'55 Mark V drive belt slacking off...

ugly_guitar_guy · Post by **ugly_guitar_guy** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 5:02 pm

Hey guys, a few weeks ago my Grandfather gave me his Mark V Greenie with a TON of attachments that I serial dated to about 1955 (283XXX if memory serves me correctly). It's pretty rusted because even though it lived most of it's life in a garage, it sat for the last couple of years under an awning next to a trailer home near the beach.

Lemme give you a quick rundown of what I've done so far:

Yesterday I took it upon myself to start cleaning it up and get it working again. I dismantled the head unit and pulled the motor out because it wasn't turning on when it was plugged in. Put it on my bench and plugged it in and even though the switch was a little temperamental it fired up with a couple wiggles. I went through the head and made sure all the gears were oiled and that nothing was stuck/non-moving. I cleaned up the 2 guide bars that the head moves on with some CLR, steel wool, sandpaper, and floor wax, and put the head back together.

At this point when I turned it on it I just heard a humming and no movement. I looked at the sheaves and saw that it was in the highest speed setting according to the manual (yes, I have the original manual for it too), so using the sanding wheel I cranked it back to the slowest speed and fired it up. Voila! It started and sounded sweet and happy. Until...

I turned the control handle to test the speed and after going about 3 turns it suddenly started losing speed. I turned it off and looked inside (I had the belt cover off at this point) and saw that the drive belt had tons of slack and wasn't engaging the sheaves on the motor any longer. I slowly turned the sanding wheel and control handle back to the slowest setting and turned it on again. Once again fired right up, but as I turned the control speed up the belt went slack again and the motor was just left running.

So my obvious question is, now what the heck do I do?? The belt feels pretty tight at the slow settings, and all the sheaves seem to be moving properly, so is my belt just stretched out from age or is there any advice that someone can give me on this? Thanks, in advance for all the help I'm sure to need!

billmayo · Post by **billmayo** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 5:32 pm

Remove the belt cover and lubricate the floating sheave and motor shaft. You can try to pull the floating sheave all the way to the washer/end a few times to work the oil around the shaft.

beeg · Post by **beeg** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 5:43 pm

billmayo wrote:Remove the belt cover and lubricate the floating sheave and motor shaft. You can try to pull the floating sheave all the way to the washer/end a few times to work the oil around the shaft.

When ya pull on it. DO KNOT let it slip and fly back. That will cause the needed gap to close and rub on the housing.

ugly_guitar_guy · Post by **ugly_guitar_guy** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 5:46 pm

billmayo wrote:Remove the belt cover and lubricate the floating sheave and motor shaft. You can try to pull the floating sheave all the way to the washer/end a few times to work the oil around the shaft.

Thanks Bill! I'll give that a shot when I'm home in a couple hours and report back. If it's still problematic I'll see if I can shoot a video.

ugly_guitar_guy · Post by **ugly_guitar_guy** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 10:06 pm

Just figured out the problem. The floating sheave appears to be stuck wide open. Gonna have to pull the whole damn thing back out again to figure out why. Frick.

beeg · Post by **beeg** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 10:26 pm

Try lubing it first and see if it will work free.

JPG · Post by **JPG** » Wed Jan 04, 2012 11:41 am

I am guessing rust and or gunk or both are preventing the floating sheave from 'floating. At this point removal and cleaning up is the best long term action.

Beware the spring!!!!!!!;)