Belt drive system???

[CBing]

I have heard Juki is direct drive. Are all other machine belt drive? How often are belts needing to be changed.

One dealer told me if I bought a Gammill it's  $2,000 to get a new belt put on it. That's outrageous!

So tell me , Dear Quilters, what brand, how often, and how much does it cost? I am thinking this guy is full of it! Or maybe I am naive as to what the upkeep costs of longarms really are.

Thanks Ya'll

CM

[RunningThreads]

I've never heard of anyone changing the timing belt on a APQS machine.  My Ulitimate 1 is 20 years old and the Millie is about 11 and both are still on the original belts.  I've been inside my machines and I can't see changing the belt taking more than an hour.  The belt is not listed on the APQS site so it is definitely not a common replacement.  Maybe the belt is part of the 30 year maintenance service.

 

Nigel

[Cagey]

CM:

If you visit the APQS online store, the least expensive belt is $12 and the most expensive one is $20; http://shop.apqs.com/Motor-Belt--EZQ_p_223.html

I would hazard to guess you would have to retime the machine after a belt change, which you can do yourself.  So with shipping, I would say you would be under $40 for a belt change.  

On the APQS store site, if you sort the products by price, the most expensive item listed is a new drive motor at $300.  Thus, I have to guess your Gammill dealer is rather proud of his product and really marks his service and his prices up. My suggestion, go APQS, and never look back.  Why would you purchase from a dealer that seems to have shared bad information and costs with you?

Cagey

 

 

[jimerickson]

Looks like  a lot of misinformation.  First of all, Gammills have gear drive timing, not belt.  I think the A-1 is also gear driven.  Now both have belts for their motor drive.  The APQS and Noltings have belt drive timing.  Belt drive is less expensive to manufacture, and that is probably why most manufacturers use that system.  While belt drive timing is less durable than gear drive, it is still very durable.  An example is that of the Singer Featherweights.  The black and tan models were gear drive timing, while the "white" model was belt drive timing.  I don't know of anyone having to replace the timing belt on a white Featherweight, and they are all at least 50 years old.  BTW, belt drive is quieter running than gear drive.  Jim

[RunningThreads]

Thx Jim

I was pretty sure you would comment on the Gammill.

Nigel

[CBing]

Thanks.

Jim, are you saying APQS  and Nolting are quieter than Gammill and A-1?

[CBing]

The direct drive was for the motor, as told by this dealer, who will not get any business from me. I had never heard of a belt for timing. I wish I could see cut aways  for all the long arm manufacturers. I am a visual person.

[RunningThreads]

There are two shafts in our machines that must stay in sync with each other.  The upper one drives the needle and hopping foot and the lower drives the hook.  As Jim said there are a few ways to accomplish this but using a toothed belt is probably the least expensive and also very reliable. 

Here is a couple of pictures from under the rear cover on our Millie.  The first one you can see the end of the motor with a belt to the upper shaft. and also see the end of the lower shaft.  The second picture shows the gear on the lower shaft and the belt that disappears inside going to the upper shaft.  Hope this helps you visualize it.

 

Nigel

 

 

 

[jimerickson]

Cbing:  Theoretically the belt timed machines would be quieter than the gear driven ones, but operating noise involves a lot more than just the timing gear/belt noise, so I certainly wouldn't make that claim.  The comparative timing drive noises are quite small in relation to overall operating noise.  You'd need to actually test each machine with sound monitors in order to draw any conclusions.  Jim

 BTW, I'm not aware of any long arm whose machine motor drive is anything other than belt.  There might be some out there, but I'm not aware of them.