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throwing the V belts seprentine conversion questions

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mwood1985

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my 86 keeps slinging the belts which gives me no water pump ect. whats everyones opinion of the 88 and up Serpentine conversion on the pre 86 motors in a offroad truck? do they stay on the pulleys pretty well? im tired of the current v belts twisting up and loosening up ect. its just undrivable really. i know i need the different water pump power steering pump ect. im running electric fans so thats not an issue with the reverse rotation. im juist concerned with how well they stay on. never had a problem with my Z71 on 38s so im not expecting it to be on the jimmy but id still like to hear everyones thoughts
 
I have a small block serp set up on my big block, and had to about 6-7k yesterday, and it's still on.

I think it looks better, and almost simpler. Parts are everywhere, easy to get at any parts store.
 
People didnt run V belts for over 50 years because they suck. Get new belts, and take some 40 grit to the V groove in your pulleys. I did this when i first got my truck and i have never had one squell, twist, bind, or throw its self off. I am also using Goodyear Gatorback belts, a little more expensive than normal ones, but worth the price.
 
yup, if your throwing belts or squealing, something's not right.. tension, alignment, etc...

I do like serp, but it isn't perfect either...


now, radius tooth, that be the sh*t... :haha:
 
TSewell said:
People didnt run V belts for over 50 years because they suck. Get new belts, and take some 40 grit to the V groove in your pulleys. I did this when i first got my truck and i have never had one squell, twist, bind, or throw its self off. I am also using Goodyear Gatorback belts, a little more expensive than normal ones, but worth the price.
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they were new belts. did great driving from kennesaw to west ga mud park. 66 miles. pulled in parked it never played went to crank it back up and they twisted up on startup. the pulleys are lined up with a straight edge the belts are new tension seems to be good til the belts heat up. its almost as if the pulleys are too thin but they are factory original to the block in the truck. been figting this problem for a month. ive driven it maybe 200 miles in the last couple weeks and she was fine til yesterday. im thinking the serp setup is just less hassle cause its self adjusting and more reliable. i mean if v belts were so good why did they switch to a serp style from the factory?
 
mwood1985 said:
they were new belts. did great driving from kennesaw to west ga mud park. 66 miles. pulled in parked it never played went to crank it back up and they twisted up on startup. the pulleys are lined up with a straight edge the belts are new tension seems to be good til the belts heat up. its almost as if the pulleys are too thin but they are factory original to the block in the truck. been fighting this problem for a month. ive driven it maybe 200 miles in the last couple weeks and she was fine til yesterday. im thinking the serp setup is just less hassle cause its self adjusting and more reliable. i mean if v belts were so good why did they switch to a serp style from the factory?
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that's not the point.. the point is a v-belt system is a perfectly fine system, when properly set up with the right parts... sounds like you need a different width belt...

are you getting any belt dust?

not that the serp setups aren't an improvement in many ways... but the later self-adjusting ones have a tendency to eat idler pulley bearings, so no system is perfect...
 
mwood1985 said:
i mean if v belts were so good why did they switch to a serp style from the factory?
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I was just trying to give you some helpfull advise.


ryoken said:
that's not the point.. the point is a v-belt system is a perfectly fine system, when properly set up with the right parts....
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Thanks. Thats point i was trying to make. But...........:dunno:
 
i know man. im just tryign to figure out which will work more reliably. im tired of the truck blowing the belts every other time i crank it up. theres something wrong but none of its adding up it shouldnt hold them on for 70 miles yesterday then toss them after i cut the motor off for a couple hours
 
mwood1985 said:
i know man. im just tryign to figure out which will work more reliably. im tired of the truck blowing the belts every other time i crank it up. theres something wrong but none of its adding up it shouldnt hold them on for 70 miles yesterday then toss them after i cut the motor off for a couple hours
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Do they squell on start up? Do they squell while driving?
 
thats what gets me. the pulleys look good no dings or dents the belts were new and i aligned all the pulleys wit ha straight edge. they all are in line so it shouldnt have a problem. only thing i can figure out is somethigns either causing the belt to heat up and stretch or the power steering pump is shifting and its just enough to let the belt get loose enough to twist
 
what do i do about power steering lines? ive got a 1986 steering box so what lines do i need to match the 87-95 pump
 
If you really want serpentine, then go for it. But if you just want something that works, getting the V-belts to work will probably be a lot less time and money.

