I got the new belt on the old FXD and everything seems good.
Just wondering how critical it is to have the weight of the rider on the bike when checking tension? I can't bend over that far😉.

 

I don't know the answer to your question.. What I do know is that when I tried using the guage I got it too tight, every time..way too tight. I took it to my indie guy and he was like: "holy crap dude". So, he loosened it till I thought it felt a little sloppy. He says it's perfect. What he told me was for normal riding that's the right adjustment. For racing or normally running hard run the belt a little tighter. So, I don't even use the gauge anymore. I know how it's supposed to feel with the bike on the side stand. I realize this statement will come with lots of derision and disagreement.. I'm just keepin it real...as they say.

 

The recommendation differs over the years as to whether it should be rider on or off. Frankly I always check without a rider, for exactly the same reason - it ain't possible on your own! If you have the factory gauge I simply ensure my belt is at the 'easy' end of the tension scale. That has got me by for the last 25 years........

 

What exactly is the correct way to adjust the drive belt?
Also how much deflection does the "sloppy" belt have?

 

Total flex (up plus down) 3/4" with little effort, never had a problem.

 

10 lbs of force at the mid point between the pulleys, 5/16 to 3/8" deflection. My belt guard has marks on it to measure by.

 

That's where I've got it. Had a bag and a half of sand in the garage, about 100 lbs. Put that on the seat when I measured it.

 

I would think that it makes no difference with or without rider. Isn't the "hinge point of the swing arm right behind the front sprocket? If it did matter and you hit a pothole and bottom out you would put too much tension on the belt and it brakes.

 

I think that's fine then, SoPMS.

Scared, the pivot point is not in the center of the pulley, as you note. Different positions of the swingarm will give different lengths between the pulley centers. One could do teh maths if one was so inclined, but when adjusting the belt, it doesn't take much travel to go from too loose to too tight.

 

OK, noted!!