I know its a PITA!! I bought to in complete liberators on ebay for about 120.00 last year and made a very nice one from both of them and kept the critical parts. I can't remember exactly but I think I had to pull the cogs and belt bearings off in order to slide them off. Like any belt they can go bad, But because they have cogs, I would say if they are having problems, you'll know it alot quicker than a simple slipping belt.