,time to get logging......

Beavertooth

The wheels  can wear out. I bought my 1988 LT40HD in 2005. After cutting about five logs the new belts were seated down even with the wheels. The blade would no longer stay on but would just run off the back of wheel. Got a new set from WM and no more problems.
2007 LT70 Remote Station 62hp cat.

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