how do you check the deflection on the belt and how do take out the shims or know what size shim you need

 

deflection is supposed to be 22 to 27mm (.87 to 1.06), pushing with a force of no more than 13lb on the belt. You push on it midway between pulleys, making sure the belt is in the bottom of the front pulley, and measure the sag with a straightedge.

Shims in the driven (rear) puley determine how close the pulley squeezes together, so if the belt is loose, removing shim thickness will tighten it. Shims come in .6, 1.0, and 1.4mm. Removing .1mm of shim thickness makes the belt have about 1.3mm less defection.

Mine has not needed it yet, but I plan to get a few of each shim, and the special tools (Flywheel and pulley holder, and Pulley Holder attachment) for when I do the job.

One real easy way to tell if your needs it, is if the engine revs up a few extra RPMs before the belt grabs. My brother's 400 does this (400 miles), my 650 does not at all (500 miles).

 

thanks for your help nyroc.

 

Do you know how much the shim kit and tools run to buy?

 

I tried to get that stuff on www.buykawasaki.com, but they said I have to go to a dealer to get it. They don't give a price.

They do have a manual there for $36. I think I would not want to do too much work on this quad without the manual.

Oh yeah, as I see it, changing shims has absolutley nothing to do with top speed, it only affects belt tension at idle, which determines the rpm the belts gets grabbed during takeoff. While you are moving fast, the shims are not affecting anything.

A thin belt (worn), or a long belt (stretch?), would make you not go as fast. In these cases, changing the belt would make you go faster.