I tried a automotive v-belt lasted 45 minutes before it smoked and died
Not surprising. V-belts are not commodity parts. I would expect many auger belts to fail in short order if they are not the OEM application specific. There are many specifications that can be had with V-belts. Various compounds, nylon tensile cords, Aramid tensile cords, fiberglass tensile cords, polyester tensile cords, cord placement relative to pitch line, twist, diameter, cord count, raw edge, covered, clutch covered, section, top/bottom skim coat, laminated, profiled, ground, molded, corner cut, cogged, and the list goes on.
Generally the off-the-shelf multi-purpose belts are of the highest specification due to their diverse possible usages. High temp compounds, Aramid cords, etc. The problem is usually the size and cover. In some applications if you use a standard length belt (when the application calls for an in-between size) it may not be be able to be adjusted to specification (auger brake may not function, improper idler tension, etc.). Also, on the higher performance machines the cover that is usually found on the general purpose belts will not be aggressive enough to power the auger drive. Ariens uses raw edge laminated belts for this reason (again with a very high level of specification). I believe a few other OEM's do this as well.
That said, regardless of price, I would recommend using OEM auger belts only. Just keep it adjusted (and follow the run-in procedure) so you don't have to fork out that princely sum regularly. Most auger belts fail due to lack of maintenance.
Lastly, traction drive belts are a bit more forgiving. These belts should usually last the life of the unit unless they are very old. They do not transmit a lot of power due to the torque reduction to the axle (hence most are 3L section with less costly polyester tensile cords). For the same reason, covered belts will usually work just as well (unless the OEM spec is cogged). Cogged belts are used when the driver size is smaller than what is recommended for a particular belt section (it helps the belt wrap around the smaller diameter without too much section flex). Although some OEM's use cogs on the auger clutch, I recommend against it. It's hard to have effective belt fingers and they are prone to cracking at the cogs in this application.
There are still some application sensitive traction belts so in some instances an OEM belt is still the better option (but again, you should never really need a new one). The 926,XXX series Ariens units require a covered belt and the 939,XXX use a unique stretch fit belt that would not be able to be replaced with a standard belt (a really slick application, no idler, fewer moving parts, lasts forever).
PK
