Changing the drive belt

Has anyone changed the drive belt? How hard is it to do yourself or should it be taken in?

karen smith wrote:

Has anyone changed the drive belt? How hard is it to do yourself or should it be taken in?

If you are mechanically inclined at all, it should be no problem. There are plenty of walk-throughs with pictures out there on the interweb to guide you through it. You will have to buy a special tool to hold ithe pulley so it won't turn while you tighten it, you could also make you own out of a board if you are handy(thats what I did). If you don't feel comfortable tackling something like that once you've read the walk-throughs, I'd suggest taking it somewhere.

Hi Karen,

Here is a link to a pictorial on how to change the drive belt done by our very own site admin JeffR!

Here is a link to the Special tool needed to remove the drive pulley nut ala Leroy Beal

Reviewing these will show you what is involved. You can then make your decision to replace it yourself or have it serviced somewhere. Good luck and let us know if you have further questions.

masscoot wrote:

Reviewing these will show you what is involved. You can then make your decision to replace it yourself or have it serviced somewhere. Good luck and let us know if you have further questions.

If you fill in your location ... you may find that you have some experienced SWing owners in your area.

Is there a gasket to replace between the aluminum casings? I got to that and stopped because it looked like I would be separating pieces that had a gasket between them. Also where is the best place to get belts and parts?

xbgc25a wrote:

Is there a gasket to replace between the aluminum casings? I got to that and stopped because it looked like I would be separating pieces that had a gasket between them. Also where is the best place to get belts and parts?

Item number 14 (below) is GASKET, L. COVER

I have not had to to replace the gasket.

Bill,

Thanks. I didn't notice the gasket when I have removed my cover many times. It must stay stuck to the case. Thanks for correcting me. I don't think it is a gasket that needs changing though... like the head gaskets.

JeffR wrote:

I didn't notice the gasket when I have removed my cover many times. It
must stay stuck to the case.

JeffR wrote:

I don't think it is a gasket that needs changing though... like the head gaskets.

I agree.

I think the gasket's only purpose is to fend off potential rattles.

The CVT case has a screened vent in the front, so it's possible that air and dirt will get in. It's not like the gasket seals it completely like a head gasket will.

Air is pumped through the belt housing for cooling, the seal (#14) is just to prevent that air from escaping instead of passing through to cool the belt and pulleys.

Happy Thanksgiving Silverwingers....
I have to change my belt and am being told I do not have to remove the belt plate off the front of the front pulley to get it on. They say you can just put on over the back one and then it will go over the front one.
Does anyone know if this is correct?
Old Dave in Western Nebraska

DaveR wrote:

I have to change my belt and am being told I do not have to remove the belt plate off the front of the front pulley to get it on. They say you can just put on over the back one and then it will go over the front one.
Does anyone know if this is correct?

I remember reading this, but I do not recall anyone confirming.

For those who don't want to rig up a variator tool but want a new toy that is more useful than just simply a one-purpose thing, I bought a NoCord DigiWrench from Amazon which is a 12volt impact wrench that has torque settings in 10ft/lb increments from 50 to 250. Used that to get the bolt off to change my belt, and will be using it to get the back wheel off at some point, as well as helped a friend disassemble her totaled Burgman 650 into all its component bits and pieces.

Just in case you wanted an alternative to carrying a torque wrench and tool in your trunk for your next long trip. After having my belt snap about 800 miles from home, I now carry my impact wrench and spare belt with me in the trunk all the time.

Hammy wrote:

...I now carry my impact wrench and spare belt with me in the trunk all the time.

Hammy have you ever weighed all of the extra stuff you carry? How much additional weight do you cart around?

As somebody who rides scooter everyday and travel----I carry spare belt, tools to change with.

Proper tools to remove both front and rear wheels, tire repair stuff.

If your scooter has 100,000 miles maybe time to carry spare throttle cable. Since we have no kick starter or bump start capability, bike jumper cables, fuses, bailing wire, duct tape.

We cannot rely on dealers who stock nothing. Or Cell Phones to work.....or the new group of trailer bikers to stop and help-----on trip east from Sturgis a few years ago on my BMW I had high speed, middle of nite flat.......the trailer bikers don't stop to offer help.....finally GoldWing Rider with Cell Phone stopped, called mc tow service, got me to Tire Shop, where I removed wheel and waited for them to open. By 9 AM I was on road with professional repair to tire, enough to get home and fit new tire. Could I have found new tire in Mankato, MN? Questionable.


My take---those who don't ride a lot, don't have a lot of trouble because they don't ride a lot.

John Grinsel Will have look up size of this impact wrench....I have breaker bar and clutch holder tool-----bar also works on rear wheel.....when wheel is on ground.

