OEM vs Ultimax

[ranger1]

I cant believe there is no thread on Belts for our Winders, lol!! I am currently using the OEM Yamaha belt but do for a preventative maintenance belt change. Whats everyone running for belts, Yamaha OEM vs Ultimax XS825.......vs Gates G-force Redline ( edited from Doc's suggestion, lol) Pease share why you prefer one over the other as well.

 

[earthling]

Nope, no belt threads here

Search results for query: which belt

ty4stroke.com

 

[ranger1]

Nope, no belt threads here

Search results for query: which belt

ty4stroke.com

Apparently I am doing the "search" wrong as you came up with lots of belt threads and I did not. I read lots of these from the link you provided and there wasnt much about comparing belts, lots on blown belts though. The "best belt for Sidewinder" there was some info there but most of the comments about belts were in 2017 when the winder first was introduced. The Winder has now been around for 8 years so lots of time for trial and error with belts. Thanks for the link just the same earthling

 

[jonlafon1]

I find the Ultimax to be slightly softer/stickier. Majority of Winders are running this belt. It will drop your RPM down 200-400 compared to OEM 8jp. The 8jp might be slightly faster, but i found the ultimax to produce LESS belt dust

 

[Doc Harley]

Ranger1
X2 on what Jon said.
With prices ramping up, here is a low cost solution.
Yes I have two of them. Lol.
They make a similar mess as the 8jp but at half the cost ($76) in the states
Gates Belt https://a.co/d/109jD6D

 

[ranger1]

I find the Ultimax to be slightly softer/stickier. Majority of Winders are running this belt. It will drop your RPM down 200-400 compared to OEM 8jp. The 8jp might be slightly faster, but i found the ultimax to produce LESS belt dust

Hmmmm, interesting observation, if the Ultimax brings the rpm down that would indicate less belt slippage. I would prefer to loose a bit of top speed to gain less dust and cooler belt/clutch temps. Thanks for your feedback!

 

[ranger1]

Ranger1
X2 on what Jon said.
With prices ramping up, here is a low cost solution.
Yes I have two of them. Lol.
They make a similar mess as the 8jp but at half the cost ($76) in the states
Gates Belt https://a.co/d/109jD6D

I edited the original thread Doc, would like to see how this gates belt compares to the Ultimax and the OEM as well . Durability, coolness, clean running and price are also a factor to consider. In Canada the OEM is $185, the Ultimax is between $200-$229 and the Gates is $127. However, dont mind paying a bit more for durability as we all know blown belt could = pushed in stub shaft. So less chance belts blowing the better, hahaha

 

[biffdotorg]

The side benefit of running stock 8DN or 8JP belts on Winder/Viper/Apex is total lack of need to frequent belt threads. There is no discussion on cost or longevity, as they know they have the cheapest belt that last the longest.

They may have to deal with a bit of dust etc, but not having to debate the primary reason for one belt over the other is a great benefit. Go stock, or adjust for an 8DN. Save your money and get 10's of thousands of miles.

 

[Doc Harley]

I've got 4,000 miles on (2) 8jp belt. (Appx 2,000 on each) It's a decent belt and never caused me any trouble. The reason I threw the red line belt in, is because if you're going to go the route of 8jp you could save yourself a few bucks and run the red line. I've inquired on the red line belt here and on Facebook and the red line is a notch above the 8jp in every way.
I was shocked at the amount of guys running bigger tunes on that belt with zero issues.
The ultimax belt is kind of like a standalone belt. It does almost everything better. Lol.
I have zero skin in the game so whichever belt you gravitate towards, of the three, as long as you're offset is correct you're good to go.

 

[jonlafon1]

Not a fan of the gates belt. Just my opinion. Plenty of guys have run them with success. I feel like they are LESS forgiving and maybe not as durable. Less forgiving in that if your alignment or running a set up that's warm/hot they go bang. My secondary runs UNDER 100 degrees with ultimax. Leaving it alone.

 

[ranger1]

I've got 4,000 miles on (2) 8jp belt. (Appx 2,000 on each) It's a decent belt and never caused me any trouble. The reason I threw the red line belt in, is because if you're going to go the route of 8jp you could save yourself a few bucks and run the red line. I've inquired on the red line belt here and on Facebook and the red line is a notch above the 8jp in every way.
I was shocked at the amount of guys running bigger tunes on that belt with zero issues.
The ultimax belt is kind of like a standalone belt. It does almost everything better. Lol.
I have zero skin in the game so whichever belt you gravitate towards, of the three, as long as you're offset is correct you're good to go.

I have also run OEM on all the Yami's I have owned. The Apex's I would change the belt every 3 to 5000 miles....just because, lol

 

[1nc 2000]

Hurricane performance website has good prices on ultamax belt.
In the description their is a code to put in at checkout. Something like belts

 

[KnappAttack]

I'm not sure anyone can really say what the "best belt" is. I'm still trying them all myself. I have many 8JP's, 8DN's, Ultimax & Dayco belts. I have enough to last me the rest of my snowmobile life! My "go to" is the XS Ultimax myself for trail use as I believe it to be the strongest, but I can tune for any of them and have setups for any of the belts in on the list. I'll even swap belts for the conditions for the day along with helix and primary weight changes, if the day changes much. If it warms a bunch, I'll swap in a 8JP as the compound is better suited to remain more consistent for the heat. I've yet to run the Dayco Redline, so looking forward to trying it too. Maybe it will react different and be the one to have, who knows. We don't get snow anymore to be able to put many miles on at all.

What belt is better for longevity, may not be the best for ET or drag racing, the best one for speed is going to be different again. Maybe there's one out there for strength that refuses to blow, but it wont ET or run speed. So, to say which one is better..... Well better for what? What's the one thing your looking for? Because you can't get it all in one belt. Just not going to happen. One is always better at one thing then another. I aways ran different belts for drag racing than speed running, and there's a reason for that. Harder belts typically are the best for ET, but you need to pinch them tighter with different clutching. Some people think "sticky belts" are better for ET or performance, but thats not always the case. I've typically found hard & stiff belts best for ET, but you just have to pinch them harder, they are also more consistent with heat and temp range. For speed I like belts thinner and more flexible, but they just wont ET for crap. There going to be a tenth off at least on the timers.

Bottom line, what works best for one guy, may not be the bast for another, also the clutch recipe, or tendencies for one man, is going to be better for one belt over another. Bottom line, there is no magic belt thats going to work for everyone better all the time. Only testing for your clutch setup and conditions are you going to find what works for you, and I'm guessing no one here really test belts on the timers or radar unless your racing competitively. At least then you'd have consistent and good traction and running conditions like Ice to keeping things consistent from run to run. Running in snow and spinning isn't going to tell you squat when making changes to clutching and belt changes with the spinning variable in there.

 

[Doc Harley]

I have also run OEM on all the Yami's I have owned. The Apex's I would change the belt every 3 to 5000 miles....just because, lol

Lol, I get it. And like you, I've always enjoyed using factory parts were applicable.
If your running a 240 tune with a basic 35° helix and Dalton B/O, and everything's straight. The 8jp will survive.
The ultimax is really more like an insurance policy with very little down side.
If you're really going to use that tune to the fullest, it's best to switch up to the XS825. IMHO

 

[ranger1]

Hurricane performance website has good prices on ultamax belt.
In the description their is a code to put in at checkout. Something like belts

Awesome , thank you and will check it out!