Quote:
Originally Posted by Uncle Bob
Would you say that belt life is affected by long periods of not being used? My evo hasn't been ridden for 6 months, and only started periodically and run up to temp etc.
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Well, the theory is that being left for long periods causes the belts to 'set' by taking the shape of the pulleys. In reality, that's probably true.
Consider brand new belts, they come in that cardboard sleeve, which squashes them together into a long oval shape with two tight curves at top and bottom (much like they are when installed). Who knows how long they've been in the pack but it could easily be a number of months.
When you take them out of the sleeve, they don't spring back into a perfect circle. While they open out a but, they still tend to retain an oval shape and you can tell where they were held by the cardboard sleeve. So it seems reasonable to assume that the same is true when they're left, unmoved, on the motor.
The question is, does this affect their strength or service life? Well, they start from new in a 'set' position and that doesn't seem to harm them. And my bike regularly spends five months over winter without being started and my last belts were four years old with no sign of wear.
So I'd say, from personal experience, that leaving the belts unused and unmoved has no appreciable effect on their useful life. I'm happy running them for four years with the caveat that regular condition checks are made to catch any early signs of wear.
The fact that the same 1100 Evo belts are used for five years on the Scrambler, has definitely influenced my decision.