# X2 belt conversion question



## Bill S (May 3, 2009)

Had a senior moment yesterday and forgot to raise the mill head for flycutting a new piece. You all know the rest, broke the plastic drive gear. So, I popped for a belt drive conversion. My question is since the belts eliminate the need for the high and low gears, can I remove them or disengage them? I have tinnitus (one of the reasons I opted for the belt drive instead of a new gear) so any noise I can eliminate would be beneficial. My thinking is even though the gears wont be driving anything they will still mesh and make some noise. 

Bill


----------



## ksouers (May 3, 2009)

Bill,
The high-low gears can be removed. They will no longer be used.

However, to remove them you will have to remove the dovetail from the back of the powerhead and you will have to be very careful to get the dovetail back into alignment with the spindle.

See this thread on a problem I had with the dovetail. I didn't do the belt conversion. My X2 either came like this from the factory or it shifted out of alignment over time.

http://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/index.php?topic=2786.0

I still haven't completely fixed the issue, but by fiddling around and pure accident I got it close enough that it's usable.

Kevin


----------



## Tin Falcon (May 3, 2009)

I took the lazy route and left the gears in . No noise.
Tin


----------



## Bill S (May 3, 2009)

I experimented with the high/low lever and found a spot in the middle where the gears don't mesh. I think I will glue it in that position and see how it goes. Thanks for the replies!

Bill


----------



## rake60 (May 3, 2009)

When I crashed my X2 I did it very well! :-[

Turning the spindle slowly by hand, it sounded like a brick the a meat grinder.
By necessity, I removed all of the unnecessary plastic gearing.
No regrets here for doing that...

Rick


----------



## ariz (May 4, 2009)

I think to be the only man in the world that (instead of mounting the belt conversion after having crashed the plastic gears) replaced them with metal gears

I brought the broken gears to a local gears maker and in a couple of days he made the new gears for my X2

but when I asked the price I got an heart attack: it was about half the price of the X2, about $ 300 if I remember well :'(

however they worked very well from there, 3 years ago


----------



## tel (May 4, 2009)

I thought of going that way after my second set of gears, but then came across the plans for the belt drive - a few bits and pieces of aluminium and bronze out of the 'scrap' box and about $30 worth of belts was a much better proposition


----------



## C.BRAXMAIER (May 23, 2009)

There also is a company called www.harrisson.biz/ They have a great X2 belt conversion kit, also a X2 motor cooling kit, and now they have brass gibbs for the X2, any questions i have all three of them.


----------



## tmuir (May 23, 2009)

C.BRAXMAIER  said:
			
		

> There also is a company called www.harrisson.biz/ They have a great X2 belt conversion kit, also a X2 motor cooling kit, and now they have brass gibbs for the X2, any questions i have all three of them.



Did the gibbs kit make much of a difference?


----------



## C.BRAXMAIER (May 24, 2009)

Not that i could tell, I am just starting out.


----------



## websterz (May 25, 2009)

tmuir  said:
			
		

> Did the gibbs kit make much of a difference?



You can make your own gibs a lot cheaper.

http://www.fignoggle.com/plans/figNoggle_gibStripViseBlock.pdf


----------

