Drive belt questions

First topic message reminder :

Well, I think I've figured out how to post photos now. When I went to replace my drive belt, this is what I found:



I could only find about 8-10 inches of actual belt fragments and everything else was cotton candy. Those fibers were wrapped all around my pulleys.


Is that what the inside of a belt is composed of? I actually thought that the guy from before had used rope to secure the belt on, but another buddy told me that those "rope" fibers are what's inside the belt under the rubber exterior. Anybody know for sure?

Hammy wrote:

bigbird wrote:

Sweendog wrote:

Can you tell me if you need to take the whole thing apart to replace the pins? It just seems like such a hassle.

To pull the outer cover and remove the front variator to change the pins is really not a big deal. I'll say 1/2 hour at most. It gives you a reason to clean the belt cover air filter and check the belt. To do that every 10k miles isn't too onerous to me. The price of the pins at $65 delivered also isn't extreme for every 10k miles. Don't let that stop you from considering a J. Costa.
The other line of thought is to use the stock Honda variator and replace the stock rollers with Dr. Pulley sliders in a lighter weight, such as 26gr. There have been good reports on that setup. Those go for $53 + shipping. I don't know what the expected life of the Dr. Pulley sliders are.

Hey Sweeney, I changed my belt with the help of JeffR's wonderful pictorials and Cosmic Jumper's guidance (plus Honda_Silver, DennisB et al). It'll probably take about 30 minutes to get everything off, lubed, and on. Lemme know if you need any help -- I have a 12V impact wrench that I now carry for the sole purpose of doing a belt change on the road. BTW, the new OEM belt I ordered from a dealer actually turned out to have a Mitsuboshi stamp on the belt. Why? I have no idea.

Hey Hammy,
Maybe I'll take you up on that offer this fall. I'm nearing the 16K mark, and will likely need to swap the belt out. I was planning on a doing a bunch of work on the Swing this fall and winter, but was going to leave the variator work to the shop.

I'd like to do the following:

1. Add a grounding block and wire the front of the bike
   
2. Permanet GPS wiring (already purchased)
   
3. 12v accessory socket in the glove box. (maybe)
   
4. Stebel nautilus air-horn
   
5. Hyperpro springs (maybe)
   
6. Replace drive belt, clean out housing, check clutch
   
7. J. Costa variator (maybe)
   

Hey sounds like you'll be doing a lot of stuff I'll probably also be doing at some point. I too want to add a better horn and add some extra wires and, when I can afford to, get Hyperpros.

Maybe we'll do a garage day somewhere. My garage is tiny and cluttered so it just gives me enough room to fit my Swing while the car sits outside.