Hi all. I used my Vandercook 4 successfully for about a month, then began hearing a clanking sound behind the belt guard, which turned out to be the upper pulley rubbing against the guard. When the motor is on, the belt gradually moves toward the operator side of the pulley, then starts to move off the pulley. This action moves the pulley off its pin.
My question: is there a screw or a pin that attaches the upper pulley to the pin it sits on? There was nothing loose inside the guard when I took it off, but the mechanism looks as though it needs an attachment, though I see nothing listed in my manual.
Thanks! >> Sara S. in Iowa
Thanks, Eric. After reading your note I saw this problem from a new direction. I was stuck looking at the front and center of the pulley and there was indeed a loose set screw on the shaft — once I looked from the top down. Only took three seconds to fix once I stopped banging my head against the wall!
Sara S.
I can’t check a No. 4 right now, but I would expect there to be a setscrew on the pulley. Originally it might have been a square-headed screw, but today you’d more likely see an Allen-headed screw. It might have loosened, and you just need a Allen (hex) key to tighten it.
Since it is sliding outward rather than slipping, there is probably a key between the shaft and pulley. With a square key, the setscrew would tighten against the key rather than the shaft. Make sure the key hasn’t worked out beyond the end of the shaft before tightening.
Vandercook also used the half-moon Woodruff key, but I don’t think it would be used here. If it was, there will be a keyway in the pulley, but nothing visible on the shaft until the pulley is removed. Then the woodruff key will be seen inserted in a concave slot in the shaft. In this case the setscrew would then bite directly on the shaft, so only tighten it enough to hold, but not so much as to chew up the shaft. (This style of key is generally used with Vandrcook roller gears; if the gear spins, check for a missing Woodruff key.)