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Belt Drive on scrambler/Bonny

8K views 32 replies 17 participants last post by  DUCKMAN 
#1 ·
Last I checked on newboneville site it says they have belt drive conversion for bonny/scrambler.
"OOS"
Wondering is there someone who is running this setup on their bike
Pros & cons of running a belt drive than to a chain other than frequent lube of chain
 
#2 ·
I rode belt drive Harleys for over 20 years. It is a great system. The only broken belts I have ever seen were caused by not running the lower belt guard and a rock getting caught between the belt and pulley. That might happen if you take your Scram to the dirt. The other issue is gearing. You won't find the selection of pulley sizes like you can with sprockets.
 
#7 ·
I just have to say something, without any favoritism, about those odd looking Free Spirits intakes, as I know they are not popular on here.

I just have experience of the Harley XR 1200 version but FS spent a lot of time on the intake length of these curly tubes which is the critical factor in the design. If you search the XR owner forum, or google "Phaedrus' Stuff" for all the experiments with these and intake length on EFI bikes in general, it becomes plain that there is something useful to be gained.
Please don't discount these ideas as crackpot.
 
#9 ·
i recently installed belt drive from scootworks.com on my 2012 bonnie, EXCELLENT!!! check their site, took about 2 wks to get from them N carolina to me in Pa both in USA $579 delivered, excellent instructions, its a carbon fiber-kevlar belt wkich will go 50-100 thousand miles unless damaged almost same width as the chain. got pics in photobucket but having problems getting them on a forum album or post but prolly could e-mail one, very happy with product as i like a clean machine
 
#11 ·
Belt drive is cleaner and quieter. If it will live 100k then the $579 investment maybe worthwhile. If it lasts 50k this is not the case. I perfer chains. Stuck in the middle of nowhere you can "fix" a chain. The odds that any motorcycle/ATV dealer has a 525 chain or masterlink in stock is very good. I can fit a chain without removing the wheel or even jacking it up. Finding a belt for an aftermarket belt kit in stock will be impossible. Belts cannot be fitted without jacking up the bike, removing the wheel and probably the swing arm to replace the belt.
 
#15 ·
yes removing wheel as well as swingarm is necessary to install, for me a belt is hands down best, see on different forums guys replacing chains as lo as 10,000 miles, regular lubing at 200 miles is recommended lube warm chain let bike set overnight so most of lube does not go on rear wheel + tire, adj chain again + again as it wears IMO its a no brainer add labor cost of replacing chain and sprockets if you do not do it, i am glad scootworks stepped up to make a belt for my bonnie, theres a reason some sites list sold out, best $$$ spent along with seat + bitubo shocks IMO i will post a pic of my clean shiny wheel and belt drive when i learn how
 
#21 ·
I glad its no brainer to go belt drive for you. I am curious...are you selling belt drives...or is the above the line they sold you to buy one. I hope you have some "warm" lube ready when your stuck in the middle of nowhere when your Roadside Assitance tows you to the nearest bike shop and the repairmen tells you it will be a week for the belt and $$$$ for labor. At this moment you will wish you had a chain.
 
#17 ·
another thing i just noticed while admiring the modded bike is that belt drive looks to be using the old tech belt with reinforced rubber, not a real issue in itself but the belt used on scootworks kit is of newest technology, smaller-stronger and longer lasting, i can't compare teeth on the pic but i can say my belted 06 sportster's belt teeth are not as beefy and look to have less bite than the carbon fiber kevlar belt used by scootworks and believe this is the upgraded belt construction used on late model buells, just a satisfied customer for sure!!!!
 
#19 ·
:) The belt on my Superglide was like new when I sold it, with 40,000 miles up. My belt driven BMW only has 12,000 miles up so far, but it is completely unworn. If you keep both top and bottom guards in place, they are pretty much indestructable! Oh yes, and the belt on the BM can be changed in 30 minutes, with no swing arm removal required! Hooray for belt drive!
 
#22 ·
Hardest part of the belt conversion for me is up-front investment in the kit and getting the gear ratio I like.

