I've gone through 3 Alternator belts and I'm currently on my 4th since I've owned my 86 (about a year).

I tension them properly, snug the alternator up and everything will go fine for a while. The belts will hold up for a few months before the seams decide to fail during a spirited drive.

I've tried the cheapo belt and the expensive ones but I've had no luck.


What brand belts do you guys run?

 

Gatorback.
you should check the alignment of the pullies.Also the belt tension(deflection) should be about a 1/2 inch when tight....any more is just putting strain on the pullies and waterpump.

 

no air pump?


11a 550 ( metric ) belt around the spare V .. water pump and main pulleys only
.. jog it on like a bicycle chain.. uses no tensioner and is the correct size for most water pump / main pulley combos

many of the rotor shops around the globe will sell it as a "pump saver" or "yahoo" belt .. but i just gave you the proper belt size// you can often find it in washing machine repair places too