Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[puregreen59]

Hi there I have a 2017 zero sr,

I did my belt adjustment and alignment today, Im having a hard time keeping the wheel aligned as well as the belt running in the correct place, where talking half a wheel alignment mark out from side to side. The belt is now aligned but I'm worried about the wheel alignment.

Is this normal?

Cheers

[rgutt]

It's only got 2 wheels. The tires will handle their alignment to each other once you're rolling. As long as the bike is stable while you're moving, you're good to go.

[domingo3]

Is this normal?

It's normal for the alignment marks to not match between left and right when the wheel is truly aligned, if that's what your question is.  Once set, the relative change on both sides should be the same for future adjustments.

[ESokoloff]

I don’t look at those marks when adjusting the belt. 
Here’s my notes on adjusting the thin belt on my 2016 DSR



2016 DSR (thin belt) 20/30kg tension  (using Krikit belt tension gauge).

Jacking left screw(bolt) out (adding tension) moves the belt to the right on the rear sheave/sprocket.
Jacking right screw(bolt) out moves the belt to the left. 

NOTE: Position belt with a right side bias as it will shift to the left when the axle bolt is tightened.
This movement to the left is approx 1/16”-1/8” on my bike (yours might vary).

After making an adjustment to a jack screw, must pry right side of wheel forward (or smack it to the right from the back side) to “set” the adjustment as the belt tension on the sheave will pivot the axle ClockWise...........
(In my opinion, the right jack screw SHOULD be located 180° &  push the axle CCW thus countering the Left jack screw CW effect on the Sheave/Belt/Axle. )



NOTE: 1/6 turn of Left jack screw causes a 10KG difference to belt tension.

Best to get the belt/sheave alignment sorted first, then go for proper tension.
I shoot for the greatest tension (30kg).

If you don’t have the correct Metric socket (like me), use a 1-1/16” to tension the axle nut to 102NM (75#’).
Recommend first removing the jack bolts & grinding or filing off the markings so it’s smooth & will not gouge the soft aluminum swing arm.
Put a dab of Anti-seize or heavy grease on the jack bolt threads while your at it.

A few other thoughts.....

Excessive belt tension is not good on bearings & the thicker belt has a higher tension spec then the thin one.
I’m not sure where the best tension point would be on the thick belt, but I would stay towards the lower end yielding about the same as the max thin belt (30kg) unless the bearings were upgraded & can withstand greater belt tension. 

I use a mechanical tension checking device (Gates 91107 Belt Tension Tester) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000MUTAGS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_fabc_23M6C0PXQW8W3RV5GE9W and check several locations of the rear sheave/sprocket in case it’s slightly out of round (different run outs will yield different belt tension readings).

A hexagon fastener has 6 sides so one flat (1/6 full turn) of the LEFT bolt will yield a 10kg change in belt tension.

Must make sure there is a gap (credit card or greater) between the belt & the left hand lip on the sheave/sprocket).

[puregreen59]

Thank you for your replys guys,

So I've noticed that what I thought was perfect alignment seems a bit strange, it looked perfect, like esokoloff mentioned, credit card gap between the outside rail bit.

had it on a centre jack, back wheel of the ground rotated it round and round to be sure torqued it up, found it moved slightly under tightening, so I adjusted for that torqued it up again, perfect! Back to credit card gap, double checked my work, round and round we go.

So feeling good about it, went for a ride, when I got to the end of a ride ilook down and find the belt to the far right (near the wheel) with a about millimetre just hanging off the sprocket.. Adjustment nuts where tight and axle was torqued down to 102 nm

Also if I hand run the belt just push from one side or the other to influence where the belt rides it will return to the correctly adjusted place I was expecting just seems to be under load, I'd expect it to go the other way under load near?

Forgive me if these are all obvious to most or stupid questions, I've had many chain drive motorcycles, but this is my first motorcycle that uses a belt final drive and I'm eager to learn the intricacies of belt drive in favour of a long belt life 😊

[sharagan]

everybody has their own personal theory about the belt alignment, the credit card gap seems to be the most repeated one.

Let me give you another take, which I developed over countless hours of trying to have it perfect.

Short version: align the wheel according to the markings on the swingarm as perfectly as you can.

I use a caliper to have it aligned to 0.1mm.
When I did that and crosschecked the result with a laser alignment tool, the belt was perfectly aligned with the pulley on the wheel. And there was no credit card gap.
When I aimed for the credit card gap, the wheel was severely misaligned to the frame and also the belt according to the laser tool.

The most ironic thing about this situation is that these belts are extremely sensitive to misalignment (0.25 degree) but the manual does not give a single word about the alignment.

Even if you get it right, there is still a chance that the motor is not aligned properly and it will mess with the belt overall result.

Good luck.

[talon]

agree with sharagan. Comparing wheel alignment to belt alignment/tracking/tension, MY bike CAN NOT have the "credit card gap" and still have everything else be perfect. I'd rather have wheels aligned for best traction. Perhaps motor needs to be realigned instead of sheave, or sheave is imperfect. anyway this is why I have a spare belt, ride on

[2020_SRS_Commuter]

My guess is due to subtle differences in the alignment of parts, each bike has some differences that must be accounted for. There is an art, a little bit.
If you find that following procedures to the letter doesn't get the result you expect, that doesn't mean something is wrong. Its just the way it is. It took me more time to learn to get this right on my bike than I thought it would. Keep in mind that tracking can vary with the amount of torque on on the axle, partial or full, and also your tracking may be different on the stand vs off. That's what messed me up on my bike, I could get it perfect then ride around and it wasn't. The solution unfortunately for me is ride, check, adjust, ride check adjust... usually on the third go I have it. They say nothing about the motor's alignment in the frame but that's a factor too... look how its tracking on the front sprocket as well. Be methodical, experiment, make vids with your phone at each step and in time you will get a procedure that works for you.
Another thing I found when tensioning is those "Cricket" gauges kind of suck. I bought two and they weren't even close in reading. I checked the gates app on my phone by generating sine tones on a computer and seeing if it agreed about the hz. It did. That is the most accurate I found so I use the app and sound.

[prbpci0]

Is the motor alignment adjustable?  My belt rides up tight against the inside edge of the pulley at the motor when it's otherwise perfect at the rear wheel, and that always bugged me.  I think I looked for the motor mounts briefly, but didn't really see any way to adjust that.

[2020_SRS_Commuter]

They might have some precision shims behind the motor's mounts... idk. Probably not worth screwing with. The belt doesnt have to be perfect. FWIW I have 24K miles on my first belt with no feathering or other weird wear and my guess is I ride this bike harder than maybe 80-90% of people. Works fine. Any reasonable tracking and proper tension is probably good enough. If its rubbing up against a guard on a pulley but not feathering, squeaking, or heating up... does it matter? If it does IDK why.