OK - after 30 years of ownership my water pump starting leaking. I did purchase a unit from Zip which came quickly, painted it, and today I went to install it. While disassembling, I noticed the belts which were probably more than 30 years old were very cracked and tried to purchase replacements. When I was reassembling of course all couldn't go smooth. Here are the issues I'm seeing at the moment.
1. The pully assembly - the clearance between this and the new water pump at some parts of the body are about the thickness of a credit card or less in some areas. Can I "shim" this by placing washers on the four studs on the backside to move the pully assembly out and avoid the occasional scrape. I was thinking of just one for all four studs, as I would think multiple washers on each stud would tend to promote shifting, and eventually shearing bolts. Looking for advice.

2. Belts - the ones I pulled were Gates B118. 8535 Extra Service 350 (alternator) and Gates N8435 Extra Service 83 (Power Steering). It appears I cannot find these anywhere online, and the ones from Advance Auto were not a good fit at all. Suggestions for replacement or equivalent?

3. Power Steering Pump - I think I found it is not hinged on the front side but the back. I found the one bolt that allows the PS Pump to slide for the belt adjustment. Is the other one on the bottom again on the back side (and looks like not so wonderful to get at).

Thanks in advance for the tips.

 

Here's a photo of the waterpump in my 77. Installed about 2005.

See how close the pulley is to the pump? No rubbing. Your being paranoid. No washers. Not a good idea. You'll put your belts out of alignment. If your belts are not fitting correctly, take them back and get slightly longer or shorter ones. Easy done.

 

Oh, and as per the powersteering pump adjustment. Yes the "Slider" bolt is at the rear. Reach down behind the alternator, (sort of between the alternator and the wiring). With a 9/16th's wrench and lossen the bolt. Should pivot on the Front and rear studs. If not. Get under the car and lossen both the front and rear mounting stud nuts. On reinstall, after final adjustment with the "Slider" bolt. Get back under the car and tighten the stud nuts. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it.

 

I struggled with matching old belts. I suggest you call Gates for an equivalent belt number. The Gates tech told me that in some cases, they obsoleted belts but reused the number. Also, there is a Gates interactive table on-line. Do not use that. The table is not maintained.

 

Great advice...not sure of op year but...
i also took advantage of replacing belts and added a half inch to power steering belt so i can freaking get the cap off to measure fluid level!
buy a few belts as recommended..return what dont work..even thr local chain stores usually carry usa made belts..

 

Re water pump pulley spacing
most pumps' hub is pressed onto pump shaft and can be moved with a gear puller or a press. Do NOT press on hub or front end of shaft unless FIRST pump cover is removed AND rear of shaft is firmly supported.

Some higher-end aftermarket pumps' hub is located with a set-screw.

Also, best Not to use washers.
Allstar, Moroso, Stewart etc offer wp pulley Shim Kits to moved pulley forward

 

Thank you - I found the one on the back side - thankfully I have smaller hands and was able to flip from open end to closed end wrench to do in 1/8 turn intervals but got that loose. Next was the front one. I practically had to get up to my pelvis on the body to see it and again the same technique. I wrapped the belt onto the pully and was able to gradually move the PS pump to where the belt would actually go properly. Tightening was a little easier than the 30+ year (that I've had this w/o replacing) position that it has set for so long.

 

OK - mission accomplished! Water pump is on, clearance which I was worried at almost a business card thickness didn't scrape once all was tightened. I found a set of Gates belts from the O'R store near me(wasn't sure if I could state their full name on forum). They were great and found the set that fit like a charm! Once reassembled, coolant added, fired up and no scrapes, rattles, belt slop, or leaks! Thanks again to all for the advice and ensuring I didn't go into a rabbit hole or point of no return. Hopefully this part/repair will hold up as long as the original.

 

Glad to hear you got it all together. Next time your at a car show, look at everyone's pulley to waterpump clearance. You'll see they all run close.

 

By the way - the Gates belt numbers I ended up using were the the XL7435(power steering) and XL7530 (alternator) for future reference.

 

After a few drives with the new belts, you will need to check them for proper tension and probably tighten them up a bit. New belts stretch to final length once in operation.

 

That's all I have, probably .015" at most