@#$@ Crank Bolt

[bigginsben]

So, having read the forums quite thoroughly, I attacked my crankbolt in an effort to get a front 60K done on my newish 91 MTX

Cracked one 19mm socket in half

2nd 19mm socket rounded off the bolt

Got a bolt-off from sears. Got 4 good thunks from the engine - nothing - still stuck on the damned pulley.

Now the bold head is rounded AND torn up from the bolt-off.

From what I can tell, I am not getting enough torque from the engine to crack the bolt. so from what I can tell my options are:

1) get a breaker bar - but HOW do you fit the massive head of a 3/4 in breaker bar down in there to crack the bolt? I can barely fit the head of my 1/2 in hand tool. And from what angle do you pull? And how do you stop the pulley from turning over the engine?

2) Cut it off - this, from what people have posted, involves propane cutters

Any other options? HELP!

!$%!@%$ sho.

Love it!

 

[rubydist]

the breaker bar will fit in there - I've always used a 1/2" breaker w/ a cheater pipe on the end, and laid the pipe against the subframe and then done the starter bump to get the bolt loose. worked every time for me.

If you cannot do that for some reason, you will have to remove the starter and jam a tool in the teeth of the ring gear to stop the engine from rotating while you pull on the bolt with your breaker bar. Ford makes a tool for this, but iirc you have to have the trans removed to use it.

 

[mrecoolgar]

Attach jumper cables from a running vehicle while trying the bump method.
This was the only way I could remove the bolt from my 91+.

 

[bigginsben]

hrm...

I don't think the problem is with my wrench... I don't think the engine is getting enough torque on it to crack the bolt. I can get it to thunk when i bump it but it will not go farther - it will not crack the bolt.

What would running jumper cables do?

 

[Off Road SHO]

What would running jumper cables do?

Doubles the speed of cranking and therfore, momentum (inertia is a good thing in this procedure). The faster the heavy flywheel rotates, the more the pound*feet of torque that will be exerted on that bolt.

A few helpfull notes: Have a lovely assistant turn the key for you. Start with the breaker bar a few inches away from its stopping point (the subframe), this will allow more momentum to build up. And finally, use something to remotely hold the socket end of the breaker bar onto the bolt head to make sure it's not canted over to one side.

Good luck.

Tom

 

[SHOtime2511]

A good impact should be able to bust it loose.
Harbor Freight has a nice "earthquake" 1/2 for about $90.
Make sure you are using a 6 point 19mm socket,12 points will round off the bolt with a quickness.

 

[luigisho]

It's my understanding that it's already rounded off. Maybe you can hammer an impact socket on there to get enough of a bite.

 

[jayro]

I had to attach a jump starter to my battery and have the breaker bar be a few inches from the subframe (as stated above). Ive never had any luck with the impact gun......I have heard a 3/4 will do wonders though.

 

[itwonder]

A lot of times, a breaker bar will have too much slop in the head joint and flex in the handle to transmit the required jolt to the head bolt. I have had better luck using a ratchet, preferably one with a lifetime warranty. But I have yet to break one.

Always always use a six point socket. An impact socket has thicker walls and is less likely to break (unless it is from Harbor Freight).

If the bolt head is rounded of, just cut the ****** off with a hole saw and the bolt will come right out. The forum search function will dig up the details on that procedure from folks who pioneered the technique.

 

[JRA2000TL]

A good impact should be able to bust it loose.
Harbor Freight has a nice "earthquake" 1/2 for about $90.
Make sure you are using a 6 point 19mm socket,12 points will round off the bolt with a quickness.

I just bought this bigass impact gun mainly for this reason....alot of guns will provide enough torque to change tires and do other things but when the PO of my 95 said he tried a 3/8 gun without luck and had to move up to a 1/2 gun to get the crank bolt off when he did the CPS; I knew nothing less would be adequate.

I measured what type of gun to buy by that damned crank bolt! Its removal is required for several things, so I might as well get something that will do it.

