I think I allowed myself to be talked into buying something I can't use. I am about to change the timing belt and I bought a flywheel lock because I was told I "HAD" to have it, the job is impossible without it. So, I head out to take a look at the parts and try and plan out my attack and I come to the flywheel lock. Where the hell does it go? No prob, I pull out my printout of John Pirtles instructions (Thanks John). Hmm, the flywheel lock goes on a part that has been laying on a shelf for three months. My engine is on an engine stand! How do I use this stupid thing now? LOL.

Seriously, I still need to lock th flywheel, how does that work with the engine out of the car?

Jeff

 

Good one.

I locked the engine on the stand by putting some bolts in the flywheel and then jamming it with a crowbar to the stand.

 

If you are manually removing the crank bolt, BE CAREFUL! You have a top-heavy engine perched way up on an engine stand - it is all too possible to turn that sucker over!

 

Luckily, I was reminded to "break" the crank bolt before I removed the engine. GlenL's suggestion will work fine. In fact, it is very close to what the manual suggests. Difference is that the manual indicates that a "locally manufactured" device can be bolted to the flywheel and this device uses the bell housing flange (rather than engine stand) to lock the crank. Use an impact and there will be no worries with rotating engine on the stand; otherwise, have a friend lean on the engine stand handle to prevent rotation.

 

So is the answer to this to lock the flywheel by jamming a crowbar between it and the stand?? I am in the same predicament.

 

See my post in the other thread. It is a little more refined, but perhaps amounts to the same thing.

Jerry Feather

 

Then again, that is really all the nicely machined flywheel lock amounts to--something jammed into the gears that is mounted to something solid. JF

 

Colin has a good point in the other thread about my suggestioin. The difference between the little piece of angle iron and the crowbar jammed in there as opposed to the flywheel lock is that both the angle iron and crowbar, depending on how the crowbar is held, are going to have a tendency to side load the flywheel after it is stopped against the dowel pin, or whatever else stops the rotation, when the pressure is against them, whereas the lock, being mounted firmly to the engine, is only going to have a force directly opposed the the turning of the flywheel and no side force.

On the other hand, Colin, with a little bit of additional thought, it occurs to me that the sideload on the rear bearing(s) is not likely to be any greater in fact than the sideload on the front bearing(s) which results from the use of a large socket on the bolt being driven by a large breaker bar with a cheater pipe for leverage. Unless the load on the bolt is equal on each side, as with some kind of "T" wrench used by pushing down on one end and pulling up on the other, which is not likely, the load on the bottom of the front bearing is going to be enough to break the bolt loose. There is no data that I am aware of that suggests that the front bearing is ever damaged by the use of enough force on only one side to break the bolt loose. In other words, putting about 400 footpounds of force on the crank bolt on only one side is going to be resisted by the bottom of the front bearing and the torque of the bolt. That is probably going to be more than the resulting side force on the rear bearing resulting from the crude devise we might have jammed in there.

Jerry Feather

 

angle iron and crowbar worked like a charm. On to the next question...