blower belt blues

newbie question....i have a 526 kb hemi and no idea what's what.8mm 1520 belt/56 bot/43 top pulley.i have a basic idler plate with a slot in it.what is the best way to tighten the idler.i don't like the idea of levering against it with a big pry bar..also looking from the side the idler is not perfectly in line with the belt so the rear of the belt is tight but the front is loose.do i need to shim the plate somehow to get it perfect?the plate flexes slightly when i push on the belt.all seems a bit odd to me??? thanks for any advise

 

blower belt

have you turned the motor over with the belt on?the idler should line up the belt. then see where the belt is riding on the pulleys. if it's out to the ft.of the pulleys or the rear. shim the idler to center the belt on the pulleys.the belt when tightened should have about three quarters to one inch play in it.
hope this helps gary

 

how do i get it that tight tho.its not the where the belt is on the pulleys i'm worried about.where it contacts the idler wheel the rear is tight and the front is loose.looks like the idler wheel is pointing down too much..looking from the side the belt has no gap at the bottom against the front edge of the idler but at the top there is 1/8 " gap....

 

belt adjustment

Dont eyeball things. You need to use the proper tools to make sure things are lined up properly. If you don't like the idea of useing a pry bar to get the belt tightened up than there is one other thing you can do. Use your 1/2" ratchet and roll the motor counter clock wise just enough to get the long side of the belt tight. Then have a crew push the idler pulley back and torque to spec. I beleve that is 85 lbs. after the engine is warmed up and ready to run recheck the tension of the belt like gary stated 3/4 to 1" play on the long side of the belt. P.S. If you dont mind driving about an hr I could show you.
Let me know.