4ohfour

Okay, so I am pulling apart my engine (blown water seal) and I am encountering difficulties removing the ecentric shaft nut and the fly wheel nut (the big one) which way does the ecentric shaft nut undo? Should i be pushing down on the wrench from the exhaust manifold side or the other side? also, same question for the fly wheel nut.

thanks in advance,

cheers'

Felix Wankel

Push down from the drivers side for the flywheel nut, and from the manifold side for the front bolt.

If you get them loose by hand I'd be really amazed.

Project84

To remove the flywheel nut, it should be rotated counter-clockwise. It will be a bitch to get off cause it was installed with hella torque, 500ft-lb

Check this link http://www.mazdatrix.com/toolmisc.htm
scroll down and you will see the two tools Mazdatrix designed to remove the flywheel nut. The one tool keeps the flywheel from spinner while you remove the nut, and the other is a giant 2 1/8th inch wrench for the nut. It has a long handle so you get good leverage. If you can't wait that long for the tools to ship, you just gotta put some *** into it
I don't know what ecentric shaft nut you are refering to unless you mean the bolts that hold the pulley on the shaft. They unbolt counter-clockwise, but you have to keep the pulley from turning.

hope that helps.

4ohfour

well, i broke the socket that I was using, thats a 1/2 inch drive... hot damn... back to the drawing board.

cheers'

Project84

LOL, sorry 'bout the socket dude. Its like I said:

you check out the tools on the link to Mazdatrix I posted?

Immanuelrx

I just did work on the engine front oil housing gasket replacement.

I did the job with everything still onto car(3rd-gen).
Now if engine is out of the car or if tranny is off you need to buy that mazdatrix flywheel stopper to hold everything. Get another rachet and a long metal breaker bar and that will do the trick. Pull very slow but firm and That lock bolt will come loose.

This job would really test the fact if you have a quality rachet or not. Because mine had broke too the first time I tryed.

Project84

Using a breaker bar would probably be better. Craftsman has life-time warranties I think.

4ohfour

what is a breaker bar?

as for the specialized tools, i won't need any of these again, so me spending 100$ ( canadian funds ) would really be un-justified.

cheers'

Felix Wankel

Take the engine to a shop with air tools and they can break them loose for you in no time.

Project84

A breaker bar is exactly like a ratchet, except the stud that goes into the socket doesn't spin. If you put a regular ratchet and socket on a tight nut or bolt, you could break the little gear inside the ratchet that lets you reverse its direction. A breaker bar has no internal gear or anything, just a steel handle and the stud at a 90 degree angle. The stud pivots left and right, or if you hold it side ways, up and down. Put the breaker big socket on the breaker bar, put the socket on the flywheel nut and rotate the handle so you it is 90 degress from the ecentric shaft (on the side so you can push down to unloosen the nut). Next slide a long hollow steel pipe of the handle of the bar to make it longer for more leverage and push slow and steady. Keep your balance so you don't fall, that would be awful. Once it loosens up, don't take it off. Just spin it loose 2 or three turns but make sure you don't pull it off. The flywheel and ecentric shaft may still be stuck together. If you pry them apart with the nut off, that 30lbs stock flywheel will go flying off and hit something you probably don't want it to hit. The end of the shaft and the hole in the flywheel are tappered. Once you budge the flywheel loose, go ahead and remove the nut and wheel.

Good luck,