spyderpops beltguard ?

[irvin48]

has anyone had to adjust theirs after install due to rubbing at the
back? plastic is thin and its gonna bounce on the bumps and there isnt
much clearance. havent tried it yet . just preparing for the worst. have to
wear a helmet to keep people happy an cant hear s--t anyway. thank you
for your help and input. --irv toms

[DriftersWay]

If I remember correctly there is a cardboard spacer you use when installing.
I have not had any issues with either of my Spyders using them.

[Chupaca]

It's a one shot deal and works great if you get it right. I did have an issue with the belt tenssioner and the guard and it is a bear to get off and clean off. Then you need to get some new industrial strength double sided tape to re-install. I have not done the re-install yet cause the guard got pretty chewed up.....

[2dogs]

I bought the belt guard however I haven't installed it yet. The cardboard insert is of little use. If installed according to the directions it would contact either the tire or the belt. The guard is an excellent idea but it takes a time consuming custom install to get it right. The 90 degree bend it comes with is off just enough that it will not accommodate my bike. The instructions say not to use heat to bend the guard. I'm going to have to somehow bend the guard to get the correct fit and simple hand pressure bending it is not going to make it fit. I also have a concern about the longevity of the double sided contact tape staying secure on the swing arm. There are so many small adjustments from belt tension and alignment to shock adjustment and so on, that there is little allowance error. If and when I work up the patience to install the guard I'll post the results.

[irvin48]

seeing i have a body shop the tape part is no problem or is adhesion promoter.
if you need a little heat, a hair dryer to a small area wont hurt. plastic does have a memory
so it always wants to go back to before . if it is heated, cool it quickly with a rag
dunked in cool water. i also had to trim a little around the bracket holes to fit
better.--irv

[Explorer]

Do the best you can. If it rubs the tire a little, it will not hurt anything.
Roger

[2dogs]

seeing i have a body shop the tape part is no problem or is adhesion promoter.
if you need a little heat, a hair dryer to a small area wont hurt. plastic does have a memory
so it always wants to go back to before . if it is heated, cool it quickly with a rag
dunked in cool water. i also had to trim a little around the bracket holes to fit
better.--irv

I plan to some how figure the exact angle I need to achieve for the best results and build a wooden frame (mold) to match that angle. Then heat the guard and clamp it to the wooden mold to cool. The hair dryer and damp rag are excellent suggestions. I forgot to mention that I too had to trim off some of the plastic on the guard because the welds on the swing arm wouldn't allow an even contact between the guard the swing arm. All in all I believe the guard is well worth the price and effort to install it compared to a $480+ belt replacement. I've been down that road once already.

[Elembytes]

I have had two of these rock guards and both have been a blessing and like them. The post earlier about a cardboard spacer is right on, but it also says somewhere that if it does rub and you smell plastic, it won't last long and it will be fine.

I had never smelled plastic on either of the two I have had and like I said it is worth having. Go for it and good luck!

[Culpjp]

I had no problems installing mine, and making sure it doesn't rub. Just take your time. The cardboard does really help keep a gap.

[slick999]

has anyone had to adjust theirs after install due to rubbing at the
back? plastic is thin and its gonna bounce on the bumps and there isnt
much clearance. havent tried it yet . just preparing for the worst. have to
wear a helmet to keep people happy an cant hear s--t anyway. thank you
for your help and input. --irv toms

Installed it correctly but after sitting for the winter the plastic went againest the tire,after bending back in line it kept going againest the tire.For some reason the cold then the heat made it it move.I finally removed and thru it away.I will take my chances without it.I never ride on gravel roads anyway.

[irvin48]

didnt get any spacer w/mine. took it off. take my chances. maybe have a friend bend some
aluminum.

[Lin]

I trimmed mine ever so slightly after I misaligned the installation. A pair of side cutters worked fine as I recall.

[Lew L]

My belt guard was one of the first farkles on the RT-S. And its been grarding my expensive belt ever since without a hitch.

Kaos

[Cruzr Joe]

didnt get any spacer w/mine. took it off. take my chances. maybe have a friend bend some
aluminum.

I sure would not want any aluminum rubbing on my tire.

Cruzr Joe

[WARWAGON]

Bought one for my 2012 RT never installed. Will it work on a 2015 RT?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Brian Kay]

Bought one for my 2012 RT never installed. Will it work on a 2015 RT?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I would think so... That swing arm most likely stayed the same, but do a dry install and see if it fits. I too have purchased one a couple years back and have not installed it. Maybe the spirit will move me.

[bmwlarry]

If you do not have one --- get one! Two weeks ago I was on a trip to Idaho with one other spyder. WE were forced onto (No other choice) a road they were putting down new chip seal. While following the pilot car at less than 15 mph, I have at least 5 stones kick up in my belt. Four resulted on holes in the belt. The other spyder had none. Once home we both ordered belt guards. While installing his we found the PO had already installed one on his. That is why he had no damage and I have a $500 dealer visit coming on the 20th!

[CapeSpyder]

How is the belt guard with the smoothspyder or the baker built stabilizer?

[beefybudds]

How is the belt guard with the smoothspyder or the baker built stabilizer?

I have belt guard with smoothspyder with no problems.
Smoothspyder is a must have in my opinion.

