So I'm just about ready to start taking the short block apart... but I can't get this damn flywheel nut off!!! So far in trying to break it loose I have used 1/4 can of pb blaster... I have broken my 1/2in drive breaker bar... I have broken my 3/4in drive ratchet(Old and well used but still shouldn't break)... and bent the angle iron that was locking the fly wheel!!! And I may have broken my knuckles on the cement floor when the ratchet gave out.... Damn I need Help!!! I am about to go out and buy a 3/4in breaker bar... Can I heat this nut so it will expand and make it easier? Any tips from any one who has torn their engine down?

 

How much are these nuts I if need to cut it off if I break another tool... Maybe its time to get air?

 

Impact gun. I had to buy one from lowes, cost $78.00 It had a 450lb reverse impact. Took the nut off in three pulls of the trigger.

The nuts are torqued on 350lbs stock, add a few years.

The nut will probably cost ~$4.00 or so. Problem isn't the price, its finding a hardware store that has it.

 

The nut SHOULD have been put on with locktite and three hundred ft/lbs of torque. Get a propane torch and heat it up.

I use a three quarter Craftsman breakover and a twenty lb hammer. I strike the breakover after heating the nut up. I do NOT wind up and strike it, but give it a solid blow several times. A twenty lb hammer cost about twenty bucks. An impact wrench is fine and dandy, but you have to ask yourself, "is it cost effective?". How many times are/would you use it? Seriously.

Just FYI. I just rebuilt an engine for a fellow. The bozzo who last took the nut off used a chisel and hammer. He reused the damned nut after that. **** him and all his tribe. He's the same halfwit that put block sealer in the engine and screwed the radiator up.

But, if you replace the nut after using a hammer and chisel, I reckon that is ok.

 

My experience with the infamous flywheel nut:

http://home.comcast.net/~drewrx7/9-5-04/2.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~drewrx7/9-5-04/4.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~drewrx7/9-5-04/5.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~drewrx7/9-6-04/4.jpg (for comparison of the 2nd cheater bar I used with a 190lb person hanging from it)
http://home.comcast.net/~drewrx7/9-6-04/2.jpg


The end result was nothing worked for me except an impact gun

 

i got mine off with a snapon impact gun. BRRRRRRRRRRAPPPPP came right off, didnt even need to use the SST the manual whines about.

put it back on the same way with loads of loctite

 

Whoever had my car before me did the hammer and chisel thing to remove the nut but he replaced it like that. I had to file the crap out of it just to get the correct socket to fit on it. Dumbasses...

 

I wouldn't want to risk jeopardising the E-Shaft. Even If I would have to wait an extra day or two I'd say It's worth It. Usin an Impact Gun Is the only way. It's a complete waste of time and effort using a Ratchet.

 

I ended up using one of the legs off my cherry picker as a flywheel stopper bar. drilled a few holes, bolted it on, heat up the nut, stick that 3/4 breaker bar w/cheaterbar and start jumping on it.

 

use a torch heat up the nut a bit, and also befor eyou start using pry bars eat some wheaties

 

You could probably rent an impact wrench from an auto store for a deposit.

 

Just did this last night, 3/4" sliding breaker bar and for more leverage used one of the legs from my crane. As a flywheel stop, i had some 1/4" stock bar that I drilled matching holes to. My dad bounced on the crane legs while I stood on top of the block to keep it from getting lifted up by the flywheel stopper. There were casualties though, before using the 3/4" breaker bar, I was using a 1/2" with an adapter. I broke it becuase I was too lazy to search for the 3/4 breaker

 

Just take the shortblock to a mechanics shop and pay them 10 bucks to take it off with their impact wrenches. I took mine off with a impact wrench at my bosses shop, sooo easy

 

Well I went to the hardware store and picked up a thicker piece of angle iron, Heated it up, got my 3/4in breaker bar and a 3 foot length of 2.5 inch iron pipe...it popped after about 30 seconds of bouncing it... but its off!!!

 

It's funny, I hear a lot of people having trouble with the flywheel nuts, but I've never experienced this... (knock on wood, lol)

My friends Dad made a custom flywheel stopper that bolts into the motor to tranny bolt holes and fits into the teeth of the flywheel. So I've never had to worry about the flywheel moving.

