I am looking for a source for a 1939 LaSalle fan belt. I ordered one from AllCad.com, but it is too long and too narrow (7/8" wide x 39 5/8" long). I think the size should be 1" wide x 35 1/2" - 37 1/2" long. I think I can Live with the 7/8" wide but there is not enough adjustment in the fan pulley for the 39 5/8" length.
Does anyone know the original length and width of a 1939 fan belt? I think the same belt is used on 1939 and 1940 LaSalles and 1939 to 1947 Cadillacs with the flathead V-8 engine. The belt I got from All Cadillac is a Gates TR28386.
Thanks,
Dave Heddaeus
Go on the Goodyear belt sizing website: http://www.goodyearep.com/productsdetail.aspx?id=11752 (http://www.goodyearep.com/productsdetail.aspx?id=11752)
They have belts up to 1" in width. To determine the size I needed for my '40 sixty special, I just took an old belt, cut it, wrapped it over the two pulleys, then measured the remaining distance between.. add that to the length of the belt and you're good to go.
If I read that site correctly Paul their 1" belts only start at 46" long up to 59". At 39" Dave has no further adjustment, even allowing for the extra 1" taking up a bit of play I think 46 would be much too long . This has been a constant problem for both my 37 and 38 cars, they have wide pulleys and these belts from All Cads are no good at all.
Jim Stamper has very kindly been trying to obtain one in your country for me with no success so he and I both run with the 7/8" which sadly sits in the bottom of the pulley and has the tendency to screech if not adjusted very tight, not a lot of good for the bearings, The earlier cars actually should have 1 1/8".
So if theres a solution to this I would love to know about it. Here in the UK Imperial sizes are no longer available. This subject has been covered before on this forum, it would seen changing to post war pulleys is one answer but the belt adjuster is much shorter.
Hi Dave,
I purchased my fan belt from Cooper's before they went out of business. The belt they sold me is a gates green stripe 2, part number 44411.
I hope this helps,
Dave
Here's a source for that Gates 44411 referenced.. no description as to width nor length:
http://www.finditparts.com/products/2492174/gates-corporation-44411 (http://www.finditparts.com/products/2492174/gates-corporation-44411)
Thanks for the info Dave. I am using the same Gates belt 44411 and a friend with 1940 LaSalle has the same belt. I have also bought items form Coopers but they seem to have gone away. These Gates belts I think are the right size but they are no longer made as far as I know. Seems to be the right part number and right size, but where can we buy some?
Dave Heddaeus
CLC #25949
Thanks Phil, I will give the source a try.
Dave Heddaeus
Dont know how old that link is Phil but when you put that part number into Gates web site it comes up "No such item found"
and no such number exists on their catalog of belts so its hard to check sizes? maybe they changed the numbers? I see its listed under Truck Belt.
Quote from: 1939 on June 10, 2012, 09:59:02 AM
Hi Dave,
I purchased my fan belt from Cooper's before they went out of business. The belt they sold me is a gates green stripe 2, part number 44411.
I hope this helps,
Dave
I just received an oil pump from Bob he is still open his number is 818-972-2642
McVey's has them. Look on their website.
fan belts all sold out at mcveys
Folks,
McVey has sold out his belts and if not they are not the best belts.
I did an article in the SS on this some time ago which listed the belts for the flat heads and their dimension. It is listed in the CLC directory under the listing for SS articles.
The Johnny
What is the procedure for replacing belt that drives the water pump and generator on a flathead ?
I have .loosened pivot bolt and locking bolt on rye generator and have belt on crank pulley and generator pulley but can't quite get it over the water pump pulley. So very close but not quite.
Is there a trick ?
Quote from: John Washburn CLC 1067 on September 25, 2017, 06:41:38 PM
I did an article in the SS on this some time ago which listed the belts for the flat heads and their dimension. It is listed in the CLC directory under the listing for SS articles.
