Flat belts

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Lewayne
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Flat belts

Post by Lewayne »

I have a 1938 south Bend 9" lathe. IT runs the flat pulleys and belt. any advice on getting a bit more bite on those belts before they slip?
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Bill Shields
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Re: Flat belts

Post by Bill Shields »

There are sprays that you can use.

'Belt grip' is one that comes to mind that my father in law used.

There are variants of that machine that have V belts but you have to know what you are doing when you strip the spindle
Too many things going on to bother listing them.
SteveM
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Re: Flat belts

Post by SteveM »

Looks to see if your belt has any oil on it.

You can get or make a rubber belt with the same attachment as the leather ones.

Some people use automotive serpentine belts, but unless you can splice them, you have to take the spindle out.

There are ways to glue a rubber belt by tapering the ends (skiving) and gluing them between blocks.

Steve
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Greg_Lewis
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Re: Flat belts

Post by Greg_Lewis »

Here’s what McMaster sells:
https://www.mcmaster.com/belt-dressing/

Just for fun, here’s a quote from a 1947 textbook on machining:

Lubricating oil on belts should be cleaned off with gasoline. After cleaning, a leather belt may be wiped with a cloth moistened with neat’s-foot oil to keep it from drying and cracking. Belt dressing is a sticky mixture which contains asphalt, pitch, or rosin. It is sometimes put on a belt to make it sticky and to keep it from slipping on the pulleys. Such a belt dressing is harmful to the belt and should be used only when it is more costly to shut down the machine than to ruin the belt.

And here’s from the 1945 edition of Machinery’s Handbook:

Belts should be cleaned and greased every five or six months to give the green side a soft adherent surface. The following mixtures are recommended: Take two parts of beef tallow to one part of cod liver liver oil (by weight); melt the tallow and allow it to cool until the finger can be inserted without burning; then add the cod liver oil and stir until cold. A light coat of this mixture should be applied to the driving side of the belt after it has been cleaned. Rosin or rosinous mixtures should never be used to prevent the belts from slipping. They will cause temporary adhesion, but the belt soon becomes glazed and slips more than before the rosin was applied. Lubricating oils should not be permitted to drop onto belts. If a belt has become saturated with oil, scrape it and pack it in dry sawdust or some other absorbent material for three or four days. When belting come becomes dry, all surface dirt should first be removed before applying the dressing; this usually can be done by rubbing the belt with a cloth dampened with kerosene. If necessary, use a wooden or metal scraper. A dressing recommended for rubber belts consists of equal parts of red lead, black lead, French yellow and litharge, mixed with boiled linseed oil and enough Japan to make it dry quickly. Animal oil or grease should never be used on rubber belts.

You are, of course, eager to mix up the beef tallow and cod liver oil..... :lol:

In another reference which I've now lost track of, it says gluing leather strips around the pulleys will substantially increase adhesion.
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Harold_V
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Re: Flat belts

Post by Harold_V »

Greg_Lewis wrote: Thu Jan 06, 2022 9:28 pm Just for fun, here’s a quote from a 1947 textbook on machining:

Lubricating oil on belts should be cleaned off with gasoline.

This, of course, should be done while enjoying a cigarette and hashing down a couple beers. To ensure good results, it's also not a bad idea to do this near an open flame.

Heavy, heavy sigh!

No wonder some folks have such bad shop habits. Can you imagine anyone today promoting the use of gasoline for cleaning?

H
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liveaboard
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Re: Flat belts

Post by liveaboard »

Permatex sells a belt dressing spray.
I don't know what Machinerys handbook has to say about it, but Permatex products are usually good.
Lewayne
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Re: Flat belts

Post by Lewayne »

thanks for the replies. I meant to mention that I was using a good rubber belt, not the old leather ones.
I liked the cleaning tip of using gasoline as well, though I do sometimes clean parts with gasoline. Hasn't been a problem for me so far. at 73.
I made the belt from automotive belt with ribs on it. I used fishing line to lace it together using some guide for the lacing I saw on here or another site onetime. Basically it works fine but if I take much of a cut it will catch and the belt will slip. IT really limits depth of cut. Everything is dry and free of oil though. I'll look at the sprays. I thought there were products for this.
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Greg_Lewis
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Re: Flat belts

Post by Greg_Lewis »

Well, if it's a rubber belt just get some belt dressing from an auto parts store.
Greg Lewis, Prop.
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Our motto: "That looks about right."
Celebrating 35 years of turning perfectly good metal into bits of useless scrap.
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Steggy
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Re: Flat belts

Post by Steggy »

Harold_V wrote: Fri Jan 07, 2022 2:19 am Lubricating oil on belts should be cleaned off with gasoline.

This, of course, should be done while enjoying a cigarette and hashing down a couple beers. To ensure good results, it's also not a bad idea to do this near an open flame.

Heavy, heavy sigh!

No wonder some folks have such bad shop habits. Can you imagine anyone today promoting the use of gasoline for cleaning?
Harold, you stole that comment right out of my head. :D

As for using gasoline to wash parts, doing so was common back in the early hot rod days. Dunno how many did so with a lit cancer stick in their mouth, but I'm sure the absorption of tetraethyl lead through the skin did wonders for one's health. :lol:
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Harold_V
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Re: Flat belts

Post by Harold_V »

Lewayne wrote: Fri Jan 07, 2022 1:47 pm I liked the cleaning tip of using gasoline as well, though I do sometimes clean parts with gasoline. Hasn't been a problem for me so far.
It's like playing Russian roulette. It's only a (severe) problem when the gasoline ignites. That is a thing that you may or may not be able to control, so the risk is extreme, and the resulting harm is generally fatal. If it isn't, it changes one's life forever, and certainly not for the better. Gasoline is harmful when breathed. It damages one's nervous system.

There are multiple solvents on the market that, while flammable, are much harder to ignite. Stoddard solvent is one of them. Plain old mineral spirits is another, and it's readily available as paint thinner, so you can buy it at all of the hardware stores.

H
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SteveM
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Re: Flat belts

Post by SteveM »

Harold_V wrote: Fri Jan 07, 2022 2:19 am Can you imagine anyone today promoting the use of gasoline for cleaning?
I couldn't find any other solvent, so I cleaned my bicycle chain with gasoline.

When my dad came down in the basement and smelled the gasoline, I practically got my head handed to me.

Steve
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Harold_V
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Re: Flat belts

Post by Harold_V »

SteveM wrote: Fri Jan 07, 2022 11:23 pm
Harold_V wrote: Fri Jan 07, 2022 2:19 am Can you imagine anyone today promoting the use of gasoline for cleaning?
I couldn't find any other solvent, so I cleaned my bicycle chain with gasoline.

When my dad came down in the basement and smelled the gasoline, I practically got my head handed to me.

Steve
That's one of the most dangerous things you can do with gasoline. The fumes accumulate and can result in an explosion, let alone setting one's self (and the house) on fire. To assure the end result, many homes have their gas water heater in the basement, so there's a ready source of ignition.

If one MUST use gasoline for cleaning, it should be done outside, where the fumes can dissipate. Even then I don't recommend it.

H
Wise people talk because they have something to say. Fools talk because they have to say something.
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