So i replace my belt this spring and it just burnt out this weekend after 130 miles. And now i have way more questions than i can find answers

1. i put the old belt back in on the trail and after a few miles i started having trouble shifting and now it wants to creap. Sometimes it works fine and sometimes you cant do anything but shut it off. what could cause this. i am leaning towards the clutch parts being dusty and and possibly being glazed over. Any other ideas of support for this? I have not had a chance to see if the belt is still good after putting 30 miles on it to get back home.

2. why did the belt burn out so fast. the one i replaced looked decent. i thought i got it back on and sealed ok but now i am not sure. i hit one water hole since i replaced the belt but it wasnt much higher than the floor boards and i didnt notice it slipping after either. I also found a bunch of fiber 2 fist fulls in the clutch exhaust tube could this be the cause or would there be that much fiber in the belt that burnt up. is this the cause or did the belt burning cause this.)

as always any advice would be great. dont really want to put a new belt on and have it go again in 100 miles.

 

Polaris clutches dont like any water in the clutch cover. If you replace a belt to limp home you need to take it off once home and clean it. Any debris caught in it will give you problems. If you get water you must drain it or let it idle till it drys out. Once you glaze the belt it is just a mater of time. I would recommend making a snorkel for you clutch. I will be making one for mine.

 

If you didn't go with a polaris belt that is one major reason. Also, need to make sure all the debris is out of there-including the snorkel. If there was that much it would cause excessive heat which leads to belt slippage/failure. Do you run in hi all the time? Using low in most situations except open area riding over 15-20 mph will extend belt life. Some people will argue that fact. To that I say check out the machine in my signature. Still has the same belt it came from the factory with!

 

motor mount still in one piece????

 

Trav....The clutch casing may have gotten extremely hot because it couldn't breath, due to the handfuls of waste in there clogging up the exhaust. Also be sure to break-in the belt as talked about in your manual. I think that pretty important.

I'd take it all apart and manually clean the clutches with a parts cleaner, maybe vacuum or blow out the casing with a compressed air and wipe clean. Make sure the little rubber seal is perfect on the casing and reassemble with the right torque on the casing. You should be good to go.

Like others have said, get a Polaris belt.

 

Thanks for the info... how do i get the air intake on the clutch cleaned out. is there a way to get at the top end with our taking the entire front plastics off. i have a shop vac and compressor but would like to make sure it it is completely clean and be able to visually see that it is empty (or is this overkill). also besides the gasket does anybody use any caulk or other substance to make sure the cover is sealed(thought i read something on this.) a snorkel is overkill for my riding but i do want to make sure its sealed the best i can.

 

X2 My thoughts exactly.

 

Ill admit i like high gear... but out of those 130 miles.. about 125 were on the trails were i was doing over thirty... so i dont think that caused it. Just bought a new belt and was going to buy a new gasket but they didnt have one so i will have to see how it all looks tonight. hopefully the spare belt is still good enough to keep as a spare.

 

Trav, I'd stuff a long piece of old sheet or something soft and long down the clutch exhaust to make sure it's clean....push enough down (or up) so that it fills the entire plastic tube, then blow it out with compressed air. You could blow the whole housing out too. And make sure the clutches themselves are really clean.

Look for any breaks in the gasket, or places where water and dirt could get in.

Go easy on the new belt for a bit.

 

while you have the cover off, put machine in nuetral, rev it up some to engage the clutches, see if they are working smoothly, let it idle down, see if belt is centered on the front, primary clutch. if it is rubbing heavily on one side or the other you have to add or subtract shims behind the secondary clutch to align, and did you check your front motor mount? Pry the engine up or to the sides and make sure its not broke., What bike is it?