03 Road King - Harley Forum

fastwn · #1 06-01-2009, 02:57 PM

Has anybody heard of belts breaking on Road Kings? My husband rides an 03 Road King and decided it was time for a new belt last year at about 80,000 miles. We hadn't put many miles on the new belt and it broke. Had another new belt installed. We went for a ride yesterday and that belt broke. We can see several little cracks in the belt in addition to the place where it failed. Both times the belt broke, we had come to a stop and then when he started up again, that was it! Any ideas?

frisco-rigid · #2 06-01-2009, 07:43 PM

Hi Fast

That's eerie..

I suspect we all need a wee more info..

Are these HD belts installed by HD shop personel..?

Are these after-market belts installed by Who.? What brand.?

Are you getting any kinda warranty on the belts and/or on the labor.?

These cracks------ are they on both sides of the belt.?
Are they huge, little, all the way thru, all the way across from side to side, deep, hair-line.......???????????????

Anything more you can think of.?

fastwn · #3 06-01-2009, 10:32 PM

Thanks for the response.
Both belts were O.E. H-D belts, installed by my mechanic that I followed when he left the local H-D dealer to open his own shop.
Harley would not warranty the first belt because it was more than 30 days since I bought it. I ordered it a few weeks prior to taking the motorcycle in for a 10K service. The second belt had about a season and 15000 miles since it was installed.
The first belt breaking I can chalk up to a defective belt. No problem. What really concerns me is the second belt breaking. I have the motorcycle serviced at 5000 mile intervals by my mechanic who is a certified H-D mechanic and worked for the local dealer for probably 7 or eight years. He has built 4 motors for me, (wifes V-Rod now has 70K miles), and 3 TCs that I have put a total of over 190K on the three. Is there something he may be overlooking during the services?
The current broken belt (other than the break) has three very small cracks all on the outside or non-pulley side and all on the same side of the belt when considering left to right. they are about 7 to 10mm in length and do not seem to be very deep. When looking at the pulley side, one side (again left to right) seems very slightly more polished than the other. This leads me to think a misaligned belt. I examined the sides of the belt and see no evidence of the belt rubbing on the edge of the pulley. I can send detailed photos if you have a way to accept them.

Actually we replaced the original unbroken belt at around 70K miles as a precaution and the replacement belt broke about a week later. The motorcycle now has about 85K and is sitting in my garage until I can figure out how to prevent any further problems.

Thanks for your time,

Art Evans
BIGTWN
Denver CO

frisco-rigid · #4 06-02-2009, 04:06 AM

Bigtwn & Fastwn << good ones

Thanks for the extra info..
We have some very good guys that will use it to assist you like Wright, Ace, Shovelmike & others..

The first thing I would do is check that alignment since you suspect it already and also belt tension when replacing the belt..

What do the teeth look like especially near the breaks on both belts..?
Have you inspected the pulleys..?

The rear belt & pulleys (both) are supposed to get I/A (inspect & adjust) at every service..
But there's simply no magic,, inspect belt for punctures & tears,, and chips and breaks in the pulley teeth and then re-adjust if Somehow it got outa alignment.. And of course anything that mighta fallen/gotten in the way.. Very basic stuff..
There's really nothing to over-look unless it just wasn't done properly to begin with.. Oooops, did I say that out loud.?

Maybe our guys have heard of a rash of "bad" belts breaking..
BoLo on Wright, Ace, Shovel--------------

botzman · #5 06-02-2009, 07:18 AM

A buddy o mine had a similiar problem breaking 3 belts in the course of about 2 years. I believe his problem was alignment if you ask me. He's a DIY guy and never open to suggestion. All his belts were aftermarket though. I suggested he let me install and adjust his last belt ( surprisingly he did) and its still on there. As Frisco stated, wear on the pulleys is a factor for sure. With your mileage I'de give 'em a good look (although your wrench should be checking 'em when he does the belt). A mechanic friend told me worn pulleys can cause the belt to ride to one side rubbing against the pulley edge causing friction and heat which could be part of your problem. Good luck. BOtz

aceharleywrench · #6 06-02-2009, 09:49 AM

I would have to suspect the pulleys (sprockets) or mis-handling of the belt before or during installation (belt bent backwards or compressed into too tight of a bend) I have sneaked belts in by just removing the left side motor/swingarm mount instead of both(to save time removing exhaust,etc.),but you have to be EXTREMELY CAREFUL when doing this because a belt bent the wrong way will fail in short order.Hope this helps

shovelmike · #7 06-02-2009, 10:36 AM

Welcome to the forum fastwn. Ace, Botz, and Frisco have covered the issue well, leaving nothing I need to add, Check it out and let us know, hopefully you'll be back on the road trouble free soon. And hey...drop by for a visit now and then. Ride safe and God bless, Sincerely: Shovelmike.

oldschoolsoldier · #8 06-04-2009, 11:36 PM

My friends 98 RK did that to him at a stop light which was a good thing he ended up having to fix a bunch of things in the motor anyway. maybe the belt is the wrong size? Hope you get back on the road soon.