Delta Unisaw needs new belts

jlwest

Jeff
Corporate Member
Well after 20 years my old Delta Unisaw belts are stretched out. Hard to believe they lasted this long. Time for new ones. Finally found some near original Deltas. Should work. Now to find a young person to help me.
 

tvrgeek

Scott
Corporate Member
Bad idea. Rubber dries out and gets stiff. Find some NEW US made belts. Gates is my preference. In Chinese made tools, some belt sizes are not common. Found reasonable ones from Power Drive. Not as smooth as Gates, but way better than off-shore. Even Dayco are OK in a pinch. Belts need to be ground smooth in the splice and a multi-belt drive they need to be the same size. Just be sure they are the correct series, degrees and width. If possible get the inside cogged belts as they handle the smaller than spec sheaves on woodworking tools better than solid.

Are there young people in Florida? :)
 

jlwest

Jeff
Corporate Member
I tried. Yes, I have a young rascal that helps me in my old age. It is a learning experience for us both. I do have a set of AR24 from Delta. They look good. I will be looking up in twenty years so not too concerned. I will let you know how they work. Time will tell. Thank you.
 
Last edited:

bob vaughan

Bob Vaughan
Senior User
The Unisaw's motor is on a pivot rod with a single bolt locking it in place.
Remove that bolt only. Raise the blade as high as you can. Put some blocking under the motor. Lower the blade. The blocking takes the load of the motor resulting in the belts being slack enough to remove.
Twenty years is a fairly new machine. Those belts should have lasted longer than that.
The Gates Hi-Power II A-section belts. A24 is the size for a modern Unisaw. (Modern: After 1960)
 

jlwest

Jeff
Corporate Member
The Unisaw's motor is on a pivot rod with a single bolt locking it in place.
Remove that bolt only. Raise the blade as high as you can. Put some blocking under the motor. Lower the blade. The blocking takes the load of the motor resulting in the belts being slack enough to remove.
Twenty years is a fairly new machine. Those belts should have lasted longer than that.
The Gates Hi-Power II A-section belts. A24 is the size for a modern Unisaw. (Modern: After 1960)
Yes. I know. I have the manual. It is a process as everything is. Belts are belts. One is flapping causing instability. Thank you for you insight. I have A24's. Just to old to be on my knees so I found a youngster to help.
 

bob vaughan

Bob Vaughan
Senior User
Get yourself the link belts, much better,no stretch,smoother
"Link Belts" on a Unisaw doesn't work well because they are so fat and stick up above the pulley. This reduces the depth of cut because the belts rub on the bottom side of the table.

1 unisaw & link belts cleancutwoodworking.jpg
 

tvrgeek

Scott
Corporate Member
Belts are NOT belts. Quality matters a lot. For some reason, the Chinese can't make two belts the same length and can't make a smooth splice.

Link belts come in different profiles. Some fit. BUT, they are not for use in parallel as there is no guarantee any two belts will be the same diameter.
 

jlwest

Jeff
Corporate Member
"Link Belts" on a Unisaw doesn't work well because they are so fat and stick up above the pulley. This reduces the depth of cut because the belts rub on the bottom side of the table.

View attachment 212182
I agree.
Belts are NOT belts. Quality matters a lot. For some reason, the Chinese can't make two belts the same length and can't make a smooth splice.

Link belts come in different profiles. Some fit. BUT, they are not for use in parallel as there is no guarantee any two belts will be the same diameter.
These are made in Mexico. They work great for now. Breaking them in. It passed the nickel balance test.
 

Premier Sponsor

Our Sponsors

LATEST FOR SALE LISTINGS

Top