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i know it's been discussed before..... if you had a spring loaded tensioner with a very strong spring on the slack side, then going forward the slack would stay tight. when backing up the slack side is the drive side. now if your spring was too weak the chain would push the tensioner down and the top chain would go slack. but if it was a strong enough spring then the chain tensioner wouldn't deflect ? i have the room on my max 2 due to exterior chains..so i am thinking about trying this on one chain. i may need to experiment with different strength compression springs. just want to hear some comments. the point would be that the tensioner would not need manual adjusting once it was dialed in.....thanks, johnboy va.
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John i have put some thought into this idea also. I am concerned with the spring needing to be so strong to not deflect in reverse that it may put alot of extra stress on the chains and bearings. What i thought about doing is to use a heavy duty ratchet gear on the spring loaded tensioner. That way a weaker spring could be used for less stress but in reverse the ratchet gear would lock and hold the chain from pushing back. While still being automatic. Hope this makes sense sometimes i struggle turning my ideas into words -
That would have to be a serious spring. Remember, the slack side is under tension not only in reverse but also when you slam on the brakes. Here's another idea....
What if the chain followed a U-shaped channel (with a flat bottom of course), on both the slack and tension side of the chain, to keep it aligned with the sprockets? Would a tensioner even be necessary?Comment
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What about this little set up ? I got to of them off my StarCraft when I pick it up. Looks like a pretty simple set up that works ?!?!?1016161304-00.jpg
It just FLOATS in the middle to keep the slack taken up.Comment
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Looks like snap-idle tensioners. I have used them for years on various equipment. Easy to install and long life. Chain life is good as they always hold slack out.Comment
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Wounder why people are not using these more often ?
Looks like thy would be a good set up for our machines !Comment
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actually i used the snap idlers on my max 2 highboy for quite a while and they worked great... the only thing for me is they wore down much quicker than i thought they would. maybe because my # 60 chains are exposed that after 4 days in the mud at busco they wore quicker. i have plenty of clearance for my chains so i could do the same setup as a snap idler, but use 2 idler sprockets instead of the hard plastic. have'nt tried that yet. on my idlers now i use 2 sprockets as idlers spaced about 8'' apart. that way they tighten the slack side without getting the top and bottom chain too close. miller...maybe on your ratchet idea instead of a ratchet just have a '' stop '' piece so when the slack side is used as the drive side ( such as in reverse) the idler could only drop allitle distance... but going forward the spring would keep the tension. then you could use a less strong spring. i think i may try that setup first......johnboy va.Comment
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In a lubed environment they have extremely long life. the ones I had in an attex that was converted from 4 chains to jackshaft they did thump on tub when turning quick. they were in it for years and are now in an old Argo.Comment
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1029161635-00.jpgI like the way thy work and with the StarCraft being lower tub as the frame work I am thinking of using them again.
But I am also thinking of building an inner frame work to tie the front axle section to the rear main frame.
Still in the planning stages as I am Far from being ready to put it all in place. Here is how the frame is set up in the lower tub as stock.Comment
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