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Nope - never use a special tool.

 

Actually I'm contemplating getting one of these since I do sooooo many of these flippin belts!

 

http://www.ingersollrandproducts.com/IS/Product.aspx-am_en-36545

 

180 Ft/lb right-angle impact with a head height under 2" :grin:

 

Too bad they are ~$275 :mad:

 

Purchase of that little gem is not far off I think.....

 

GD

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If its anything like my Snap-On 3/8 ratchet its all about the CFM of the compressor. If you don't have a big guy like an 80 gal compressor feeding that tool it might not be up to the task. Some small compressors actually have the CFM of a big one too if you shop carefully.

 

That being said my Snap-on one will take these off about 80 percent of the time. The rest of the time I use the tool to hold the cam to the other cam and I do like the 25MM wrench option but I don't like taking the valve covers off if I don't have to.

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If its anything like my Snap-On 3/8 ratchet its all about the CFM of the compressor. If you don't have a big guy like an 80 gal compressor feeding that tool it might not be up to the task. Some small compressors actually have the CFM of a big one too if you shop carefully.

 

Yeah - it's amazing how expensive a decent compressor is. I used to be a compressor/vacuum pump tech. It was totally worth the experience I got with that job. I have the big daddy compressor in my garage - 22 CFM @ 150 psi - 5 HP/80 Gal.... Full industrial - it's a monster - just the pump weighs about 200 lbs. Best part - free after I did a $65 rebuild on it :grin:.

 

That being said my Snap-on one will take these off about 80 percent of the time. The rest of the time I use the tool to hold the cam to the other cam and I do like the 25MM wrench option but I don't like taking the valve covers off if I don't have to.

 

I'm hoping that new right-angle impact will pretty much take off the crank pulley and cam bolts with a near-100% effectiveness.... we'll see. :rolleyes:

 

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I notice that no mention has been made about putting the cam sprockets back on. . .

How do you all plan on properly torquing the bolts on re-installation? If the bolt is too loose, it will back out and the cam sprocket will spin and shatter (after destroying the camshaft) Yet, if it is too tight, you can break the sprocket with the force (they are plastic, after all. . .). I pull the valve covers as a mater of course, and replace the valve cover gaskets, Spark plug seals, and the bolt seals as well. I figure it like this: the timing belt lasts 100K miles. The seals tend to last about 150K miles. so halfway through the life of that shiny new T-belt, you are going to start leaking oil, and maybe get some on the belt, shortening it's life by an unknown amount. . . if you change the seals and gaskets, this will not happen. . .

 

Of course, i have been accused of overkill before, so. . .. ;)

Edited by Gnuman
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Gnuman,

 

I just finished a DOHC HG job where the right side camsprockets were torqued so much that I couldn't get them off. Left side came off fine using the flats on the cams, but I broke a wrench and rounded the flats on the right side, and couldn't budge the bolts. I bought an electric impact wrench that was rated at 250 ft-lbs and it wouldn't move them either. So I cut a wedge of 1" pine that was 5 or 6 inches long and 2 to 3 inches at the wide end. I inserted it between the camsprockets (on edge) so that as I tried to torque off the bolts, the wedge got sucked in between the sprockets and kept them from moving. It took a 5 ft. breaker bar and all of my strength to loosen those bolts. The wedge did no damage to the sprockets, but the wedge itself got crushed. Pine is nice and soft and I made sure there were no knots in my wedge.

 

When I put the thing back together I forgot to tighten the camsprocket bolts before putting the valve covers on. I made another wedge and torqued the bolts easily.

 

The camsprockets had chips of some of the teeth from someone who previously used a chain tool or channel locks.

 

I celebrated when I finally got those sprockets off. I figure they were torqued somewhere around 250 ft-lbs. Whoever did it was pretty confused because the head bolts were definitely NOT torqued correctly either.

 

Tom

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Gnuman,

 

I just finished a DOHC HG job where the right side camsprockets were torqued so much that I couldn't get them off. Left side came off fine using the flats on the cams, but I broke a wrench and rounded the flats on the right side, and couldn't budge the bolts. I bought an electric impact wrench that was rated at 250 ft-lbs and it wouldn't move them either. So I cut a wedge of 1" pine that was 5 or 6 inches long and 2 to 3 inches at the wide end. I inserted it between the camsprockets (on edge) so that as I tried to torque off the bolts, the wedge got sucked in between the sprockets and kept them from moving. It took a 5 ft. breaker bar and all of my strength to loosen those bolts. The wedge did no damage to the sprockets, but the wedge itself got crushed. Pine is nice and soft and I made sure there were no knots in my wedge.

 

When I put the thing back together I forgot to tighten the camsprocket bolts before putting the valve covers on. I made another wedge and torqued the bolts easily.

 

The camsprockets had chips of some of the teeth from someone who previously used a chain tool or channel locks.

 

I celebrated when I finally got those sprockets off. I figure they were torqued somewhere around 250 ft-lbs. Whoever did it was pretty confused because the head bolts were definitely NOT torqued correctly either.

 

Tom

 

I'll say that this pine wedge tool is by far the best (and cheapest) I've heard.

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They are not plastic where the bolt engages them. I put them on with a low impact setting and call it good.

 

They also all spin the direction that would tend to cause the bolt to tighten not loosen.

 

GD

 

don't they spin the same direction as the crank? and the starter bump method of loosening the crank pulley bolt would suggest they could loosen over time. but it doesn't really matter if you torque them correctly.

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don't they spin the same direction as the crank? and the starter bump method of loosening the crank pulley bolt would suggest they could loosen over time.

 

They all spin clockwise - which is tighter. The tendancy should be for them to tighten with the rotation of the engine rather than loosen.

 

But as you say - if they are torqued properly (sufficiently) then there's no problem. If you don't have a sense for how tight they should be then by all means - use a torque insturment. I haven't torqued a crank pulley or cam pulley bolt in many years but I also haven't had one come loose either - not just talking Subaru's either.

 

GD

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