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Going to make a serpentine belt set up for straight 8


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My engine is a 263 but the drive should be adaptable to other sizes. I have an a/c unit in my 37 Special (a necessity in Texas) and have not found any double crankshaft pulleys. The singe V belt really doesn't have enough wrap around the water pump pulley and could use more on the generator. I'm not into selling parts but if there is any interest I will take pictures. As it is now the single V belt will go through several vibration ranges and one is at 65-70 which is my cruising speed. The serpentine belt can have idlers and tensioners on either the front or back side of the belt so maybe this will solve the problem. I don't need power steering but since one can add as many accessories as needed to a single serpentine belt a p/s pump would be compatible.

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My engine is a 263 but the drive should be adaptable to other sizes. I have an a/c unit in my 37 Special (a necessity in Texas) and have not found any double crankshaft pulleys. The singe V belt really doesn't have enough wrap around the water pump pulley and could use more on the generator. I'm not into selling parts but if there is any interest I will take pictures. As it is now the single V belt will go through several vibration ranges and one is at 65-70 which is my cruising speed. The serpentine belt can have idlers and tensioners on either the front or back side of the belt so maybe this will solve the problem. I don't need power steering but since one can add as many accessories as needed to a single serpentine belt a p/s pump would be compatible.

My hero!

Ben

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Someone may have pictures of the modified '38 limited that was at Charlotte national meet. That car had a clever A/c solution. The owner added a jackshaft on the passanger side of the motor and the compressor was then mounted further back where there was plenty of room

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That would indeed be an interesting picture. I wonder if there is still good access to the distributor. My compressor is mounted on the drivers side on a home fabricated mounting plate. I made head bolts with a 3/8-24 stud on top and then heat treated. The mount fits on these and also has a brace from the underside down to a factory drilled and tapped hole in the side of the block. The mount plate holes are slotted one direction and the angle iron compressor brackets are slotted 90 degrees to these so belt alignment can be dialed in. Absolutely no problems from this set up but if you look at the one picture you can see how very little belt wrap is on the water pump pulley. Single belt has to be run very tight.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

"Hydraulic power steering" has been superceded by "electric power steering" in the street rod world and OEM applications. A little pricey, but works pretty good in the OEM realm of things. Seems like Ididit has the street rod items?

I noticed the "aluminum A6 compressor". Neat!

NTX5467

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I can picture an idler pulley mounted to the water pump bolts. A longer belt with the flat side running against the idler would cause the V side of the belt contact more of the a/c pulley and the alternator pulley. I'm betting that one of you guys can figure it out.

Ed

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Guest Bob Call

McD

How about adding a second stock pulley to the crank and water pump. It would require a spacer be fabricated to fit between the two pulleys so they will seat properly without play, and, longer mounting cap screws/bolts. Then you can have one belt that gives the additional contact to the water pump so you don't have to use too much tension on either belt. Either the alternator or compressor would have to be repositioned to run on the front belt. From your pictures probably repositioning the alternator would be the easiest.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Wow, a lot of impressive work.

 

But that lower mount for the compressor makes me nervous.  Can you bend the bar closer to the block so there is less stress on where the support screws into the side of the block?

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  • 3 years later...

I have done this to my 263.  I took a second water pump pulley and welded  it together.  Removed the center section so the modified water pump pulley now has two grooves.   I took a 3/16” steel plate and mounted it to the front two head bolts.  Welded two tabs to become the pivot point for the compressor.  Put an angle bracket to support the mounting plate.  The back (original groove) groove still handles the water pump and then the alternatar and back to the crank.   The front groove on the water pump pulley is now only running the compressor.  I have pix to give details.   My first try was using a single belt drive, but not the best with water temp issues.  Solved.

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Evan never finished the serpentine belt mount.  That I know of.

 

  I started off with my comp mounted like his. ....same problem

 

  I now have the comp mounted where the generator did mount,  Two groove pulley on comp.  Pulley grove nearest to comp [ back groove ] lined up with crank and water pump and driven with that belt.  Alternator mounted on a manufactured bracket mounted on the comp. Alternator driven from front groove of compressor. About 1500 miles and absolutely NO problem. Have not even needed to tighten belts.

 

  Ben

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Bruce,  that was a good solution.  How did get the - crank - water pump - a/c compressor belt tensioned ?  I guess the a/c pump is on a moveble mount.   But doesn’t tensioning the  c—wp —a/c  belt change the  alternator drive belt coming from the a/c pulley ?   This is still a nice solution.    I just finished my mod to drive the a/c compressor.   My solution was to get a sesond w/p pulley and weld it to the original pulley.  This creating a two groove pulley.  The back groove lines up with the crank and that system - - crank - water pump - alternator system functions normal with the alternator being the tensioning device as normal.  Now the second groove on the w/p pulley drives the a/c pulley.  The a/c unit is mounted on two bolts allowing it to tilt away from the engine.  The a/c mounts that are on the engine side are the push upward to tension the a/c drive belt.   I’ve just got it up and running in our normal Florida summer weather. I have been on a hunt for a 1935-58 Buick “Vicky”car.  I have this thing for two door cars.    I found one in southern Tenn.  and I just got it and getting one of the private car haulers to bring it home.  Busy - busy  or I would start watching the damn TV.  

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Jim, the compressor tensionior is the same as the original generator.  The alternator pivots on the mount it is mounted to on the compressor.  All pretty simple, actually. I sure stewed on it enough.  

 

  The alternator mount came from Bill Stoneburg. I had to modify it a little.  Basically a "moon crescent"  flange is bolted to two ears on the back [ right end ] of the Sanden compressor. A pipe spacer is welded to the bottom of the flange, extending to the corresponding ear at the front of the compressor. A couple of ears, 3/16x3/4 x about 3" are welded in an upright position to this spacer. These ears are placed such that the alternator pulley aligns with the front groove on the compressor pulley. Tensioner strap from alternator to a water pump bolt.

 

  After today, a total of about 1000 miler or so and belts are still tight.

 

 

  Ben  

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  • 3 weeks later...

Ben gave me a little (deserved) dig on not finishing the straight eight serperntine but of course I plead a degree of innocence. As I was staring one for ME the 235/261 Chevy guys came out of the woodwork wanting one for their I6 Stovebolts and as the engines are very similar except for cylinder count I fabbed up a few. The front of the two engines are alike so the pics of the first protos may be of some help to one contemplating giving it a shot. I'm terrible about not keeping updated with photos but the idea is well developed and they have been trouble free. 1st a bit of lathe work on both the V crank pulley and water pump pulley; all the accessories have the ribbed serp pulleys.

2nd is set up mouned

3rd is first trial---all studs  left long for final alignment shims and much heavier idler bracket used.

4th is details of alt mount

5th is details of a/c comp mount---later a plate to the factory generator mount that accepts all 4 comp bolts

I'm terrible on "how to" but do have details.

 

 

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