[Frankf]

Got a spyderspops gravel guard but cant figure out how to get to the nut on the belt guard screw to hold it so I can remove the screws and belt guard.

Right now, the screw just spins and does not loosen because the nut turns too. I got the front one off by getting a vice grip on the nut, but the back screw nut is not accessible.

Any one have any hints??

[Lin]

Got a spyderspops gravel guard but cant figure out how to get to the nut on the belt guard screw to hold it so I can remove the screws and belt guard.

Right now, the screw just spins and does not loosen because the nut turns too. I got the front one off by getting a vice grip on the nut, but the back screw nut is not accessible.

Any one have any hints??

The instructions that came with my SPY149- belt guard for 2014 models, mentions using a 10mm deep socket on a ratchet to hold the nuts. "It's easy to feel the nuts and hold the socket in place while removing the screws".

I hope this helps.

[Frankf]

The instructions that came with my SPY149- belt guard for 2014 models, mentions using a 10mm deep socket on a ratchet to hold the nuts. "It's easy to feel the nuts and hold the socket in place while removing the screws".

I hope this helps.

Yeah, I read that, but I can't get to the back of one of the screws cause the drive belt pully is in the way.

Hmmm, might try lifting the bike and see if that works.....

[johnsimion]

If installed according to the directions it would contact either the tire or the belt. The guard is an excellent idea but it takes a time consuming custom install to get it right. The 90 degree bend it comes with is off just enough that it will not accommodate my bike.

This is exactly what happened to me. I managed to worry myself sick about getting a rock on my drive belt and hence ordered the guard. I regretted the experience. Theoretically it is a good idea but my experience was not good. You have to install the thing so that the bottom is centered between the tire and the belt. You have no more than 1/4" or 3/8" of an inch in which you have to center the guard. In 20-20 hindsight, this may not be that difficult if you have the Spyder on a lift where you can get directly under it and therefore ensure that it's perfectly centered. The instructions don't say that's necessary and I tried to do the job using a ramp to get the rear end of the Spyder up in the air. The installation seemed to go okay. I had dry-fit my guard perfectly but when I installed it, it was off just enough that the guard managed to touch the belt.

Regardless, once I had it installed, that was it. You're not supposed to heat the plastic to bend it but that's a moot point because once it's on, good luck trying to get a heat source up inside those close quarters. Without heat, I was unable to bend the plastic at all; you have little ability to even move it once it's installed (remember, it fits into a 1/4" to 3/8" opening) and it simply springs right back. Next, I tried cutting part of it away at the bottom with my Dremel but was unable to cut enough of it that it wasn't still touching the belt. I considered ignoring the issue and opted to ride around the block a couple of times as an experiment. When I stopped, I found fresh rubber dust on the guard. The only possible source of the dust was the belt. At that point I had spent several hours trying to make this thing work and it just wouldn't. The guard had to come out and in the process it was ruined for reinstallation (it wouldn't really have mattered because it was already ruined by me cutting it back with the Dremel).

My problem was rubbing against the belt. They say it's okay if it's rubbing against the tire. I don't agree. It may be fine for a long time but if it's rubbing, something is going to wear away. Hmmm, which will wear faster, the rubber tire or the hard plastic guard? I say it's going to be the tire that suffers. Eventually the guard would damage the tire and the day it wears through, that tire is going to blow.

After this experience, I debated whether to order another guard and try again. I wasn't sure I could ever get the thing centered and so I was already hesitant. I then wondered whether there was any real need for the guard anyway. You can find a few examples of rock damage here on this forum, but out of this forum, how many have actually had this problem? Seems like not really that many. Then I reasoned that there are a hundred times more Harley-Davidsons than Spyders, and they all have drive belts like we do. If rocks are a problem getting into Spyder belts, you would a hundred times more reports of Harley riders with rocks in the belt and perhaps some kind of guard like the Spyderpops guard to fit Harleys. According to my Google search, I found almost no reports of rock damage to Harley belts and nobody is making an aftermarket Harley rock guard. Either Harleys are much better designed than our Spyders or the extent of the problem is greatly exaggerated. I opted not to put the guard back on and just stay off gravel. I wished I had done my research before spending several hours on this fruitless project.

Note, I do not say the guard is a bad product. Certainly it couldn't hurt if you can get it installed perfectly. As I said, this may be possible if the Spyder is up in the air and you can access the installation from below where you can better see to center it. Otherwise I would never recommend trying to install this thing.

[RidinOn3]

I just installed one a few days ago sitting on the floor. Granted, the guard nuts were a bit difficult to get to but after finding the right combination of socket and extension, I got them off. Was glad to have the speed nuts for the install. Other than a slight amount of trimming to fit flat around one of the brackets, the install and alignment went as described. There is not much room for error but due to the type of material, the belt guard should accept any wear that might occur due to rubbing and not damage the belt.

[asp125]

We have one on ours. It rubs against the tire a bit. The only reason I know this is when we wore out the tread on the tire (crappy Kendas) I saw a slight shiny scuff around the sidewall. So if you can wear out the tread, you don't have to worry about the sidewalls being cut through. Those of you running harder car tires needn't worry.

It's a decent product, but it doesn't enclose the belt, so you aren't guaranteed you will not get rocks. We had a rock puncture on our belt WITH the guard in place. Luck of the draw.