OP
sunspot
Gold Member
I called my local NAPA and they will have the belts in tomorrow morning. I might get to the mower this Friday.
Caroni Flail Belt Failure
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MarkV
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Hey guys, I was having a problem with belts on a DR mower and the repair place got me to switch to a Kevlar belt which ended my problems. They said the Kevlar belts are stronger and more heat resistant which made me think of this thread. Just thought I would mention it if this becomes a reoccurring issue.
MarkV
MarkV
davitk
Platinum Member
I was mowing with my BEST/Hanmey flail yesterday in the 90 degree heat for two hours yesterday. FWIW I was able to place my hand on the belt cover comfortably, indefinitely. The machine does not have an automatic belt tensioner or idler pulley.
davitk said:
Curious about this;
How much "slack" do your belts have ?
Not really "slack", but how much can you deflect the longest run of belt with a reasonable amount of hand pressure ?
I'm starting to think that too much tensioner pressure might be the issue with the Caroni flails - at least as a possibility.
I might, just MIGHT replace the spring tensioner with a fixed roller and adjust it to merely take out slack. MAYBE !!!
Eagleview
Veteran Member
Reg said:I'm starting to think that too much tensioner pressure might be the issue with the Caroni flails - at least as a possibility.
As if Caroni would put an incorrect spring on the tensioner . They are not idiots you know .
IslandTractor
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Regarding belt tension, when I used my thumb to test for the proverbial 3/8 inch deflection it was not hard to go beyond that. I don't think the belts are too tight. Even after I retracted the spring by about and inch and a half I could still easily get 3/8 inch with thumb pressure.
OP
sunspot
Gold Member
I put on the new belts today. When I was adjusting the tension, I noticed the thumb pressure slack was about 3/4" with the spring in a collapsed state. After I tightened the up the adjustment screw, the slack hardly decreased. It's at a little more than a 1/2 ".
I'm thinking it may need a stronger spring but I'll see how things work out on the new belts before I do anything like that.
As to the hot running issue, after 20 minutes of mowing, I tested the pulley to be 140 degrees. The mowing was all pasture grass that was very dry. There has been very little rain in a while around here. I'm putting the belt cover back on and I'll test the cover temp tomorrow after more mowing.
Bottom line is, I'll wait and see. I'm hoping that the factory belts were a low bid winner or a bad batch.
I'm thinking it may need a stronger spring but I'll see how things work out on the new belts before I do anything like that.
As to the hot running issue, after 20 minutes of mowing, I tested the pulley to be 140 degrees. The mowing was all pasture grass that was very dry. There has been very little rain in a while around here. I'm putting the belt cover back on and I'll test the cover temp tomorrow after more mowing.
Bottom line is, I'll wait and see. I'm hoping that the factory belts were a low bid winner or a bad batch.
Foozle
Silver Member
I thought I'd weigh in with my experience. I have only about 5 hours on my Caroni and did the heat test with my hands. After mowing short grass for about 30 minutes, I could keep my hand on the metal cover for about 5 seconds before I had to pull it away, so hotter than I would have hoped. It was a cloudy day, so the sun didn't contribute to the heat.
I removed the cover and took a picture of the belts. As you can see, the cloth has worn off one part of the belt already and it is down to the rubber part in that area. I'm assuming that is bad thing, but would like to get feeback from the experts on whether this is normal after 5 hours or not.
I've not ever adjusted the spring, but the tension actually seemed rather tight, although I'm not really sure how to judge the tension. I've read the thread about using a 3/8" deflection, but I'm not convinced I can judge that too well.
I know Matt at Agri-Supply monitors this discussion board so maybe he can weigh in. I'll probably contact him in any case to see if there is something I need to do differently or whether the belt wear I'm seeing is normal. I'm not in favor of replacing the spring with some other sort of mechanism because of my lack of experience and the fact that it would probably void my warranty, at least in regards to the belts.
Dave
I removed the cover and took a picture of the belts. As you can see, the cloth has worn off one part of the belt already and it is down to the rubber part in that area. I'm assuming that is bad thing, but would like to get feeback from the experts on whether this is normal after 5 hours or not.
I've not ever adjusted the spring, but the tension actually seemed rather tight, although I'm not really sure how to judge the tension. I've read the thread about using a 3/8" deflection, but I'm not convinced I can judge that too well.
I know Matt at Agri-Supply monitors this discussion board so maybe he can weigh in. I'll probably contact him in any case to see if there is something I need to do differently or whether the belt wear I'm seeing is normal. I'm not in favor of replacing the spring with some other sort of mechanism because of my lack of experience and the fact that it would probably void my warranty, at least in regards to the belts.
Dave
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Cyberroc
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After reading this though I would have to say that it appears to be (D) all the above.
The cause of heat is what needs to be solved, most likely it is an issue with the tensioner, however this should be easy to test. If the Kevlar belts do not have the same ill (shreading) effect, is there still heat? If so then the tensioner is most likely the problem. If the problem of heat is no longer seen with the Kevlar belts, then the belts being used are most likely the issue.
I am still leaning toward the tensioner as not everyone has the issue, and the tensioner is adjustable. I am betting on two items that are the cause. First there is probably an exact tension (sweet spot) that needs to be held by the tensioner, does anyone know what it is? Another is the trip one of these must make to get to the states, I am betting that even if it were adjusted at the factory, it may need to be checked on arrival.
I really hope this get's solved, as this will probably be my next purchase...
The cause of heat is what needs to be solved, most likely it is an issue with the tensioner, however this should be easy to test. If the Kevlar belts do not have the same ill (shreading) effect, is there still heat? If so then the tensioner is most likely the problem. If the problem of heat is no longer seen with the Kevlar belts, then the belts being used are most likely the issue.
I am still leaning toward the tensioner as not everyone has the issue, and the tensioner is adjustable. I am betting on two items that are the cause. First there is probably an exact tension (sweet spot) that needs to be held by the tensioner, does anyone know what it is? Another is the trip one of these must make to get to the states, I am betting that even if it were adjusted at the factory, it may need to be checked on arrival.
I really hope this get's solved, as this will probably be my next purchase...
Eagleview
Veteran Member
Now this is only my opinion , i believe that spring would be quite adequate to keep one belt at the correct tension . If it were able to say , apply 60lbs of tension on the belt , but we have three belts . That's 20lbs each , not nearly enough . I would like to see the results of someone putting a spring scale on the idler at it's center and find the exact tension that it actualy has . The belts on Foozle's mower are going to fail , and they will fail big as when one comes off it tangles with the others .
