Serp vs. V belt?

[TrenchFoot]

Over the years I've read of a lot of folks swapping serp belt setups onto their 6.2s but I don't remember reading a compelling reason to do it. Spending ~$300 in parts seems like a lot if its just to increase the longevity of the belt. My 6.2 came out of a '93 P30 and has V belts and I actually prefer this as it should make it easier (or at least possible) to run both AC and an extra York compressor for OBA.

I'm pretty much committed to the V belt setup since I've plunked down the cash on a standard rotation, high flow water pump from Peninsular. But I've been wondering what I'll be missing out on by not going serpentine.

Also, my donor had an all steel pulley, not a rubber dampened one. I understand that the rubber dampened one can extend the life of your belts and accessories. Is it worth the time and money to hunt one down?

[More Power]

I think you've made the right decision to stay with what you have, given your upgrades and the economics of it.

I drove a V-belt 6.2L for about 9 years. Aside from relatively short belt life (about 30K/belt), you need to run the belts pretty tight to prevent slippage, which degrades the belt. Running a tight belt can shorten the life of the belt-driven accessories because of the load on the bearings within each of the accessories. I always carried a spare belt with me back then. I don't with a serpentine equipped truck.

A serpentine system makes available a wide array of accessories that were developed for the 6.5, like larger-more efficient fans, better fan-clutches, higher-cap water pumps and so on. You can also use a more efficient A/C compressor designed for R134 and higher cap alternators.

[Yukon6.2]

Hi Trenchfoot
Find some Goodyear belts.
I found that they outlasted any others i have tried.When i joined here i had just got my signature truck on the road.I still have the same set of belts on it now,and have only adjusted once after i had to redo one head.I don't drive it everyday but it gets cold up here and it do'es get used in the cold.and thats hard on belts.
Thomas

[TrenchFoot]

Thanks for the help guys. Do you think a rubber dampened V belt pulley is worth hunting down?
Trapper

[Dvldog8793]

Anything that can dampen/eliminate harmonics is a good thing...BUT...the rubber WILL deteriorate over time. Be wary of old used ones.
DITTO on the goodyear belts. That's all I've used on both my M1009 and van. for me...they have double the life of anything else out there. I still carry spares...:D

[john8662]

from what I understand the dampened pulley is no longer available, so the stamped steel one is the way to go and they don't really wear out unless you allow belts to slip over time and wear the grooves badly.

J

[dixiepc]

Trenchfoot,

I have a really nice rubber damped pulley that I'm not going to use as I have converted to serpentine. I would take $100 plus shipping for it.

2538

[john8662]

What's that little single-belt pulley you got there?

Bolt to the Harmonic Balancer? I need a single belt pulley like that.

[TrenchFoot]

I'm interested but need to understand how it'd work.


It replaces the standard balancer? I thought a dampened pulley was just a rubber isolated pulley that bolted onto the balancer.
The v-grooves are in line with where they'd be with a typical 2 or 3 groove pulley that bolted onto the standard balancer?
It's new and made by someone that knew what they were doing? I've heard that Dorman balancers were junk and that Pioneer or OEM were worth the money.

[dixiepc]

It does not replace the balancer, it bolts to it just like a plain steel pulley does. It is a used factory GM pulley off of a low mileage 1989 one ton. It has two grooves and the small single pulley goes on top and uses the same bolts. The small pulley was for an aftermarket A/C that had been added to the one ton.

[TrenchFoot]

It does not replace the balancer, it bolts to it just like a plain steel pulley does. It is a used factory GM pulley off of a low mileage 1989 one ton. It has two grooves and the small single pulley goes on top and uses the same bolts. The small pulley was for an aftermarket A/C that had been added to the one ton.

Thanks for clarifying and putting up a good pic. I'll pass on this one. I'm sure it's a good idea, but $100 will buy a lotta belts and I need to narrow in on my remaining necessities instead of paying for niceties.

-Trapper

[dixiepc]

That's cool. I'm not needing to get rid of it, just thought I would pass it on to someone who could use it.