Now you, John, are a man after my own heart. I'm not a whiz, mechanically, but I can follow written instructions. Carrying a spare belt and the tools to change it on the fly seems like a real good idea, always has, which is why I do it. As well as a tire repair kit and a can of Fix-a-flat. Fix a flat is good, but it doesn't help on the sidewall. I need to look into a mini air comp, as well when I get my next one.

And I always carry a service manual with me. Except for the first couple or three weeks after I get a bike. Usually takes that long to get the manual delivered. Owner's manual is good, but it usually doesn't tell how to replace a chain or drive belt; or a wheel.

Small pump THAT FITS ON VALVE much better. What if battery goes dead?

Riding used to a sport where you could be selfreliant----but now it looks like people prefer trailering and not riding much. As scooters/bikes are not as reliable as cars, you need to be as best prepared as you can. Would you buy a car where part of the driveline needs to be replaced every 16,000 miles? And expensive valve adj.?


Problem is solved if you don't ride a lot. I was actually told that by BMW in Germany--after one year @56,000 business and pleasure miles they said"I rode too much and as result had the troubles a normal owner has in 7-10 years". In that year Front Fork leg cracked, 4 sets of luggage frames broke, bike frame required re-welding, lots of electric troubles. Was R80RT bought new, I sold and new owner had the experience of swallowed valve about a month later. Japanese quality if much better.

John Grinsel

John Grinsel

DaveR wrote:

Happy Thanksgiving Silverwingers....
I have to change my belt and am being told I do not have to remove the belt plate off the front of the front pulley to get it on. They say you can just put on over the back one and then it will go over the front one.
Does anyone know if this is correct?
Old Dave in Western Nebraska

You cannot get the new belt on without removing the front pulley outer half.
There is not enough room between the plate and the housing to get the belt on there.

I did see a Youtube vid where they did get it on but it lookked like a good way to lose a finger or two. (the motor was running when they did it.)

MaxB

john grinsel wrote:

I was actually told that by BMW in Germany--after one year @56,000 business and pleasure miles they said"I rode too much and as result had the troubles a normal owner has in 7-10 years". In that year Front Fork leg cracked, 4 sets of luggage frames broke, bike frame required re-welding, lots of electric troubles.

Repetitive ( https://www.silverwing600.com/silver-wing-topics-f3/a-bmw-competitor-for-the-silverwing-t2282-15.htm#20106 ).

56000 miles in a year in a car is a bit much, never mind a motorcycle. Still shouldn't have done all that, though. Honda would laugh at that. 56000 miles? There are gold wings out there with almost 4 times that much mileage and they still run fine. But then they are maintained according to sched. Proper maintenance is the key as any good operator, car or bike, knows.

As you said, John, the Japanese put out much better quality than the folks at BMW. At least concerning 2 wheelers.

Actually the reason I went with the Silverwing rather than a Bergman or anything else is many years experience with Honda bikes and other powered units. These folks make stuff that works and keeps on working. They may have fielded a bad one once in a blue moon but every Honda machine I've owned gave little or no trouble and performed excellently. I used to have a business restoring older, neglected Goldwings. Even when those bikes had been badly treated and neglected it usually didn't take much to get them road ready and reliable. There's an amazing number of 1975 GWs still used as daily riders. Suzuki and Kymco may be just as good but I know Honda will do the job. Now if only they could do a better job with their product support. You can take an old BMW to a dealer and have work done and parts support. Try that with a Honda even a $25,000 GW that's over 10 years old, they'll laugh at you.

john grinsel wrote:

As somebody who rides scooter everyday and travel

John,

WE KNOW

WE GET THE MESSAGE

WE DON'T NEED REMINDING EVERY POST

And for the record I ride every day but find I don't need to climb every mountain and shout it.

I appreciate your posts but don't keep sounding off about your riding attributes.

Waspie wrote:

john grinsel wrote:

As somebody who rides scooter everyday and travel

John,

WE KNOW

WE GET THE MESSAGE

WE DON'T NEED REMINDING EVERY POST

And for the record I ride every day but find I don't need to climb every mountain and shout it.

I appreciate your posts but don't keep sounding off about your riding attributes.

+1

Theres a term we learned in sociology for this.

Tagg wrote:

+1

Theres a term we learned in sociology for this.

And it is probably not repeatable on a "family" forum. :flower: :flower:

jdeereanton wrote:

Hammy wrote:

...I now carry my impact wrench and spare belt with me in the trunk all the time.

Hammy have you ever weighed all of the extra stuff you carry? How much additional weight do you cart around?

I don't actually carry much stuff with me. The impact wrench is actually quite light and comes in a case and the whole thing is quite compact. Whole thing probably weighs no more than 4lbs or so. The belt, well, it's a belt. Then I just carry a few tools necessary to change the belt and oil, etc, plus a 1 gallon Rotopax, rainpants, raingloves, flashlight, electric flare and first aid kit. That's pretty much what's in my trunk. If I'm going on a long ride, I have big saddlebags for clothes, etc.