L2501 Fan Belt

[rbm]

Hey all,

I just purchased a new L2501 HST and have 10 hours on the tractor so far. This past weekend, I was brush hogging and at one point noticed my battery light come on followed by the temperature gauge shooting all the way up.

Stopped the tractor immediately and found that the fan belt was broken in about 3 pieces... I did find a small piece of a stick (maybe 1/2" diameter by 6" long) in the area by the alternator. Dealership seemed to suggest the repair would not be covered under warranty, so I asked them to order a new belt for me and I will install myself. The manual makes no mention of the process for replacing the belt, only adjusting the tension. Has anyone changed one of these belts? Do you have to remove anything to get it on?

Should I let the dealership take a look anyway to see if something else is going on or just assume it was the stick and roll with it? I can't imagine what else it would be with only 10 hours on the engine. Sadly, I don't have a trailer right now to take it in, so I'm trying to avoid borrowing one if possible.

Thanks!

 

[85Hokie]

Hey all,

I just purchased a new L2501 HST and have 10 hours on the tractor so far. This past weekend, I was brush hogging and at one point noticed my battery light come on followed by the temperature gauge shooting all the way up.

Stopped the tractor immediately and found that the fan belt was broken in about 3 pieces... I did find a small piece of a stick (maybe 1/2" diameter by 6" long) in the area by the alternator. Dealership seemed to suggest the repair would not be covered under warranty, so I asked them to order a new belt for me and I will install myself. The manual makes no mention of the process for replacing the belt, only adjusting the tension. Has anyone changed one of these belts? Do you have to remove anything to get it on?

Should I let the dealership take a look anyway to see if something else is going on or just assume it was the stick and roll with it? I can't imagine what else it would be with only 10 hours on the engine. Sadly, I don't have a trailer right now to take it in, so I'm trying to avoid borrowing one if possible.

Thanks!

I am sure if you can turn a wrench - you can get the belt on. On some models .....yours might NOT be one of them, you might need to remove the radiator and or shroud cover. Getting it around the fan can be fun too, up against the radiator.

IF when you get it on, look at the tension-deflection....run it for a couple of hours THEN go back and check the tension again. You might need to place more tension on it.

IF you are not replacing with the "kubota" belt brand, get one that is of good quality - the cheap ones are cheap for a reason. As for taking to dealer, take a good look at everything in there and determine that after.

 

[rbm]

Cool. I've done belts on trucks, but never a tractor. Things look a little tight in there, especially between the fan and radiator. Thinking it should be possible to get it around there with a little effort though.

Good point on checking it again after a couple of hours... no doubt a new one will have a little more stretch to it.

I did go ahead and have the dealership order 2 Kubota brand belts (only $11 each) and will hopefully have them in hand before the weekend.

Thanks for the input!

 

[rbm]

Well, I finally got in there to look at the damage... The belt had actually gotten completely shredded and wrapped around the crank pulley multiple times. I think I got it all out, but can't tell if any got wrapped up on the crankshaft. Now considering a trip to the dealership...

 

[rbm]

As an update, I managed to change the belt successfully and all is running well again.

For anyone else that has to change their L Series belt, you don't need to remove anything other than the side panel next to the alternator. Loosen up the alternator completely and swing it towards the block. When putting the new belt on, the order is crank pulley > alternator pulley > fan pulley. It was completely impossible with any other order that I tried. I used a crowbar behind the alternator to set the tension to the recommended 7-9MM of deflection.

 

[tlefire]

Thanks for the update.......just keep a check on it for a few hours.

Good info to know, since I have the same tractor, should I ever need to replace mine.

 

[Blondie70]

I have increased the tension on my new tractor's belt. Didn't use anything but my hand to pull outward on the alternator. It is plenty tight enuf now....and a whole lot tighter than it was....I got a lot of empathy for them little bushings and bearings...ha ha ha.