Larry Mass Posted May 9, 2020 Author Share Posted May 9, 2020 I started to put belting on my track as well and man are me knees sore not sure if it's because i am drilling and bolting or if it is because i am praying so much that the holes all line up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Mass Posted May 11, 2020 Author Share Posted May 11, 2020 Hi Dan I was wandering if you had time to measure those m29 belts to see if they could be adapted to fit the t15 Larry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M29 Posted May 11, 2020 Share Posted May 11, 2020 (edited) Hi Larry The spacing's where they bolt to the pads are 1" off 1/2 " each side. That does not mean it can't be done but will take more effort. Guides would be affected as well. I looked at your belt installation. A couple suggestions I would make is you try to keep your track as straight as possible when bolting on the belt. I used fender washers once on a weasel track to bolt on the belting. The problem I had was they were so thin they would cup when tightening them and then later after use come loose. Not sure from the pictures if those are fender washers. A good gardening pad (looks like you have one) or knee pads will go along way to helping your knees. Figure many hours drilling way slower than plasma piercing. Those plates are super hard and are very hard to drill. The way I did mine was as follows I pierced all the track plates first using a 3/16 plate X 3ft long hole jig. I would place the plasma tip into the hole a hit the switch and the hole would just about be perfect a couple more quick piercings and a 1/4" bolt fit almost perfect. After all holes were in plates I built a wood fixture the length of the track with cross members notched for the center guides. This kept the track straight.. I flipped the track over so the tack pad cleats were up ,you can see this in my previous post. I then cut 3/8" thick Mdf the same width of the belt 3" and inserted it under the pads just as if it were the belting. Keeping it tight against the inner bands rivet mounts. I then used a 1/4" forstner bit to drill the holes in the mdf strips. This was done by drilling down through the plasma holes in the pads The mdf strips were 8 ft long and were inserted the full length of the track just like the belt would be. When these holes were drilled they were an exact copy of the holes in the pads. Now these holes are 1/4" and a belt punch is like 25/64ths so I drilled the holes larger so the belt hole drill would fit snug in the hole . Then I removed the track from the wood mount and rolled out my 3" wide belt. on the wood mount I then placed the wood strips on top of the belt keeping the inner edge of the mdf template and the belt flush ,this will be the side that goes against the inner band rivets. I then used a brad nailer to nail both together so there would be no movement of the two parts Important!! Make sure you don''t wind up with your belt joint in the same place you band is cut. I spaced my joints about 4 pads away from the band cut. You need to leave your belt long beyond the end of your track or you will have both joints match which you don't want. In my previous posts I have pictures of the system I used. Dan Edited May 11, 2020 by M29 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Mass Posted May 13, 2020 Author Share Posted May 13, 2020 Thanks Dan for the help and info. Yes i did use my plasma to blow holes in the pads i used a 4ft x 3/8 flat bar 3in wide for my jig on the pads which i also used on the belting but i put an insert into the holes of the jig to drill 1/4 in holes in the belting the holes lined up good except for a couple that needed a little tweaking but all in all it went well. I did use fender washers but put a smaller washer on the top to lessen the cupping. Again Dan thank you i wander where Tom got his bogies done. Last week i picked up some 1/4in rubber strips to glue onto the drive and return rollers and had a good conversation with the sales man there. I think i will make a mold to cast new rubber onto the idler wheels. Larry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom @ Snake River 4x4 Posted June 8, 2020 Share Posted June 8, 2020 I brought both of mine out of the barn and into the shop. The company that has the molds for the boogie wheels is Kryptane 740 S. Pierce Ave Suite 5 Louisville, CO 80027 contact Stephen Ulm 303-664-9467 Not sure what the price would be now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patrick Tipton Posted June 8, 2020 Share Posted June 8, 2020 I am excited about my T-24 but seeing all these T-15's is very cool! Enjoying the progress! Patrick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Mass Posted June 8, 2020 Author Share Posted June 8, 2020 Hey Tom how did you get at those bottom bolts of the radiator? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Mass Posted June 10, 2020 Author Share Posted June 10, 2020 Hey Tom do you know what they used to redo the bogies ? Was it polyurethane rubber or something else? Larry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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