RZT50 drive belt failures

[Mikaman]

The main drive belt on my RZT50 has failed three times in the past 4 years. On one occasions, the belt broke. On two other occasions, the belt stretched so much that it came off the pulleys. The dealer replaced the belt each time with a new, OEM belt -- but it keeps failing. I use the mower a normal amount (sorry, I don't know the hours, it's in the shop, but probably less than 200 hours total -- in other words, 3 belt failures in less than 200 hours, belt only lasts about 60 hours!) The dealer says he has called Cub Cadet tech support and they have no suggestions. He has inspected the pulleys for misalignment, dings, cuts, etc and says they are perfect. I always apply the parking brake when storing the mower, which supposedly releases the tension on the drive belt.

Any suggestions? I have seen "kevlar" belts for sale (non-OEM) but someone told me they are junk, made in China, and even worse than the Cub Cadet OEM belt. But at this point, I'm tempted to try a Kevlar belt -- anything to try to solve this problem! Of course the belt always fails just when I really need the mower, very frustrating.

Any advice appreciated.

 

[bertsmobile1]

AFAIK the Cub belt is a kevlar fiber belt.
There is a reason why cheap belts on Amazon / ebay are unbranded
That is because a very large number of them are the faulty ones that brand name belt retailers rejected .
Drive belts usually pop off because debris gets between the belt &the pulley .
Next biggie is loose drives or cracked frames.
Next is a weak tension spring and failure to properly lubricate the tension arm pivot point.
BEcause the tension arm only moves in a very small arc the hole wears over a very small area just sufficantly to throw the belt.

And finally there is silly operator errors like diving at less than full engine throttle.

 

[Hammermechanicman]

Can you get a picture of the failed belt? Will tell alot of why it failed. You say 2 belts stretched and failed. Actually the belts have cords in them that don't stretch. A new belt will "break in" and measure just slight longer than a new belt by a quarter to half inch but after that the belt won't stretch any more. It can wear down but the cords in the belt won't stretch. If the belt appears to have stretched i suspect the belt is slipping on a pulley wearing it down.

 

[Rivets]

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