After much discussion with my buddy Bobby, he finally convinced me to get rid of my greasy chain and convert to belt drive. After no less than a 12 pack I had him convinced to help me with this project. The next thing to do was find a belt drive. kit and all the other crap I was going to need.

What are the benefits of a belt drive? Chains require constant maintenance and that involves grease, grease and more grease. The type of grease used on chains is the heavy thick stuff that ends up everywhere but on the chain. So, you end up spending lots of riding and drinking time either putting grease on the chain or taking it off the rest of your bike.

Chains tend to stretch and require more adjustment then a modern fiber belt. That stretching leads to chain lash and can kill you when they break and bind at interstate speed. The life expectancy of a belt is around 3 times that of a chain and requires little adjustment after the first 2 initial adjustments.

After a quick internet search I found a excellent conversion kit from scootworks . I really liked the looks of the chrome Monsta belt model. The order was placed and I received a email from them that my pulleys were out to the chromer and would be to me soon. Before I knew it the UPS man delivered my kit and it was even better looking than I had imagined. The installation instructions were extremely detailed. They included every step necessary to get your chain off and belt drive on. They gave you all the new torque settings and included pictures. They suggested a centerstand lift to use to raise the rear during installation.

I decided to get the centerstand that they recommended from centerstands.com and again ordered it online. Due to the placement of the exhaust pipes I had to use a precision cut 2X4 with the stand to keep the weight off the exhaust. That worked great and it is really a nice simple stand. Later I saw a 4 ton motorcycle/ATV jackstand at Northern Hydraulic for $70.00.

Now let me say a few words about my friend Bobby. This dude knows his stuff. He has a garage in his home that is laid out perfect for this kind of work.... and beer drinking. It is even equipped with a urinal! Throughout the conversion a whole host of characters kept dropping by to drink his beer and offer unneeded advice.

Bobby's stepson Ronnie, was my ever present source of motivation. He was constantly agreeing with all my crazy ideas of what to do with my bike next. Well I appreciate all of his support and political views. We can only hope that Bush doesn't fix another election.

The project went great! I can only say if you have a EN500 with a chain then "Get it OFF". This belt drive rocks! I was fortunate to have a great friend to help we with the project. Check out a few more pictures below.

Thank you Bobby!

hugs since November