MechanicalRebuild shelfUnplug and unscrew
Timing belt
Also called GT2, printer belt, carriage belt.
Printers and scanners are full of toothed belts. Some are a common pitch you can match to a pulley you already own, and some are a proprietary tooth. Stretch and glazed teeth mean the belt was the failure.
If you are new to this category
Rods, gears, belts, magnets, screws, and boxes. Printers are the best source of straight steel rod and toothed belts. Screws from a laptop are tiny and specific; a random screw in a laptop hole strips the plastic. Bag them by the machine they came from.
If two parts were meshing or riding together, keep them as a pair. A gear from one toy rarely fits a gear from another.
The two curved blocks on the steel plates are the magnets, and they are the prize. Slide them apart. Do not pry straight up. The flat coil on the arm is a short-travel motor. The platters are not a useful material, and on some drives they are glass.
| What to look for | Usual figure |
|---|---|
| Pitch | Measure tooth to tooth in millimetres. 2 mm (GT2-like) shows up. So do odd pitches that will never sit on a GT2 pulley. |
| Width | Often 6–10 mm on a carriage |
| Closed vs open | A carriage belt may be open, clamped at the ends. That is still useful. |
Volts are electrical pressure, amps are how much current is flowing, and ohms are how hard the part resists that flow. A higher voltage than the part was built for is how salvage parts die on the bench. If a cell in the table says “read the stamp”, that stamp is the whole specification.
What people actually use it for
- A small axis
- Replacing the same belt
- A reminder to buy the right pitch next time
Leave this one when
Teeth are shiny and the belt slips on its own pulley. Rubber does not unstretch.
Buying a new one is the better idea when
A new GT2 belt once you are designing a machine. Unknown pitch is a one-off.
How to tell if this one still works
Flex it. Cracks at the tooth root are the end. Check it still meshes with the pulley it came with.
Tools you will want: Calipers or a ruler.
Where people actually find it
6 notes, most useful first. “Leave it” means the part is in that machine and you should not take it: it is dangerous, worn out, or only useful if you already know that exact repair.
| From | Call | How many | How often | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inkjet printer | Worth it | 1 | always | On the carriage. |
| Flatbed scanner | Worth it | 1 | usually | Around the carriage pulleys. |
| CD / DVD / Blu-ray drive | Bonus | 1 | sometimes | Some tray mechanisms. |
| Washing machine | Bonus | 1 | sometimes | Belt-drive only. |
| Clothes dryer | Bonus | 1 | always | Around the drum. |
| Treadmill | Bonus | 1 | always | The deck. |
- In this particular machine
- Toothed, clamped at the carriage.
- Where to look
- On the carriage.
- How to get it out
- Measure pitch before you assume GT2.
- The condition to expect
- Good if the teeth are not glazed.
- In this particular machine
- Long, toothed.
- Where to look
- Around the carriage pulleys.
- How to get it out
- Measure pitch.
- The condition to expect
- Often still good, because the scanner did not run much.
- In this particular machine
- A small square belt. Often glazed.
- Where to look
- Some tray mechanisms.
- How to get it out
- Replace rather than reuse if it is shiny.
- The condition to expect
- Often tired.
- In this particular machine
- A V or poly-V belt.
- Where to look
- Belt-drive only.
- How to get it out
- Stretched belts slip.
- The condition to expect
- Often glazed.
- In this particular machine
- A long flat belt.
- Where to look
- Around the drum.
- How to get it out
- Glazed and stretched is normal at end of life.
- The condition to expect
- Often tired.
- In this particular machine
- A wide walking belt, not a timing belt.
- Where to look
- The deck.
- How to get it out
- Glazed belts slip.
- The condition to expect
- Worn.