chriscraft240

I'm having a problem with the v-belts. I've got new belts and after about every 8-10 hours I have to tighten. Now I don't have anymore adjustment left. This is the 2nd set this season. 80 hrs? The pulleys aren't bent,run straight,and are clean. Should I be using a different type of belt? Auto vs. Marine, is there such a thing? Also I've noticed the belts get thinner everytime I tighten them. Time to go serpetine?

p4-33

I get my belts from Napa. The stock Merc belts cross over to a "15 series" belt, and are light duty, in my opinion. Most auto parts stores also sell "17 series" belts that are quite a bit fatter, and fill up the v-grove completely. Take your old belts in and match up the inside diameter to the fatter stuff. If they're not quite the right size, a decent store will exchange for the right one.

Are you getting a black belt dust build-up on the front of your motor or in your bilge? If so, you may have a pulley that is eating away at your belts. I went to a billet pulley setup with 17-series belts and my belt problems have all gone away.

Good luck,
Brian

chriscraft240

Yes black soot everywhere in the bilge and around the front. But when running, the pulleys look nice and straight...??? I'm using the goodyear gatorback 15446 and 15225.

p4-33

2 belts or 3? Are they all stretching/wearing, or just one? I have crank/alt/circ pump, crank/sea water, and crank/PS. If it's just one, look at the pulleys real close for burs, wobble, etc.

If it's both, could you be tightning them too tight? I leave 1/2 to 3/4" play in mine on the longest run. Lots of belt dust means it will fail soon, so you're doing the right thing in finding the source.

15446 (for example) means it's a 15-series belt, and 44.6" long. Substitute the 15 for a 17 and you'll end up with the same lenght but fatter. The 17-series will sit a little higher in the grove, so you might need slightly longer. Hopefully your auto parts store is close, because there is trial-and-error involved.

Brian

p4-33

I had a circulating pump pulley that wobbled slightly. Not enough to see while running, but if you spun it freely with a rule against the pulley egde, it was obvious. One of the times I lost this belt, I "just" cracked a head. The other time, I slightly cracked a head, which leaned out the mixture to that cyl, which burnt a hole in the piston, blew the head gasket, cracked 3 exhaust valves, and filled up the block with water, Not a Good Day.

The second time around is when I went to billet pulleys.

Cheers,
Brian

chriscraft240

P4- I have 2 belts crank,water pump,p.s. and other is crank, water pump,alt. Both belts are doing the same thing. I do have a parts store next door to our ford dealer. They will help out for a ,and a ride: Thanks for the information!

aero-offshore

Try a differant brand of belts, don't buy them from the same store, they may have a batch of bad belts.

p4-33

Aero,

I'm wouldn't be quick to jump on the faulty belt theory- Goodyear Gatorbacks are a decent belt. Excessive belt dust is a sign that a belt will let loose, sooner than later. Like I said earlier, the results of loosing one can get ugly.

Just my $.02
Brian

chriscraft240

Problem solved. Thinner series belt. Put on 12 hrs running yesterday and friday. New belts still as tight as when I put them on. Switched to gates belts,too.thanks

p4-33

Glad to hear it. Gates is a good choice, but I'm confused with your post... did you go thicker (like a 17xxx)?

12 hours on the water sounds like a great weekend.

Cheers,
Brian