Twist method HELP Cam belt
 

I'm doing my belts as I type this.

Can someone tell me exactly where you twist, and do you do it with the idler pulley off? Perhaps a pic?

oye.. if you've never done this before, i wouldn't suggest it....

but I believe you twist in the center of the longest span on the belt.. with the pulley on.... but dont quote me on that.

idle pulley off. i'd also spin any rollers you've removed. if they sound like a roller skate wheel, they need replacing.

if you have to ask you probably...
never mind, get the krikit tool at a minimum.
If you already replaced the belt and used the twist method, get the krikit tool(@ $10 from napa) and double check. I've used the twist method on other cars but wouldnt use it on these cars unless you have a good feel for the correct tension already. Yeah I know some people can rebuild a motor with an adjustable wrence and a tube of silicone but they usually have alot of experience and imagine what they could do with the right tools!

Correct on the feel with experience thing. Have always used the 90 deg twist meathod with excelent results. Always do it with the completed system ie all tensioners and idlers on.

i don't know about you, but i can see no way to twist the belt with the idler on.

agreed, remove the idler and the belt guide

i am betting that it doesn't have the guard, as its an 84.

i am betting that it doesn't have the guard, as its an 84.

hopefully it does, if not maybe due for a water pump change....

I have to say, paul has magic fingers.. lol
he did mine near the end of summer '05... and I put the car away for the winter.. came back out start of spring '06, got the belts retensioned at a porsche shop - the values were almost bang on to spec... so his way works ;) hehehe

Just an update. All finished and good. Twist method with idler off is the way from a P guru I phoned to be sure.
One common fault when doing belts is overtightening the balance belt, hence the whine. The other fault is when tensioning, the tensioner can be rotated either way. From memory, cambelt is anti-clockwise and balance belt is clockwise. If the balance belt is tensioned anticlock, you can't get clearance of belt on idler, causing whine.
I also tensioned the balance belt with motor running till whine stopped, and checked and it was a neat 90 deg. And no whine at all!

Seems to me that getting the twist method right requires "calibrating" your feel with a 9201, or similar tool first, since the belt will twist within a wide range of tensions. It's all arbitrary untill you know what the right tension twists like.

Toss many944s a PM, as he loans out his 9201 for no more than shipping charges and a well treated tool.

exactly..
anybody can twist a belt 90 degrees, regardless of tension...
you have to know what the "right" 90 degrees feels like...

jezza, it cost me 60 bucks canadian to go to a shop and have them tension - for peace of mind I'd get it checked out.

Im due for a belt change . I will use my tried and true finger press method!

Yeah, same here. I found that way to be easier to get a feel for the tension than the twisting. I had a great time (jk :mad: It was a learning experience..in the freezing cold at night! :eek: ) tensioning my belts with the 9201 and got a pretty good idea of what various tensions feel like.

Yup.
Anyone that's tensioned with the 9201 probably knows how little it takes to change the tension a whole 1 point on the scale.