For the other 10 people out there in need of custom coffee roaster belts, like us with our Probat L12, here’s a source: Hudson Belting.
This is more of a Public Service Announcement than anything. We were desperately looking for a domestic source for the main belt for our Probat coffee roasterA machine for roasting coffee. Or the person operating it! The basic requirements for a coffee roaster are a heating element that gets suitably hot and a mechanism... ...more L12 model. The local custom belt maker was sadly gone, like a lot of old time industrial businesses.
And frankly, Probat Burns site for accessories, support and supplies is basically defunct. They have a shop though. You can find mugs and tshirts there. Uh, great.
I found Hudson Belting through some creative web searches, and they were able to make backup belts for me that are working well. The cost for me was about $45-$65 each.
I ordered endless loop belts as well as ones that separate with a pin. When we received this Probat L12 from a used local source, it had a rather loose all-leather belt that looked really old, and had the hook / pin latch in it. It lasted about 8 years!
Hudson recommended leather belts with a synthetic layer to decrease stretching and increase strength. I ordered a couple of those as well as all leather belts for old times sake.
Our 1990s Probat L-12 measured out as 2030 mm and 20mm wide. It may be different for yours. These fit our L-12 perfectly but I am aware the all leather ones may stretch in time.
Here are the questions they asked to be sure they made the right belts for us.
- How did you measure the belt length?
- How wide are your pulleys on the inside where the belt sits?
- Do you have any adjustment on your machine?
- What is the smallest pulley diameter that the belt goes around?
- Do you want the old school Leather Belt or the newer, much stronger Nylon Core Leather Belt?
- Laced belt with metal hooks and pin OR a glued endless belt?
You can reach Hudson Belting through their site or email them at [email protected].
I was just happy to find a source for drive belts and wanted to share the info, saving someone like me a lot of time.
5 Responses
Amazing! Thank you, thank uou
Thank you, I am a new roaster with a 94′ Probat L12. Currently looking for a source for parts so anything I find is helpful.
Awesome, Nick! We figured others could use this info. Glad you found it 🙂
-Dan
New England Belting Company. With the measurements listed above, they will make you a great belt that has a plastic backing on the leather so that it won’t stretch. Probat parts exists. The website may not, but I call and order all the time including belts for my 1993 L12
Thanks for info. Good to know about other options. Yes we have ordered both the hybrid reinforced as well as all leather …which can stretch.