New Drive Belt Burning Hot

[MParr]

Wow. Sorry you're out of work for awhile. This may cheer you up.
I'm a bonehead. Took off 2 hrs this afternoon because I was already sweaty. Dropped the idler set to check belt alignment and noticed it was outside one of the guide posts. Put it where it suppose to be. That solved 90% of the burning belt issue. Ran it 3 times for 15 minutes each time to cut lawn, still getting a slight rubber odor. Might just be the front idler which isn't installed yet. Waiting on a new one.

Yah!

 

[bertsmobile1]

Always good to hear a problem is solved.

Once a belt starts to burn it is trash so better get yourself another one as this one is now on borrowed time but no point replacing it till it goes bang.
You will remember how it goes next time

 

[7394]

And don't put on a new belt if you have a bad pulley or idler.

Unless you have a money tree out back.

 

[StarTech]

Always good to hear a problem is solved.

Once a belt starts to burn it is trash so better get yourself another one as this one is now on borrowed time but no point replacing it till it goes bang.
You will remember how it goes next time

It usually is but just a note here even new belts can have an odor to them when first put in use. In this case though we do know the belt has gotten damaged from severe overheating and should be replaced once the failed items are replaced.

 

[Gord Baker]

Installed a new oem drive belt today and notice it smelled during initial test drive. Extemely hot to the touch. When replacing I noticed one of the belt guides was worn. This belt is much thicker than old after-market belt. Guides aren't bent. I rotated the worn guide , but still belt gets hot. Normal?

Be sure you have the correct belt. Thicker belts need to be somewhat longer as they ride higher in the pulleys.
Check spindles and idlers for signs of seizing up.

 

[RP54]

Installed a new oem drive belt today and notice it smelled during initial test drive. Extemely hot to the touch. When replacing I noticed one of the belt guides was worn. This belt is much thicker than old after-market belt. Guides aren't bent. I rotated the worn guide , but still belt gets hot. Normal?

Something is seized. Rotate the belt by hand looking at each pulley. Or you can try to rotate each pulley if you have no tension on the belt. It is possible there is something caught around a spindle but more likely I would guess the bearings are frozen.

 

[LarryJohnson]

And don't put on a new belt if you have a bad puller or idler.

Unless you have a money tree out back.

There was a time yesterday when I wanted to strap the mower to a very large trebuchet and watch it FLY!

 

[Joed756]

Are the idler arms free so that you can de-tension the belt by hand? Your comment about squeezing it in there makes me wonder.

 

[Kevins1955]

Installed a new oem drive belt today and notice it smelled during initial test drive. Extemely hot to the touch. When replacing I noticed one of the belt guides was worn. This belt is much thicker than old after-market belt. Guides aren't bent. I rotated the worn guide , but still belt gets hot. Normal?

The length of the belt is important, but so is the width or thickness. Usually a belt is identified with the size, along with a part number. For example, a belt that is labelled 3L320 is code for a 3/8" wide x 32" long. Make sure you are using the correct length and width for your mower.

 

[StarTech]

The OP having to squeeze in the belt in is because he didn't loosen the idlers before hand.