 

[SHOtime2511]

I just bought this bigass impact gun mainly for this reason....alot of guns will provide enough torque to change tires and do other things but when the PO of my 95 said he tried a 3/8 gun without luck and had to move up to a 1/2 gun to get the crank bolt off when he did the CPS; I knew nothing less would be adequate.

I measured what type of gun to buy by that damned crank bolt! Its removal is required for several things, so I might as well get something that will do it.

Yep.
Its not just a SHO thing either,I just did a bunch of work including the timing belt on my Civic and it was a pain to get off.
LSx engines are something like 240 ft-lbs + 140 degrees.

 

[Devin]

I just bought this bigass impact gun mainly for this reason....alot of guns will provide enough torque to change tires and do other things but when the PO of my 95 said he tried a 3/8 gun without luck and had to move up to a 1/2 gun to get the crank bolt off when he did the CPS; I knew nothing less would be adequate.

I measured what type of gun to buy by that damned crank bolt! Its removal is required for several things, so I might as well get something that will do it.

What were the specs on that gun?

 

[JRA2000TL]

Specs copied from the website:

625 ft. lbs. of torque out-muscles other 1/2" wrenches. Same design as the guns used by most pit crews.

■Twin-hammer delivers more torque to the anvil, less vibration
■Six speed regulator
■Forward/reverse
■Protective rubber boot
Maximum torque: 625 ft. lbs
Torque range: 40 to 400 ft. lbs
Free speed: 6600 RPM forward, 6800 RPM reverse
Standard bolt capacity: 5/8"
Air consumption: 4.7 SCFM
Air inlet: 1/4"-18 NPT
Overall length: 7-3/4"
Shipping Weight: 7.08 lbs

 

[Phoenix]

IngersollRand Thundergun FTMFW.

So far , no bolts/nuts won with that gun.

 

[JRA2000TL]

If I did as many projects as you, Phoenix, maybe it would be worth the extra $120 for the IR. I wanted an IR impact but didn't want to spend a fortune, so they were out. For the little I'll use mine, it will do the job. As long as it can get the crank bolt off this or any car I attempt to work on, it'll work for me.

 

[shoon]

IngersollRand Thundergun FTMFW.

So far , no bolts/nuts won with that gun.

Agreed. I still have mine, haven't used it in 2 years though. Hard to find a compressor that puts out enough CFM to make this thing work properly.

 

[MARV87341]

Crank Bolt

I've used many methods including bracing a 1/2 breaker bar with 6 point 19mm socket against the subframe while I bumped the starter. Make sure the coil pack is disconnected. If this doesn't work you can use Vise-Grip Locking Chain pliers to hold the crank pulley, brace vise-grip handle, slide a 30"-36" piece of pipe(or a floor jack handle) over the breaker bar for more torque, and push toward firewall. The Vise-Grips(27ZR) can be found at Ace Hardware online or at a store. Use a breaker bar with a lifetime warranty because you may break it. Or use 3/4 drive tools if you have them available.

 

[SHO_ROLLER_2]

Take a hole saw and remove the ****** around the bolt.

 

[platoribs]

Specs copied from the website:

625 ft. lbs. of torque out-muscles other 1/2" wrenches. Same design as the guns used by most pit crews.

■Twin-hammer delivers more torque to the anvil, less vibration
■Six speed regulator
■Forward/reverse
■Protective rubber boot
Maximum torque: 625 ft. lbs
Torque range: 40 to 400 ft. lbs
Free speed: 6600 RPM forward, 6800 RPM reverse
Standard bolt capacity: 5/8"
Air consumption: 4.7 SCFM
Air inlet: 1/4"-18 NPT
Overall length: 7-3/4"
Shipping Weight: 7.08 lbs

Soooo Jer? Have you removed the crank bolt to check if yer new tool works?

 

[kevinspann]

Yeah, if the bolt is rounded off, cut off the ****** and get another bolt.