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MG TD TF 1500 - Original fan belt

I am guessing the original TD fan belt was a regular V belt and not the cogged ones we are now using.

Anyone know what brand and size the originals were?
Bruce Cunha

Bruce: I do not recall if cogged fan belts were even made back when these cars were built. So I would lean toward the fan belts being NON cogged.

Cheers

Gary
79 MGB
Gary Hansen

Agree with Gary. Seems like later technology but I've been wrong before. Whatever you do if you must use a V belt make sure it's the correct length. If you intend to show the car just swap the belts before the judging. Read the "Keep your belts loose' article by Dave Du Bois as it mentions Moss were selling belts that were 3 inches too short and so destroyed a hell of lot of rear end caps of T series gennys by introducing unnecessary strain on the rear bush. Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

Hello Bruce. Also make sure that the belt that you get is a 32 degree V belt, not the standard today. One of the old belts I have measures 17mm x 925mm. A good place to look for them is at a place like Applied Industrial. They are a business that carry all types of bearings, fittings, belts, etc. It's where I go for for supercharger belts so I can get matched length belts. Tow belts at an auto parts store, even though they say they are the same size, They are not the same length unless they are from the same lot.

Butch
R Taras

Butch,

I had a good look at Allied. Tried to find a serrated V-Belt, in Kevlar - 32° W/O success.

What I'm using is an of-the-shelf Kevlar, serrated belt - fits and works well. Should I be worried?

Gord Clark
Rockburn, Qué.
Gord Clark

I was a friend of Dave Dubois and followed his advise on belts for 40+ years. I am shooting for a day 1 car. That is, a car that is as original as I can make it and includes some dealer add on's (temperature gauge).

I have a cog belt that is a correct length, so I should be able to use that for measurement.

Once I get the length, I will search for a 32 degree V.

I also have a reasonable idea of where the generator was locked on the adjusting arm from this factory picture

Bruce Cunha

The belt that I use is 17x940mm and the adjuster is very much in the centre.
Regards
Declan




Declan Burns

From Declan's pic I think we can safely say that 940 mm, which is 37" exactly, is pretty close to the correct length belt. It is a cogged belt so will be able to be adjusted with more slack than the traditional V. This has to be a good thing. Does anyone know the length of the belt that Moss is currently selling? Have a look at the damage the short Moss belt that Dave was referring to in his 2007 article does to the rear genny end plate! Cheers
Peter TD 5801

P Hehir

I am a bit confused why a shorter belt (as long as there was adjustment left) would cause the uneven wear at the rear bushing assuming the required tension was set.

I suspect the real problem may have been that the belts were too stiff, but what do I know.
Christopher Couper

The belts that were 3 inches too short Chris would have made it almost impossible to set the required amount of slack. On most cars this is set on the longest run between pulleys but on the T Types it's set between the water pump and the genny. The incorrect V drive would have added to the problem. I run the Green Stripe that Dave recommended. If ever I can be bothered to show the car, I'll just swap the belt over. Cheers
Peter TD 5801
P Hehir

The same 17x940mm belt is available as a standard V-belt. I can supply both.
Regards
Declan
Declan Burns

This thread was discussed between 27/07/2020 and 31/07/2020

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