alternator belt tension

hipo_p51_old · April 26, 2011 at 1:19 PM

What do you use to get that alternator belt nice and tight. That big ALT pulley makes it hard to get enough leverage to get it nice and tight. Every time a i fire the motor up cold, I get that annoying squeak. Any help? Thanks.

jwc66k · April 26, 2011 at 2:05 PM

A 3 or 4 foot long prybar (crowbar, 1" pipe, 2X4 etc).

Jim

cobraboy · April 26, 2011 at 2:23 PM

Perhaps the belt is worn ?

I am a convert to running a belt only just tight enough, as to rebuild waterpumps is often expensive and parts are hard to come by.

On my Elan the cylinder head, front cover and oil pan have to come off to rebuild the waterpump so I would rather have a few charging problems than a ton of work.

hipo_p51_old · April 26, 2011 at 2:57 PM

thanks for the pointers. Maybe i will leave it as is. i am sure i would over do it with a 3 foot prybar. Thanks.

C7ZZ-F_old · April 26, 2011 at 7:50 PM

i have a turnbuckle with fittings on each end that fit inside the pulleys. i adjust the belt tension until there is 3/8 to 1/2 inch deflection in the longest section of the belt.

jwc66k · April 26, 2011 at 10:59 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote><font size=1 face="Verdana" id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>

i have a turnbuckle with fittings on each end that fit inside the pulleys. i adjust the belt tension until there is 3/8 to 1/2 inch deflection in the longest section of the belt.

I got one of those too. That's why I use a prybar. If I take more than a minute pr two to do this, I've wasted time.

Jim

OziPhil · April 27, 2011 at 7:51 AM

I have my belt adjusted fully to the end of the bracket and the belt is still loose. Seems the belt is almost too big. Anyone else have this issue with the Kevin Marti repro belts?

Phil.

C6ZZKGT · April 27, 2011 at 9:24 AM Official Post

Phil, I am unaware of a problem with Martis repro belt although it could certainly be an issue. I would first check the stamping numbers on your crank pulley, water pump pulley, alternator pulley and alternator adjusting arm. If any of those are incorrect, your belt would not adjust properly. What length belt did you get from Marti? The correct length is 41 1/2 inches on a Hipo for 65 and 66.

-Fred-

Participate now!