I have the Progressive 12.5 shocks on the bike.  This seems to have changed the geometry of the rear end.  With the bike on the side stand, and the belt tightened to the point that it cannot be twisted to  90 degrees, the brass adjustment plunger tool is so loose that it nearly falls off the belt.  It appears that the factory tool is no longer a valid measure of belt tightness.  With the belt this tight, I get a humming/whine sound from the rear sprocket.  When I return it to where I can twist the belt 90 degrees, the noise goes away.  My feeling is that I should use the 90 degree twist method of setting belt tension and forget about the OEM tool.   This is my first belt drive bike in nearly 60 years of riding and I am completely out of my element.

Comments please, and thank you for your expertise!

Jack H.

I really never used the tool.  When I first bought my Savage, I'd found this site a few weeks prior, had read about the 90° twist method and just never used the tool.  It still worked well after putting on the 12.5" Progressives, so I still use it.