V-belt recommendations

[TobyU]

One would think kevlar would be the longest lasting.

How many years do belts typically last?

Kevlar is just a word to these manufacturers -at least some.
Aramid is another.
The quality and even correct size and cut angles on sides etc varies a lot by brands.
The longevity also varies greatly.
-- A 5/8 x 102 Kevlar belt is not the same as every other 5/8 x 102 Kevlar belt.

 

[Jimmy the Lock]

Sounds like buying new belts... is a crap shoot.

That's too bad.

I figured someone on the forum has had good service from a particular brand and would be confident in recommending that brand based on their past experiences.

 

[StarTech]

One would think kevlar would be the longest lasting.

How many years do belts typically last?

That should how many hours due usage levels.

 

[Hammermechanicman]

One would think kevlar would be the longest lasting.

How many years do belts typically last?

All depends. The fan belt on my 1975 IH 184 is still the original and so is the drive belt on my 1972 Sears ST12. Neither are kevlar covered. I have had JD mowers in the shop 20 years old with original belts and have had 2 year old mowers in the shop with bad belts.

 

[TobyU]

All depends. The fan belt on my 1975 IH 184 is still the original and so is the drive belt on my 1972 Sears ST12. Neither are kevlar covered. I have had JD mowers in the shop 20 years old with original belts and have had 2 year old mowers in the shop with bad belts.

John Deere doesn't make their own belts but whoever makes it for them makes the best belt I've ever seen in the industry.
I have seen 30-year-old belts that were used for that whole time that were still good!
MTD is the number two belts. Just 2 years ago I had a 17-year-old Troy-Bilt come in with the belts cracked and chunks out of them but it was still moving the machine.

 

[TobyU]

Sounds like buying new belts... is a crap shoot.

That's too bad.

I figured someone on the forum has had good service from a particular brand and would be confident in recommending that brand based on their past experiences.

Not if you buy oem.
Buying any aftermarket replacement, even stands, gates, etc is a crapshoot because I have had brand new gates belts that I bought from the local auto parts store with their green coating for a clutched application for outdoor power equipment that did not work properly on the install.
This was on a Craftsman 42-in mower and I removed it and replaced it with a Craftsman / Husqvarna belt and that one worked perfectly and lasted.

So stick with the OEM brand belts from the manufacturer if it's not something archaic or from way out of the area that you can't find and you will have the best results with belts.
Online sales especially Amazon is terrible because they will misrepresent and deceive people making them think it is an oem belt by saying replaces or whatever and when you get it it will not be.

 

[bertsmobile1]

Sounds like buying new belts... is a crap shoot.

That's too bad.

I figured someone on the forum has had good service from a particular brand and would be confident in recommending that brand based on their past experiences.

Gates lawn & garden would be around the best belt money can buy
They are expensive
Mower owners are cheap
No one stocks them so they have to be ordered in .

And then there is storeage
Most workshops store them on hooks around to top of the walls where they are subject to both excessive heat & sunlight .
Like high quality tyres, belts should be stored laid flat in a cool place & out of the sunlight

 

[TobyU]

Gates lawn & garden would be around the best belt money can buy
They are expensive
Mower owners are cheap
No one stocks them so they have to be ordered in .

And then there is storeage
Most workshops store them on hooks around to top of the walls where they are subject to both excessive heat & sunlight .
Like high quality tyres, belts should be stored laid flat in a cool place & out of the sunlight

I've even had problems the couple of the Green Gates belts so even though Gates make some of the best automotive belts in the industry, I would never choose their belts for a lawn mower clutching application over an oem belt.

 

[StarTech]

One of the problems with belts is the size indicated is not always the size you receive. Some get mislabel and others are just label wrong intentionally.

Example: A&I (Sunbelts) which I was a dealer for 10 years toward the end of my selling and using got to where most of the 1/2" belt where nearly one inch short and the 5/8" were nearly two inches short. And I have received a couple belt from Stens that were one inch longer than spec'd. I have even had problems with JD OEM belts being out of spec. And yes I have received Gates belt too out of spec.

This why I now measure all new belts in house with my 200 inch v-belt measuring tool. So far the PIX line is what they say they are.

 

[Hammermechanicman]

Pretty much every non OEM numbered belt customers have purchased and want me to install has been wrong. They have no idea some belts are measured on the inside and some on the outside. A, B, C belts vs 3L, 4L, 5L belts. Clutching vs non clutching application. Different angles. Some belts can't use a backside idler. Raw edge vs covered. High torque industrial vs FHP. I have seen equipment that used both an A series industrial and a 4L FHP belt. One measured on the inside the other on the outside. Some scamazon and fleecebay sellers have no idea exactly what belt they are selling.