Originally Posted by P51Driver

I think I may have found the issue with the proper belt tension and the wah wah noise many Softail owners are having. Last night I was reading an old thread about belt tension and noisey belts. In the thread Hulkss mentioned that the the 2018+ Softail manuals states that the belt tension can be adjusted with the bike upright or on the jiffy stand with the saddlebags empty. He also mentioned that he tried the belt tension adjustment both ways upright and on the jiffy stand. He found that if he adjusted the belt to the proper spec with the bike on the jiffy stand and then checked the tension with the bike upright he found that the upright position gave a considerably tighter tension. So I decided to try for myself and wouldn't you know it Hulkss was right if I set my belt for 1/2 inch deflection with the bike on the jiffy stand and then checked the tension with the bike upright I found the tension now at about 1/4 inch deflection. So I don't know why Harley recommends setting the tension either on the jiffy stand or upright as you get a considerable difference in the tension reading. So I decided to adjust the belt with the bike in the upright position at 1/2 of deflection at the tighter spot in the belt. I took in for a ride tonight and wouldn't you know it the wah wah noise when coasting down between 30 20 mph is 90 prect gone. Now it was only about 75 " out. We will see when the temps get hotter but it seems more logical the set the belt tension in the upright position as that is the way you ride the bike. Setting tension on the jiffy stand seems to make you belt adjustment too tight there by causing more belt noise.