Belt tension foot pounds beta 43 14 year old

[leeboy]

Hello l have recently bought a belt tensioner tester that you can set the belts to a correct torque,my question is does one of you kind people have those specs please?

The v-belt and the flat belt in foot pounds please,the device l got is called a cricket .

He engine has the original alternators on it and it's 14 years old

Thanks 

Lee

 

[Tony Brooks]

14 minutes ago, leeboy said:

Hello l have recently bought a belt tensioner tester that you can set the belts to a correct torque,my question is does one of you kind people have those specs please?

The v-belt and the flat belt in foot pounds please,the device l got is called a cricket .

He engine has the original alternators on it and it's 14 years old

Thanks 

Lee

 

 

If no one can help you with the flat belt tension here, then ask Beta, but you do not normally use a tension gauge on V belts. You tighten the V belt so that moderate finger pressure in the centre of the longest run gives a deflection of 10mm (1/2").

 

On a similar vein, it seems to be a fairly widely accepted rule of thumb that you tighten the flat belt until you can only twist the centre of the longest run through 90 degrees.

[Jen-in-Wellies]

My Beta manual (2007 build) says 12mm deflection from firm pressure with a thumb in the longest run for each belt. V and flat. 

I tend to check the flat belt with the 90 degree twist test, as @Tony Brooks describes. My engine is still on the original flat belt.

[BEngo]

Belt tension checking devices are most commonly usd on toothed belts (not the same as cogged belts).  Typical uses are for cam belts or other 'timed' drive.  For these the required tension will be found in the engine manual, or in the belt OEM  data sheets.

[blackrose]

4 hours ago, Tony Brooks said:

 

On a similar vein, it seems to be a fairly widely accepted rule of thumb that you tighten the flat belt until you can only twist the centre of the longest run through 90 degrees.

 

I didn't realise that technique was for flat belts. I've been using it for V belts. Is that wrong?

2 hours ago, Jen-in-Wellies said:

My Beta manual (2007 build) says 12mm deflection from firm pressure with a thumb in the longest run for each belt. V and flat. 

I tend to check the flat belt with the 90 degree twist test, as @Tony Brooks describes. My engine is still on the original flat belt.

 

Yes I use that one too - an inch deflection up & down - which roughly corresponds to your 12mm one way deflection.

[Tony Brooks]

1 hour ago, blackrose said:

I didn't realise that technique was for flat belts. I've been using it for V belts. Is that wrong?

 

As polly-V belts seem to be set with a far higher tension than ordinary V belts, I would suggest yes, it is wrong and likely to lead to overtightening. that in turn puts extra stress on the bearings, and it is the alternator and engine water pump that are more likely to suffer damage.

 

On ordinary V belts the 1" total play (up and down), 1/2", 10mm, or 12mm deflection, I think can never be an exact figure. I said moderate finger pressure, Jen said firm thumb pressure, and the pressure bit is down to experience and feel, it is likely to differ from person to person, so it can't really be critical.

[TunnelTiger]

On 11/12/2025 at 17:50, Tony Brooks said:

 

On ordinary V belts the 1" total play (up and down), 1/2", 10mm, or 12mm deflection, I think can never be an exact figure. I said moderate finger pressure, Jen said firm thumb pressure, and the pressure bit is down to experience and feel, it is likely to differ from person to person, so it can't really be critical.

 

Well yes, that's why we have belt tension gauges!

[Tony Brooks]

55 minutes ago, TunnelTiger said:

 

Well yes, that's why we have belt tension gauges!

 

Well, for over 50 years in my personal experience and probably far longer, mechanics and engineers managed without belt tension gauges for ordinary V belts, so I have no idea why that has changed. As I said, the tension on ordinary V belts, within limits, can't be critical, so what point are you trying to make? It seems odd that you seem to be the only one that thinks that one needs a tension gauged for ordinary V belts. As already said, poly Vs are a totally different thing, as are toothed belts like cam belts.

[Peugeot 106]

“Alternator Belt Tension”  thread added just in case of interest