If everything is lined up when it's off, look for missing brackets, loose bolts and bad bearings. It could be a previous owner took a shortcut somewhere in assembly and skipped a bolt or bracket. It's also easy to change the alignment when swapping between manifolds and headers, since there is usually at least one bolt shared between an accessory bracket and the exhaust. That accessory might not flex much until you put bid load on it. I've also seen a water pump with a bearing bad enough the pulley would wobble, but not bad enough for it to leak much. Maybe load down the alt (turn everything on), run the A/C and have somebody steer lock-to-lock (while revving?) while you watch the pulleys. The power steering pulley is press-fit, so it's possible to get that alignment wrong. The shaft should be flush with the snout of the pulley.
 
I'm starting on a V-belt to TPI-style serpentine conversion and I think I can re-use my pump just by swapping the reservoirs. I will know soon enough.
 
All new V belts stretch some after being installed and run for awhile--most belt manufacturers say to re-tention them after a short run time between 10 to 30 minutes...many "cheap" v belts I have tried were very "stretchy" and failed or came off all too soon.....Its possible they were nice and tight when you installed them--but stretched ,then were loose enough to derail or flip over in the pulleys,after their first "run in" ...also GM's use belts that are 7/16" wide,so you cant really cheat and use fractional HP belts designed for industry that are 3/8" or 1/2" ,the "3L" or "4L" series on an engine,the 3/8" ones will ride the bottom of the sheaves and slip,and the 1/2" ones ride too high in the pulleys and can flip or come off easily............................................................................................I used to sell Dayco belts and often guys wanted to step up to the wider belts,the "normal" size for a GM belt is their "15" series,like a 15445,that is 15/32" wide...many guys wanted the larger "17" series that are 17/32" wide,but they often wont stay on the pulleys,the altenator and power steering pulleys are usually narrower than the ones on the water pump and balancer,and thats the ones the belts will come off of easiest if its too wide..................................................................................................Some chevies used shims between the water pump pulley and the mounting flange...also there are a few different small block "tall" water pumps ,the overall height varies slightly and will not allow the belts to align properly,even though it "looks" ok ,also the pulleys may be aligned ok as far as being paralell,but not "angled" the same degree from top to bottom,that'll make the belts jump off at higher rpms too....................................
 
the only thing you need is the brackets, and the newer style waterpump and fan. I personally think v-belts are best used to hold down a section of my dumpster. Everyone has their own opinion on everything, but serpentine belts have never failed me. Plus you can step up to the newer style alternator and update the charging system a lil bit in the process. Now depending on the year and Im not sure of the cutoff, but the PS system uses 2 different types of fittings on the box and pump, one has an o-ring and one uses a flare. I think pre 80 is flare post 80 is an o-ring. Keep that in mind as well.
 
Check your ps pump pulley. I had the same problem once and the pulley was warped like you wouldn't believe
 
If you want to keep your water pump, you could possibly set it up the same way the '87 style, they use a serpentine looking belt, think they call them grooved belts or something, they're flat with multiple grooves just like a serpentine, but smaller. I have this on my '87 2wd Burb here.

Each belt runs each accessory, just like a v-belt does, just uses a different pulley on each unit, water pump still rotates in standard rotation as well.

I thought I always liked the single serpentine belt setup, looks clean, it's quiet, reliable, UNTIL one single accessory fails, like an alternator, or a power steering pump.

Each of these units has left myself as well as my mother stranded because that single unit failed.

Alternator bearings failed, burnt up in mine once, her power steering pump bearings tore apart on hers once while she was 2 hours outside of Phoenix on the highway on her way back home.

With the seperate belts, you remove the affected item, continue driving home. Both hers and my truck had to be towed home due to one single unit failure.
 
Another reason "old school" is better!....at least with v-belts ,you can do that,limp home with one belt missing,provided the water pump still spins...and you can always borrow your "better half's" panty hose to use as an emergency belt long enough to reach a service station.......................................................................................................................................................................................................I'm not saying serpentine belts are not good,its just they usually run ALL the accessories with one belt usually,and those idler pulley tentioners springs and bearings fail pretty often,and your lucky to get to a parts store before the bearing seizes completely in one ,once you hear the death squealing start!--and one thing like the altenator or A/C pump seizes,your dead in the water.....on most vehicles,replacing a serpentine belt isnt a job that can be done on the side of the road easily too...(maybe not on GM trucks,but my Ford Countour's belt required a lift,45 minutes and removal of a motor mount and a pulley to get it on--I'd be boned if it tossed a belt on a long trip--be a day without a car waiting for it to get fixed,and probably at least 200 bucks!)..while on my 6.2 diesel,I can put an altenator belt on it anywhere in 10 minutes,maybe less...guess what I'd trust more on a long trip??....:whistle:
 
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