Belt retainer guard for sewing machine

In a sewing machine, a toothed driving pulley, a toothed driven pulley, a toothed timing belt extending over and in toothed engagement with both said pulleys for imparting rotation to the driven pulley when the driving pulley is rotated, a belt guard for each pulley, each belt guard being located for a predetermined direction of rotation of the driving pulley on the belt entering side only of the pulley with which the belt is associated and being disposed closely adjacent to the outside surface of the belt where the belt enters the pulley to thereby guide the belt onto the pulley and prevent teeth on the belt from jumping over teeth on the pulley, and inwardly acting belt deflecting means in engagement with a length of the timing belt extending between the unguarded belt exiting side of one pulley and guarded thread entering side of the other pulley, said length of timing belt being engaged by the belt deflecting means at a location therealong which is closer to the unguarded belt exiting side of the said one pulley then to the guarded thread entering side of the said other pulley.