I’ve been digging back through old threads about poly-belt intakes and have come to understand how crowned rollers are important for keeping polybelt aligned properly. I’ve never used the stuff before. I was going to take a stab at printing some, but the threads where folks linked models to one’s they had made for 1/2" hex have all died with the conversion to discourse.
Does anyone have models of crowned rollers they’ve used with 1"wide flat poly-belt they recommend or or models of a 1/2" hex compatible one I could try printing?
The people who make their own belt grinder often use rollers with constant diameter rollers. They put a crown on one of them by wrapping some tape around it. Scroll down to the end of the “Tracking Arm” section in this link for a photo.
If you still need your question answered though, we’ve just used shaft collars in the past to great success. Just tighten one shaft collar onto each shaft and roll the belt up on to the shaft collars. The belt should sit right on center of the collars.
Whatever roller you are using, take a thin section of pvc, cut a slit in that so you can snap it over your roller. Make it 1/4" wide. Use electrical tape to position it into place, with maybe a few extra wraps. That pvc section acting as a crown on your roller should be sufficient to hold it in place.