The Johnny
Page 30 in November 2013 of the Self Starter.
Quote from: tturley on September 25, 2017, 09:01:34 PM
What is the procedure for replacing belt that drives the water pump and generator on a flathead ?
I have .loosened pivot bolt and locking bolt on rye generator and have belt on crank pulley and generator pulley but can't quite get it over the water pump pulley. So very close but not quite.
Is there a trick ?
It means that someone fitted a belt slightly too small because it was all they could get. Try taking out one bolt of the generator and letting it drop a little. You may have to loosen the fan belt to drop that pully first.
Is the past SS archived somewhere?
There appears to be a good demand for new belts for our flat head Cadillacs. This might make McVey think about making another run of both generator as well as fan belts. Having run Gates and belts from McVey on my 41 and 47, I prefer the belts from McVey. The belts from Gates never seated all the way down inside the pulley walls and over time the belt would get noisy and start to wear the sides of the belt .The McVey belts were a wrapped belt and fit perfectly in the pulleys. The belts were quit even after several thousand miles on the belts. Bill
I just spoke with mcvey and they said they will not make more. I am in need of a water pump- gen belt now as mine broke on 40 LaSalle
Do you know the size or part number for thatbelt
Most likely the reason they won't make any more is because they fail. I had one fail after a few thousand miles. Have had good luck for 20,000 miles now with the replacements available from normal suppliers (cogged green stripe) The printing will come off with lacquer thinner and 3M red pad so they don't look quite so ugly.
Do you remember the size or part# us are using
Tom,
If you send me your e-mail will send the specifications chart I used in the 11/13 SS Article.
The Johnny
Tturley973@aol.com
Quote from: John Washburn CLC 1067 on September 27, 2017, 12:05:17 AM
Tom,
If you send me your e-mail will send the specifications chart I used in the 11/13 SS Article.
The Johnny
Or I can scan the article in and post it here, if there are objections from the author.
Folks,
The article on the belts is in the Self Starter:
Nov/Dec 2013
Page 30 thru 32...
The Johnny
This is a Gates belt I removed from a 41 some time ago and this is a Dunlop belt I found here which seems to work fine.
Folks,
Here are the fan and generator belt specifications.
the Johnny
Thanks Tom
Johns chart just goes to prove something I have said for years. When you see a supplier advertising a belt for the Cadillac flathead it's nonsense. I count 5 different Generator belts on that list depending on the year. Different lengths, different widths, and different angles. When different pulleys get fitted over time even knowing the year becomes academic when searching for a belt.
Shame it's a little fuzzy John. Where did this list originate from?
Steve,
Originally printed in the Self Starter years ago, in the 80's if I remember correctly.
I listed where I used the charts in the SS:
Nov/Dec 2013
Page 30 thru 32...
This is a lot cleaner copy.
The Johnny
Old topic, but old cars.
Easy enough to find the generator/water pump belt, but hard to find the fan belt. One picture attached is of belts that were on the car - Generator/Water pump - Dayton VX-94, Fan belt - Gates Vulco 615. Also a picture attached is of the fan pulley where inner width is 7/8".
For the Fan belt, I'm going to give this a shot - PowerDrive C31 V Belt 7/8" x 35" https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01AGOZPQ8
Adding this post hopefully as an archive for future readers.
Added picture of old Vulco 615 and new C-31, looks exactly the same form.
Yup, old posting but still relevant.
Here's more info from when I was looking for bets for my '40 -52.
http://forums.cadillaclasalleclub.org/index.php?topic=150856.msg400599#msg400599 (http://forums.cadillaclasalleclub.org/index.php?topic=150856.msg400599#msg400599)
The belts are out there but you need to go outside the box a bit.
Wes in VT
Check out AFT Fasteners and Industrial Supply - they have belts. I’ve purchased the belts in the center of the attached photo. Non-cog. Very quiet. 7/8 width and come in 1†increments.