25% UNDERDRIVE BALANCER PULLEY KIT - Best Kit?

[FrangaFry]

Howdy folks, sorry if this has been posted before.

I am interested in getting my hands on a decent 25% Underdrive balancer pulley kit as there is some noise coming from the front of mine and I have already partially thrown a belt since getting the usual CAI tune thing done.

I would love to know poeples thoughts on the best brand/manufacturer and the expected purchase price (and install cost - ball park is fine). There are a huge number of these on e-bay etc so I wouldn't mind knowing how to compare apples with apples.

Also, any of your experiences with these kits would be greatly apprecaited (from what I can gather, this a very worth while mod, especially given the age of my motor and the km's done - 140k).

Lastly, when doing this change, do I need to consider anything else (water pump/gaskets, power steering pump/gaskets etc).

Any feedback (as always) would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

[JET-33]

do I need to consider anything else (water pump/gaskets, power steering pump/gaskets etc)

not that im aware of but im interested to see the feedback you get. i also want to get one of these done but ill probably hold off until i get a cam done down the track ( fingers crossed :yup: )

[255-LS1]

get the powerbond race kit with balancer, belts and idlers.

http://www.taipanmotorsport.com.au/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=5&category_id=7&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=60

also an ARP balancer bolt and washer.

you will need new coolant and the rad has to come out.

also a puller

best to do at cam change as it is no extra labour really to fit it. 25% udp on its own is a bit of labour for not that a greater gain.

[FrangaFry]

Howdy Jet, now that is a good point, does the installation of this kit have any bearing on a Cam/Head upgrade, as this is a mod that I am also considering. I assume it would make sense to do both at the same time, but do you need a different 'type' of kit depending on the cam package (I am thinking not, but hey I am a nube and nothing would surprise me)

[JET-33]

Howdy Jet, now that is a good point, does the installation of this kit have any bearing on a Cam/Head upgrade, as this is a mod that I am also considering. I assume it would make sense to do both at the same time, but do you need a different 'type' of kit depending on the cam package (I am thinking not, but hey I am a nube and nothing would surprise me)

im pretty sure its the same kit frangafry

[feistl]

I also used the kit from taipan motorsport. Im pretty sure i managed to do mine without removing the radiator, but i cant be sure.

As for a "worthwild" mod... Well its good to do when you've already done a lot of other things or the car sees a lot of track work, but there are a lot better "bang for your buck" modifications out there. As yours need changing anyway, then its still probably a good idea. Dont think theres anything else you need to change.

How handy are you with the tools? Its a fairly easy modification to do yourself, so might be worth attempting on your own (its pretty hard to stuff up). I think theres a detailed guide in the "how to" section.

Cheers

[blackvussii]

Powerbond kits seem to be the go. $370 delivered from ebay.
I'll be doing one soon, pretty sure there is a good diy thread on here and with the right sized puller the radiator can stay in.
As mentioned unless you fit it yourself it would be better to do it with a cam swap.

[Evman]

Real world you wont see any power gains but it will help protect your accessories from wear at high RPM.

[FrangaFry]

Thanks for the replies folks, Powerbond seem like the go and a pretty decent price from a few resellers; I will take the advice and also go for the ARP bolt and washer too.

End of the day, I know I won't see any power gains from this, but there is definite noise from the pulley bearings at the front and I have already thrown a belt once, so I think this is something I am definitely going to do.

Again, thanks for all the feedback.

You folks are just a bloody wealth of info and the speed in responses is greatly appreciated.

[A PSYCHO]

get the powerbond race kit with balancer, belts and idlers.

also an ARP balancer bolt and washer.

you will need new coolant and the rad has to come out.

also a puller

best to do at cam change as it is no extra labour really to fit it. 25% udp on its own is a bit of labour for not that a greater gain.

This is exactly what I done. Been on for atleast 20,000+ k's now. Used to suffer from some bad belt squeel when backing off at high RPM for a second or so Max. Seems to have stopped on its own now, no other complaints.

[bush_basha]

I had one on my old VX clubby, not sure if it's a common thing, but because of the smaller balancer sitting in stop start traffic, traffic lights, road works, etc the ac wasn't at its best because it wasn't spinning as fast as prior to the smaller balancer.

[Evman]

Did it on a mate's VZ just the other day with the radiator in but fans out. With a puller from supercheap (3 jaw, I think it was Stanley and cost under $40) it's pretty straight forward. We did need to borrow a longer bolt to get the new balancer started though because the factory bolt wasn't long enough to reach the threads.

[Woodchukka]

Did it on a mate's VZ just the other day with the radiator in but fans out. With a puller from supercheap (3 jaw, I think it was Stanley and cost under $40) it's pretty straight forward. We did need to borrow a longer bolt to get the new balancer started though because the factory bolt wasn't long enough to reach the threads.

I did mine about a week ago 4 inch 3 jaw puller, fans out and radiator in. Might pay to put a piece of cardboard over the radiator just in case (and no I did not do that and no I did not damage the radiator). Dam stock pulley was tight too, puller popped off 3 times before I had to bite the bullet and put a bit of heat into it. Not much and real careful. That did the trick and off it came.

[RARASV8]

here is the diy
http://www.ls1.com.au/forum/showthread.php?80409-DIY-Install-Powerbond-25-underdrive-balancer

for the vy the fans have a clip no screws, push clips and slide up fans.

i noticed that mine revved faster!

Garry
on my last cruise i had no power steering noise like the previous few cruises:yahoo:

[VZ_V8]

My VZ was the one that Evan helped me out with. Once we had finally collected the right equipment everything was pretty straight forward. We used a hardened steel shim in place of thecrank bolt to push the puller against, this meant we could just keep winding until the puller ran out without having to keep checking the bolt. With the new puller it came off without much fuss. All we took off was the OTR and thermo fans. Plenty of room to do the job with just them removed.

[ls1 VN]

If you want the best there is without any doubt! Go ATI Balancer. All others standard exempt, will cause bad harmonics...If circuit racing it 'WILL' cause the timing chain to break over time. If you're only using the car for street go with Powerbond etc.
I am running a powerbond & broke a dual Rollmaster circuit racing, a mate found a broken link on his sump magnet from a dual Rollmaster also running a Powerbond. His is used for street & drags.
Kurt Urban, well known state side in Vette racing helped ATI develope the ATI balancer because of the continuous chain breakages.

[RB30X]

here is the diy
http://www.ls1.com.au/forum/showthread.php?80409-DIY-Install-Powerbond-25-underdrive-balancer


What a legend whoever wrote that DIY.

To diagnose which pulley has the bearing issue, get a long socket extension and with the engine running 'carefully' place the male end of the extension on the bolt holding the pulley on and your ear over the female end. You should be able to feel the vibrations through the socket any way if you cant get your ear on it.