We have an old hand sheller that's been on the farm forever. It appears similar to a JD Model 1, but it may in fact be some "store brand" like Montgomery Wards, or similar. See photos below. It's been stored inside and turns freely. It's in great shape. Not selling, but asking for restoration advice.

Anyway, we would like to put a belt on it from the large pulley behind the flywheel to the cleaning fan at the bottom. It appears you would have to remove the flywheel to put some kind of a belt on. I'm not sure the flywheel would come off easily. I don't want to break anything trying.

What kind of belt would they have originally used? Was it a leather belt "back in the day"? Or something that could open up & then be re-connected around the pulleys? It has to be a very narrow belt. Even an "A" width appears too wide to ride in the grooves correctly. Would they have used a round belt of some type?

Thanks for any help.

(IMG_9335 (full).jpg)

(IMG_9336 (full).jpg)

(IMG_9337 (full).jpg)

IMG_9335 (full).jpg (135KB - 3 downloads)

IMG_9336 (full).jpg (93KB - 2 downloads)

IMG_9337 (full).jpg (140KB - 1 downloads)