thresher belts

[Paul LousickParticipant @paullousick59116]

The flat transmission belts in the link may all be made of canvas but that was not the first material to be used to make them.

Flat belts were usually made of leather in the mid-19th century. They also used ropes made of cotton, hemp, flax, or even wire. Power transmission with leather belts remained a popular solution until the start of the 20th century. Today, most power transmission belts consist of elastomer covers combined with a belt body made of synthetic polymers.

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

The LSM ones are leather. Being traction engine specialists they tend to keep the correct stuff rather than something on google that may do .

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Funny enough the subject of belts came up on Traction Talk and Ian who did the series in ME about his 3" thrasher said he used leather belting cut from cheap belts (keep your trousers up type) joined with a superglued scarf joint.

[Anthony KendallParticipant @anthonykendall53479]

Posted by old mart on 21/02/2021 15:34:38:

I remember my father helping with a threshing machine being used for threshing wheat. The tractor was a Fordson major and the belt was extremely long. The threshing machine was made of wood and angle iron, and was used back in the fifties because it left the long straw for thatching.

Yes, good point about the straw – also useful for potato graves or clamps and better for stock bedding. Combine straw was/is just a mangled mess.
In my area they used the Field Marshall tractor, started with a 12 bore cartridge, which just sounded beautiful. The threshing machines were Foster and had to be levelled using a built-in spirit level. Oh well – back to the prologue.

Edited By Anthony Kendall on 25/02/2021 09:16:35

[Simon Williams 3Participant @simonwilliams3]

FWIW twisting (crossing) the flat belt coming off a traction engine or a portable engine has nothing to do with reversing the drive, and everything to do with keeping the belt on the drum.

The friction face to face of the cross-over damps much of the vibration in the belt and helps control the amount it whangs up and down with the torque impulses from the engine. The engine, of course, runs equally well in either direction.

All the best,

Simon

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