Link Belt for Grizzly 691/Craftex 201/King KC-25FXT 10" Tablesaws ?

[Kbird123]

Hi these saws plus Laguana's Clone and a few others all appear to use the
SPZ625 V-Belt after going thru a few websites and manuals, this belt is 9.7mmX8X8
which I thought meant I could use the Fenner Drives PowerTwist 3/8 belt that KMS Tools had on sale last week , but it doesnt appear to "seat" properly and looks as though it is oscillating and the RPM's look really low. I have spoken to Fenner this morning and they tell me they dont do a belt to match the SPZ 625 Belt , and that i would have to change out the triple pulleys on the motor and arbour to use their link belt. So I am just wondering what other people have used , or if it is worth changing the pulley's i guess and how easy it that to do?

thanks for any help.

Mick.

[Brian @ Muir]

I have a Unisaw with a regular link belts, not sure the size but bought it off the shelf and it runs real smooth.

Brian

[StephenL]

I looked at doing something similar and was told by the bearing shop that link belts were not suitable for higher HP motors. Now this didn't sound right to me but who am I to argue with highly trained counter help. Anyhow I didn't proceed with the changeover for one reason or another so I will be interested in what you find out. It might be wise to go right to the source of the belt maker and fire off an inquiry to get the straight goods.

[charlton]

Why bother? Does your saw not run smoothly? I have the 690 and it's very smooth.

http://www.fennerdrives.com/high_per...supt_home.aspx

I don't know why Fenner says they don't make wedge link belts because I think they do. SuperTLink.

I wouldn't bother. I've done the whole link belt thing and unless your machine isn't running smoothly (in which case, it could point to something else), I personally don't think it's THAT much of an improvement from a smoothness perspective. For other aspects (such as resisting set) maybe it's worth it but that would be up to you.

Cheers,
Charlton

[Kbird123]

Hi ...

Brian...... my guess would be your Unisaw is American made so has 1/2" pulleys ? vs all these saws which are Taiwanese made and everything is metric.

Stephen .... i wouldnt say 4300rpm is high but i've never heard / read that , and plenty have done it like Brian , so i figured it was ok .....

Charlton .... thanks for that i did see those on the site but couldnt figure out how the metal studs were ok in the pulley, so i guess I need to call Fenner again tomorrow and hopefully find someone who knows their stuff. My saw is 2nd hand actually , just got it, and it sounded like the old belts had taken a "set" from lack of use when i tried it before dismantling it to get it home , so figured since new belts were in order anyway I'd put the $25 towards Link belt since Grizzly is out of the SPZ 625 Belts at the moment .

thanks ,
Mick.

[charlton]

The metal "studs" you're referring to are probably just the connector tabs between links. These go on the outside. The other side (with the V-profile tab) goes on the pulley side. You'll actually need 3 link belts which might actually amount to more than $25. Unless you're worried about the usage model of the saw in the future (taking a set), maybe it makes more sense to just get regular V-belts.

Charlton

[billh]

3/8" is 9.525 mm which is very close to 9.7mm.

IMO, the biggest problem with TS and belt set is with the contractors saw where the belt is tensioned by the motor's cantilevered weight. Most belts that have a set will smooth out after they are run a bit.

billh

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi Mick, link belts are not the preferred choice for power transmission.

A good quality belt will be the best choice for you. Go to an industrial belt supplier and purchase the correct size belt in a high quality line.

Regards, Rod.

[Kbird123]

Well i did speak to several people at Fenner today , 1st response was "if saw was brought in Nth America , powertwist will fit " (it doesn't) so I called back and the 2nd person agreed that the SPZ belts are wedgebelts so the powertwist wont work (V-belt compatible) but as Charlton pointed out above the SuperTlink will, but it only comes on 5m rolls at $300 roll plus tax and shipping.....ahhhh no thanks... the studs on the Supertlink apparently dont drop down far enough to ever touch the pulley.

So i guess I will follow the advise here and find a Supplier in the Lower Mainland for these SPZ belts since Grizzly is out of stock currently. Doing a bit of googling hasnt helped on metric Wedge Belts , so might have to wait until Grizzly has them instock again.

Thanks for the help,

Mick.

[Kbird123]

If anyone knows a good source for belts here in B.C. please let me know , or elsewhere that will ship here, phoning around here this morning got me no help at Commericial Solutions and Thomas Skinner , and the link i found on Ebay was in Monravia (Europe).

Thanks,

Mick

[Kbird123]

These belts are far worse than i thought , it is just not "set" they are starting to delaminate if that is the right word but I still cant find these SPZ 625 belts any where , none of the saw manufacturer's have them in stock , ie King, Craftex (BB), Grizz, Shopfox etc.
one place here BC Bearing might be able to get a 622 or a 630 mm , so if those are the choice's which one would someone suggest who has more knowledge of this than me ? .

Some European sites list this belt , just seems weird that a Saw commonly available here in CDN or US uses them.... does anyone know if there is an equivalent belt ?

thanks for the help.

[charlton]

I'd probably just get the 622mm belt. The belts are bound to stretch a bit over time.

[Rod Sheridan]

Hi, in the world the USA is the only major country that isn't metric, however a lot of machinery is imported or meant for world markets so metric components are common.

You'll need to stay with the metric belt so that it fits the sheaves properly.............Rod.

[Kbird123]

Thanks for the help guys , I will post back once i find a source incase someone else is looking in the future.

Mick

[Kbird123]

Just to update the thread for further searchers , at least as at June/July 2012 none of the Manufacturers of this Saw or it's Clones had the SPZ 625 in stock. Laguna did say they could get me them for $25 each ! ouch...must have been going to overnight them in from Italy for me but no thank you.... Grizzly Tech Support ( rather than CS) did tell me to try a FHP 3L250 Belt as they didnt have any idea when the SPZ625 would be available . The 3L250 is actually about 635mm if converted so I decided to get the SPZ 630 that Motion Industries ( they merged with BC Bearing) could get me (from Toronto) and they seem to be working just fine after a few hours of use.

Mick.