We sit the block on a long peice of 2x6" wood, with the majority of the wood on one side of the block. On the smaller end of wood sticking out from under the block, we loop some chain under the wood and bolt it to some of the holes on top of the motor (like the OMP injection bolt holes). This allows the long end of wood to act as a ballast against your cranking, so the block doesn't flip over (cause it's chained).

For the cranking, we use the 2 1/8th" socket (flywheel nut size, obviously). Then using a gnarly 1" breaker bar, we slide a GNARLY steel pipe over the breaker bar, so we've got about 4' of leverage. Then, using one hand on the end of the pipe, pushing down hard, we strike low down on the breaker bar with a heavy steel hammer and after several blows the nut comes loose...

I wish I had pics or something, it'd make a lot more sense. If anyone expresses interest in what the flywheel stopper looks like, or the setup in general, I'll find a way to get pics up.

 

why not just use an impact? everybody has an impact..

we used one last night on mine and it came right off

 

^^ I wonder the same thing. I bought the impact gun and have used it dozens of times after

 

i think this weekend was the weekend to tear down your engine

 

Well, maybe I should elaborate on my previous post for the other side of this argument.

I first tried torching it and then using a breaker bar with the handle of a jack attached to the end making the length ~3.5 ft overall. I torched the nut for a good 15 minutes and then had my friend stand on the engine as I tried to break the nut loose. Was also using a "custom" flywheel stopper. Didn't work.

So, I bought a 6 foot STEEL piece of pipe to attach to the breaker bar next time. I had 3 people (yes 3) standing on the engine. Do not ask me how we managed to get 3 ppl on the engine, it was interesting. Basically we had 2 people on the back and then one on the front/waterpump neck. While we stood on the engine another friend climbed up on a step ladder to get to the end of the 6 foot steel pole. He then jumped up and down hanging from the pipe continously. Custom flywheel stopper was still installed. Eventually we heard a crack/break sound and the pipe/breaker bar/friend all fell to the ground. We figured it had finally broken loose. Turns out the breaker bar broke

We finally went to a impact gun. The one we used had an ~800 lb. setting in reverse and forward. We impacted in reverse against the nut for over a minute straight while pushing down and nothing was happening still!! Then something really cool happened...



So, we ran over to someone elses house to get another adapter and try again. This time we ran the compressor at a higher psi (higher than what the normal rating was supposed to be for the gun) and after another minute of impacting the nut finally flew off.

I don't know why but my flywheel nut was on there WAY WAY too tight. Either some shop at some point in the past owners took the flywheel off to resurface or something and impacted that nut on way too much while using green loctite. Oh well, air tools are my best friend now

 

EVen if you get air tools you need a compressor that will push it. my impact was supposed to be 375 lbs. But my old compressor only went to 98 lbs. It was not enough to push that impact to its potential. I saw an electric one today and it was really big. Probably great for that one job.

One of those things. you need a really big shop with lotsa tools and your life really easy.

 

Aaron has an electric one, says it works dandy. I checked around my local hardware stores and couldn't find one. Although I didn't ask for any help, does anyone here have an online link to one? I heard that they are in the 75$ range and can handle the flywheel bolt.

 

my electric impact wrench would not handle ther flywheel nut but it did take off the front e-shaft bolt...I dunno the specs on it... So dont ask...

 

Here what i did:

I put the socket with the breark bar on the engine, having the handle about 4-6 inches of the ground. I then proceeded to use my cheater bar as a hammer on the very end of the breaker bar. 2 really hard wacks and the bolt came loose.

 

That's what happens when you use sockets not meant for impact

Had the same probem here.. all 3 engines me and my friend took apart we had to use impact guns, no other way would work. Broke 2 breaker bars and a ratchet.

 

Chain wrapped around exhaust manifold stud and a bolt in the flywheel pulling hole keeps it from moving. 3/4" Craftsman breaker bar (the one that has the rotating end)(the cheap bar flexed way to much). With the adjustable head i can get it up by the firewall, no hammering, no laying on your back wondering how to get 350 ft/lbs out of your forearm. Add a pipe extension ( I use a 4ft piece of Kindorf ) and pull.

Pat