Cam-Belt changing folklore

[rustybin]

I recall reading somewhere that one way of changing cambelts with reduced drama would be to cut the belt laterally down the middle, remove one half and push a new belt half way on aligned with the old. You then cut off the remaining half of the old belt and push the new belt fully on, thus avoiding the need to lock cams etc.

It all sounds a bit Heath Robinson to me but I'm finding it hard to think of a 'technical reason' why its such a bad idea.

I am sure you will all embarass me now by thinking of dozens.



(retreats having lit blue touch paper)

[rustybin]

I can only really see three advantages.

1) If you cant find another way to lock the cams

2) An absence of technical info on marks etc to allow accurate setting.

3) having the new belt adjacent to the old means you can be certain you're not one tooth out or such like.

Having only changed timing chains in the past I haven't really had to get involved with belts. The only one I have come across having been used for a scavenge pump on a dry sump application and I would have thought cutting lengthways down that (which was pretty small by comparisson), reasonably accuratley would have been a b$%&ard of a job. Particularly as without the cams locked the last thing you want is to inadvertently go through the whole belt by mistake.