Belt or chain breakages are extremely rare if you take care of your bike. As such, the "getting stuck in the middle of nowhere" argument is pretty much moot. Seriously, who waits for their chain to break before replacing it? Why would you do so with a belt? Would you head out into the middle of nowhere with a chain that needs replacement? A blown tire is much more likely. I would be more concerned about a bike shop near the middle of nowhere having a suitable replacement tire than chain or belt.

Pulling the swingarm off is just not a big deal.
It is normally necessary, and just good practice, to replace sprockets when replacing a chain, and you have to remove the wheel for that. Going one step further and removing the swingarm is just not a big deal. Installing a new chain on worn sprockets will wear out the new chain prematurely. Considering long belt life compared to chains and less maintenance along the way, it's easy to see that a belt is much, much less $$$$ for labor over the life of the bike.

Worst case scenario: can't get a replacement belt? Just get a readily available chain and sprocket set and carry on.
 
#24 ·
went to the free spirits site today figured i'd looky at their other fine products, the belt drive was only thing i could see for triumphs, on that note $1053.78 plus shipping to the USA WOW!!! as stated this is almost surely is the wider old tech belt and did you check the pulley sizes 65 teeth rear 29 front although overall ratio is similar to stock they must be going for the harley BLING factor although after going down to my garage i checked my rear pulley on the 06 sportster with 20,000 miles on my original-like new belt it has similar sizing about 50mm larger diameter rear pulley than the stock bonnie you can forget the stock chainguard + possibly front sprocket cover, maybe the older belt technology requires larger diameter pulley which causes less stress similar to a too smallish front chain sprocket. just did the exchange rate the scootworks kit at $579 delivered in the USA is 357 british pounds there would be xtra shipping of course. i am in not affiliated to scootworks and luckily found them on an internet search i am just a happy satisfied customer sharing info for our bikes on this fine forum and truely appriciate all i have learned here
 
#26 · (Edited)
Should be pretty easy to figure out if you have the pulley diameters. Note that the diameter to use is the diameter of the surface that contacts the belt.

The webside (scootworks.com) says that the Triumph Bonneville kit has a ratio of 2.375:1 and is similar to the 43/18 sprocket set.
 
#27 ·
thats what it says on the site but then when I spoke to them he said it is more of 42/18
He told me 43/19 ratio is 1:2.26 and this belt drive falls between 43/18 stock to 43/19

Can anyone confirm this if you running the belt on your bike & how it has changed your ride compared to the stock.
have you experience more top end? & less vibes by doing belt?
 
#28 ·
You could buy the kit and then use the pulleys in the kit as patterns to have a machist make up pulleys with any ratio that you want. Pricey; but, you would get exactly what you want.
 
#31 ·
575 dollars should get me a new chain and sprockets... several times. I have yet to lube a chain on any of my bikes as long as I've been riding. My 78 KZ650 needed its 1st set of sprockets with 27 thousand miles on it. I imagine if I would've lubed them maybe it would've lasted longer. I'll stick with my chain, since that's whats already on it.
 
#32 ·
belt drive

Personally don't care either way. What ever toots your horn is what's right for you. What I can figure out is where all the dirty rear wheels are coming from. My T100's rear wheel is dirty only because of water and grim off our wet Northwest highways. No oil or grease at all! Can't remember the name right now of what I spray on my chain about every 200 miles, but on the chain it stays.

Karl
 
#33 ·
Some chain lubes are worse then others. TW Bug and Tar Remover removes the chain fling quickly an easily. A little TW ice wax or detailer and every thing shines like new. I have zero rust on my rear wheel. There are only two things a belt has over chains. They are cleaner and quieter.

Chains and sprockets are cheap and are available everywhere. My local hardware store stocks masterlinks.

Sprockets are available off the shelf in every imagainable combination.

Chains will allow you to run a wider tire then a belt.

Most belts are supposed to be changed every 50K. How much does the replacement belt cost? The belt drive conversion over the life of the bike will not pay for itself.

To each his own...Im done here.
 
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