68 LEATHER BELTING 



increase the belting cost. Regular inspection of the belts 

 will detect failures in the splices and enable them to be 

 repaired before they have gone far enough to do serious 

 damage. 



The too liberal use of belt dressings whose object is to 

 prevent the belt from slipping will shorten the life of the belt, 

 as will the failure to clean and grease it at regular intervals. 

 A belt allowed to become dry, hard and stiff will soon begin 

 to crack and break. The application of rosin will ruin a 

 belt more quickly than almost any other sort of abuse. 

 Lubricating oil is injurious to belting and should be guarded 

 against. Where a belt has been allowed to come in contact 

 with oil, it should be cleaned at the earliest opportunity. 

 Moisture, steam and water are harmful to leather belts, 

 and for service in damp locations the use of rubber belts is 

 recommended. Excessive temperatures also will damage 

 belts and the usual belt will soon deteriorate if subjected 

 to more than 130 degrees Fahr. " Duxbak " belting, how- 

 ever, is advertised to withstand any amount of moisture 

 and temperatures up to 200 degrees. 



Finally, it will pay to use only the best grade of belting, 

 and to use belts of ample size and weight. Oak-tanned and 

 fulled leather belts will as a rule give the best service, and 

 should be used double on pulleys of 6 in. diameter and over. 

 Belts of good quality, regularly inspected, well cared for, 

 and run under the tensions recommended in the foregoing 

 pages should last from ten to fifteen years. Belts which 

 are neglected or abused will not last over two or three years 

 and may give out in even less time. 



Effect of Humidity on Leather Belts. Prof. W. W. Bird, 

 of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute, and F. W. Roy, 

 reported to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers l 

 the results of tests made upon a 4-in. leather belt to deter- 

 mine the effect of humidity on the tension of the belts. In 



1 Transactions, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, 1915. 



