Belt suppliers - BT3K

[Lonnie in Orlando]

What suppliers do you recommend for belts for my BT3K?

I want to buy a couple of belts before supply dries up. If I can save a few buck, that would be a plus.

Don't want to buy belts that were manufactured years ago and may have become brittle with age. 'Course the original belts on my BT3000 are almost 20 years old and are still going strong. So I don't know if I should be worried about brittle replacement belts.

Thanks for your recommendations.

- Lonnie

[cwsmith]

Lonnie,

I've only tried at three different places.

Sears Parts Direct (http://www.searspartsdirect.com/part...mp=xsite_Sears ) had the best price at the time, but thier website yanked me around for over a month, telling me they had them in stock, when in fact they didn't. As I understand it now, from that episode, they really don't know, really maintain no stock at all, and when you place your order, they place the order to the manufacturer. And once you discover that, and there is an untimely delay, you can't cancel the order because they've ordered it and you're "on the hook".

Ryobi Parts (http://www.ryobitools.com/support/order_parts) At the time of my need, they were the highest price, so I didn't give them a chance.

M and D Mower. ( http://www.m-and-d.com/ ) Second best price at the time, but definitely the best delivery. I got my belts in just over a week.

I'm sure the other members have had better experience and may also have different leads.


BTW, My belts were marked "BANDO 106H NJ". I haven't had any luck finding that direct source/manufacturer, but perhaps you may have better luck.

I hope this helps,

CWS

[jdon]

One additional source: ereplacementparts.com

In my experience, prices tend to be a little more expensive on average than with M&D, but shipping is less- so net cost from either depends on ordering multiple items in one order. I always seem to have at least one back ordered item from either vendor, so can't comment on speed of shipping, but IIRC, M&D might be a bit faster.

[LCHIEN]

Lonnie,
...

BTW, My belts were marked "BANDO 106H NJ". I haven't had any luck finding that direct source/manufacturer, but perhaps you may have better luck.

I hope this helps,

CWS

FWIW, it appears from my research that Bando is the OEM manufacturer of the belts of standard material and ribbing, but they were custom made to Ryobi's specs for length and width.

So you can't just order them off the shelf. THey are probably made in large lots with a tooling (setup) charge and minimum quantities in effect.

[lrr]

Lonnie,

Wow -- 20 year old belts! You know that if you order some, you"ll never use them ...

In August we celebrated 30 years in our home. I put one of those red-colored infrared heatlamp bulbs in our master bath light/vent fixture, and it is still going strong. The extra bulb got used elsewhere about 20 years ago.

[cwsmith]

Thanks Loring,

That explains why they are soooo expensive, and not readily available from other sources.

It also verifies why in my early training in design, the instructor used to say, "Do your potential buyer's a favor, use as many standard parts as possible!"


CWS

[LCHIEN]

Thanks Loring,

That explains why they are soooo expensive, and not readily available from other sources.

It also verifies why in my early training in design, the instructor used to say, "Do your potential buyer's a favor, use as many standard parts as possible!"


CWS

"do your employer a favor and make the consumable items a custom part that can only be purchased through the OEM and his distributors."

[niswanger]

Okay veteran BT3Kérs, so there really aren't any 3rd party producers of these belts for the BT3000? That’s it? When supply all dries up the legacy dies?

Thanks,
Roy

[Bill in Buena Park]

If belts can last 15-20+ years with good care (i.e., sharp blades, no overloading, etc)...

Is there a shelf life on un-mounted belts? I bought my 21829 in 2007, so only seven years of "hobby" use on it. I hope to get another 10-12 years on current belts, and I have a set of spare belts.

Assuming the spares don't deteriorate in the mean time, and the current ones last until 2025ish... barring any other motor issue or parts obsolesence, I can hopefully run the saw until almost 2045 (probably my son by that point, as I likely be beyond my woodworking years...)

[kramer katt]

Bt belts

Yea but before then we all will have our 3d printers and can whip out a set of belts any time needed.

[LCHIEN]

Yea but before then we all will have our 3d printers and can whip out a set of belts any time needed.

If we can do that we don't need the saw or belts anymore, We'll just print the final wood object in 3D. At that point they can print in wood fibers with random grain patterns using special heads and fibrous stock embedded in epoxy filler.

[tfischer]

This whole thing is a catch-22. If everyone buys belts "just in case" then the remaining stock will be depleted at a rapid pace, causing prices to go even higher and making it hard in the future for someone to buy a belt who really needs one.

But, we have to "look out for #1" too...

I'd rather not spend $60+ for a "just in case". But I don't want to be in a situation 5 years from now where I have to abandon my saw because I didn't.

Decisions...

[capncarl]

If you bought a spare set of belts what is the storage procedure? My first guess would be to store them in a zip lock bag with the contents description written on the outside. Ther may be a rubber preservative like we use to spray/rub on tires, belts and hoses to keep them from drying out. I bet google would know!

[Burg53]

FWIW - I just bought two belts from Lawncutters Equiptment Sales in Hopkinsville, Ky for $49.98 with shipping. I found them on E-bay and it seemed to be the best price at the time on E-bay. They had a few left as of a few days ago.

Les

[dirtmover]

Maybe I'm missing something but what's wrong with these from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Ryobi-424010003-Table-Saw-V-Belt/dp/B009YERWHW/ref=pd_sim_sbs_hi_4?ie=UTF8&refRID=12190YCNYS6FAYH2ZAY8