The Original



BELT DRIVE SYSTEM

Smoother Than Gear Drives.
More Reliable Than Chain Drives.

Dan Jesel invented the Small Block Chevrolet Camshaft Belt Drive back in 1982 with one goal in mind. To make the most accurate and durable cam timing system available. And in its almost 40 years of existence, our Camshaft Belt Drives have often been duplicated, but never matched. Whether you’re running a 24 hour endurance race or a 4 second pass down the drag strip, you can count on Jesel to get you to the finish line first. 

Built with the finest materials available, our Camshaft Belt Drives feature several performance and valve train stability enhancements over traditional timing chains and gear drives. The Gates patented High Torq Drive™ reinforced belt spins dry on a steel crank pulley and a hard coated aluminum upper pulley and helps isolate crankshaft harmonics to the valve train. Teflon® coated high vacuum cam and crank seals are long lasting and insure the extreme amount of vacuum found in today’s race engines stays sealed in the crankcase. Cam timing can be externally adjustable ±10° in minutes to dial in the power curve and cam thrust can be reduced to as little as .001” with our available dual thrust cam adapter assemblies. 

Another advantage to running our Camshaft Belt Drive is the ability to swap out cams directly through the front cover. Cam swaps can be performed quickly without needing to remove the oil pan by simply removing the upper cam pulley and un-bolting cam seal plate saving countless hours during dyno sessions. 

With over 42 applications from OEM blocks to aftermarket raised cam blocks, you can be certain that the Camshaft Belt Drive used to win countless championships will provide you with years of durable race winning service.  

Features & Benefits

  • Patented High Torq Drive™ reinforced belt runs dry, spins with less friction than timing chains or gear drives and absorbs harmonics.

  • Kit hardware is all Grade 8 Allen and Torx™ head design.

  • Cam timing is externally adjustable.

  • 2 Piece Upper Pulley is infinitely adjustable ±10°.

  • Crank Pulley is heat-treated steel and incorporates a High Torq Drive™ tooth configuration.

  • Hard coated Billet Aluminum Upper Pulley features patented High Torq Drive™ tooth configuration.

  • Teflon® coated high vacuum cam and crank seals.

  • Accessories available to run distributor drives, fuel pumps or oil pumps off front of cam.


Belt Driven Distributor Drives

ELIMINATE TIMING INACCURACY

Distributor Drives

Jesel’s Belt Driven Distributor systems, a direct bolt-on accessory to our Camshaft Belt Drives, eliminates timing inaccuracies due to camshaft deflection and cam walk. A typical gear driven distributor running off the camshaft has the possibilty of altering the initial ignition setting at high RPM due to the camshaft twisting from torsional loads. By driving the distributor drive directly off the camshaft pulley, ignition timing stays constant and will not deviate from the initial settings. Another benefit to using our Belt Driven Distributors is the ability to set the engine back further in the chassis without worrying about firewall or windshield interference. A crank trigger firing system along with an external ignition box is required for all Belt Driven Distributor systems.

Front Drive Combos

For the engine builder planning on using a Camshaft Belt Drive as well as a Belt Driven Distributor, Jesel offers a Front Drive Combo which incorporates both units as one convenient part number. In addition to being an ordering convenience, the Front Drive Combo is easier on your budget as the units are discounted when bundled together. The combo can be ordered with either our Pro Series or Extreme Series distributors with or without the available Individual Cylinder Timing system. As with all Jesel distributor drive systems, a crank trigger type firing system as well as an external ignition box is required.


Extreme Series Distributor Drive

Introduced in 2011, Jesel’s Extreme Series Distributor Drive System is designed to handle the high cylinder pressures experienced in Pro Stock and Pro-Mod type engines. This distributor drive features the MSD® 5” Pro-Cap to ensure accurate spark delivery and to reduce spark scatter frequently experienced in high cylinder pressure applications.

Pro Series Distributor Drive

Ideal for naturally aspirated engines, this drive features a Gates PowerGrip HTD belt and uses Moroso® Ultra Series distributor components. The balanced brass rotor tip and form-staked carbon ball on the coil lug have been designed to eliminate grounding paths and cross firing.

Individual Cylinder Timing Drive

Available in either series, Jesel’s ICT timing systems provide a simple and accurate cam sync source for engines operating with an electronic fuel injection system. This drive is setup to use a 3/8-24 non-magnetic pickup (not supplied) which picks up the cam position off a rare earth magnet embedded in the external rotor. The pickup can be indexed every 60° for ideal wire routing.

 

Belt Drive Accessories

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Dual Lip Seals

Available as a direct replacement for our standard cam and crank seals, these dual lip PTFE seals provide additional sealing for high vacuum applications. Ideal for engine builds that are trying to exceed vacuum readings over 20 in-Hg.

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Zero Thrust Cam Adapters

Designed to reduce the amount of lifter-damaging camshaft endplay, these cam adapter assemblies are manufactured from through hardened tool steel and feature Torrington Needle thrust bearings. Certain block applications require machining.

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Cam Timing Washer

This cam adapter washer provides a simple way to obtain a cam position signal when using electronic fuel injection. The washer can be rotated to work in conjunction with the user’s fabricated bracket and magnetic pickup.

External Dust Covers

These covers shield the Camshaft Belt Drives from unwanted debris when used in adverse conditions such as off-road and dirt tracks. Available for a limited number of applications.

Distributor Plugs

Used to replace the stock distributor when running our belt driven Distributor Drives. These plugs are available for either wet or dry sump oiling systems.


Our Belt Drive Story

In the late ‘70s Dan was looking at a belt-driven Chevy Cosworth Vega head, and came up with the idea of adapting this technology to a pushrod V8. That’s where many people would have stopped, but with Dan’s design regime of continuous improvement the end result is a belt drive system that not only drives the camshaft, it facilitates quick cam timing changes and the ability to swap cams through the front cover. It has also led to the elimination of the traditional cam-driven distributor allowing larger engine setbacks and uncompromised intake manifold design. Before the advent of the Jesel belt drive you had to drop the oil pan and remove the timing cover to swap cams or to change cam timing - a time consuming and unpleasant job at the track or shop.

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