@flywithgriff what drive pulley is that? How many teeth?
They are 66T Evolve AT pulleys
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Another picture of @chaka mount. The the pulley can be adjusted to increase tension if needed and flipped for the diagonal drive.
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wow.
are there any off-the-shelf mounts other than diy’s reverse mount that have room for an idler? Trying to build my first belt drive board, but 50mm motor(s).
I suppose these mounts are fairly simple anyway – some aluminum or steel stock, a bandsaw and drill should handle it?
Do the tension bearings have to cover the entire surface width of the belt??
Those @chaka mounts are my favorite design yet! I wish I could read more about the specific mechanical aspects of the kit. And, I wish they were available for a caliber ii truck hanger!!
Thanks @Jinra - I have lots of Ollin 50 mount arms but am waiting on the cutter to finish up the mounting clamps. let me know if interested and I will put your name on however many you need.
Nice to see this topic about idler wheels, I also use them and my drive train performs very well. I can go up insanely steep hills without slip using a 12T (too small) motor pulley and minimal belt tension. As soon as I change to a 15T motor pulley I think it would do even better and need less frequent belt adjustment.
I used two idler wheels, which looks great, but honestly I dont think it is much better (if at all) than a single idler.
I face the same problem that on a normal size motor mount, the wheel is in the way such that you cant place the idler bearings, especially when you use 97mm wheels like me there is zero space. So what I did is I took two normal shoulder bolts, put them in the lathe, and cut off the head until it is only 0.5mm. I then used a saw to make a slot in the other (threaded) side for using a flat head screw driver. This way the idler bearings can sit between the wheels and the motor mounts as you can see in the picture.
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Is there room to put an idler? Looks tight?
he has an extra long version
Ok, you guys have talked me into using idler pulleys. I will have to use a bolt with a very small head as there really isn’t much room with the pneumatics. I would prefer to use a smaller bearing since I don’t have much room. I don’t have a way to machine a slot in the motor mount plate so I will have to run a fixed bolt and move the motor for belt tension. Any suggestions before I scour my local Lowe’s and Home Depot for hardware tomorrow?
I like what you did with the shoulder bolts. I’m thing of doing the same, bet I could do something close but with a angle grinder, some files, and a drill press. Won’t be as pretty but I should be able to had finish it decently.
Great ideas all around, really helping be brain storm my own idle pulley.
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I plan to check out Ace hardware.
Low and home depots just make me mad. They never seem to have the right bolt, screw, or tool, and the staff is kinda dumb when it comes to a lot stuff.
Ace is the place if you have then in your town. Look for one of the larger stores if you can. They have a nice deep fastener inventory.
I’m planning on looking this weekend and will report back.
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Im just outside of NYC so im not sure if there is an ACE nearby. I will certainly check though. Thanks for the heads up.
Maybe someone will chime in with another hardware store recommendation because it looks like Ace is only in the pacific northwest. Good luck dude.
They are pretty popular on the East coast and in the South but they are really small hardware stores.
Edit: apparently they are also popular in the northeast as well…
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If you have a Fastenal location near you, they have a lot of cool stuff. https://www.fastenal.com/locations
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Checked out Ace, and they had all the metric shoulder bolts. Even some small with around a 4mm shaft. But it’s a bigger Ace staffed by old men. Think I’m going to up grade all my mount hardware with hardware from Ace.
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