Write-Up: Removing the Crank Pulley/Harmonic Balancer

I got the crank bolt off (which wasn't too easy) and I can't get the pulley off. Chiltons says "The damper should pull off the crankshaft by hand."

Secondly, there's no way to mount a harmonic balancer puller or any puller anyway.

well I figured it out so here it is if anyone needs it in the future. Aaron.

need to get a standard harmonic balancer puller if you don't have it. (thankfully I had that) and three 1/4 bolts, ideally about 5 inches long.


99c for 6 at Menards


with the puller in place (you can use the washers that come with the puller), screw the 3 bolts in. You pretty much have to thread it so FYI - it's probly not gonna just screw right in without any effort.



There it is all ready to go. Ignore the white wires going through the balancer. That was the remnants of the first sorry attempt to get it off.
With this set up, it came off smooth with no problem at all.

This definitely cannot be done without a puller. The book is incorrect.

Thanx for the info, Codith!

We had lots of problems getting that off doing my cam.

SpaceBar wrote:

We had lots of problems getting that off doing my cam.

it's a piece of cake if you are on a lift and have 6 foot cheater bar with a 1/2in drive or bigger hardened socket. really a piece of cake. (I didn't have a lift )

My repairman says that the puller specified for the harmonic balancer on the '97 Rivera is not matching up to the holes on the harmonic balancer. Has anyone ever heard of this? If they try and pull it with the wrong tool it might (will) pull the out ring from the inner ring which will ruin it. $175 part!

Has anyone ideas on a special puller or ?

Please reply. Scott

No special puller. Your repairman is pulling your chain. I used a Craftsman standard harmonic balancer puller with three 4 or 5 inch long bolts purchased from Home Depot. Any harmonic balancer puller will work.

You better find another repairman...lol

Just a fyi - the harmonic balancer bolt torque is something like 110 foot pounds plus a 1/4 turn or something. Use loctite on the bolts and tighten it to 110 or 120 foot pounds and it aint coming off. Most balancer bolt torque is 100 foot pounds + on most cars with a bolt the same size as the 3800 one.

Since my air gun would not remove the bolt initially, I put a socket and ratchet on the bolt and rested the base of the ratchet on the k-frame of the car and then bumped the starter- bolt came right off.

A puller is required, but it is not special.

Thank you guys !!!

Happy THanksgiving

How do you get it back on?

98riviera98 wrote:

How do you get it back on?

slide it on by hand and make sure it's lined up and then just tighten it down with the crank bolt. Also need to have the flywheel braced so you can torque it down

turtleman wrote:

98riviera98 wrote:

How do you get it back on?

slide it on by hand and make sure it's lined up and then just tighten it down with the crank bolt. Also need to have the flywheel braced so you can torque it down

How did you brace the flywheel?

98riviera98 wrote:

turtleman wrote:

98riviera98 wrote:

How do you get it back on?

slide it on by hand and make sure it's lined up and then just tighten it down with the crank bolt. Also need to have the flywheel braced so you can torque it down

How did you brace the flywheel?

With the plastic inspection cover off, you can use a small to medium sized vice-grip and postion it against the side it will be bracing against when you start turning the crank. Make sure you've got it nice and tight and somewhat squarely. Bigger vice-grip is better because you can get all the way around the teeth of the flywheel to grip the flywheel and not the actual teeth.

As a note. Your pic of the 1/4 inch bolts show 1/4 -20 normal course thread bolts. Everything I have read (and also the 2 I have done) say the threads are fine 1/4- 28. Also, I picked up grade 8 bolts cause if you pull the threads out you are screwed bad. Very good pics and write up.

Technically speaking the proper thread of the bolts is M6 x 1.0. A 75mm or longer bolt is the proper length.

As for blocking the flywheel. There is a tool that most won't have. Another method of holding is a large screwdriver can be used on the teeth of the flywheel.

I just pulled another HB last Sat. The 1/4- 28 work perfect as mentioned on 3800.com posts. Also, I just clamp a vice grip on the flywheel/ ring gear and let it wenge against the trans housing. It has always worked and you can do it all alone. You will need a BF cheeter bar on the breaker bar to break the crank bolt loose. No 1/2" drive impact I have has ever broke loose the crank HB bolt.

Interesting. I've always had great success not blocking the flywheel and only using an impact. There were a couple of times it was close, but always worked out.

If you put a long breaker bar on the crank bolt, and lay the end of the breaker bar on the concrete, the starter motor will break the bolt loose. Been doing that for years with the Buick V8's. Works like a charm. You just have to position the breaker bar on the correct side of the engine so that the rotation of the engine loosens the bolt.

What makes a HB go bad? I mean, how do you know it's time to replace? I've a thread on this line about getting mine replanced, and a noise afterwards...but why would you replace a HB?????

Thanks guys!

when my OEM one went the rubber part had cracks untill it finally went completely and the outer part would spin separate from the center.

On the second and 3rd time mine went out it was from shitty parts from advance auto and the center metal cracked apart.

Right. Nate, the harmonic balancer uses a rubber insulator between the piece which bolts to the crank, and the outer pulley. The insulator helps absorb crankshaft vibrations. Unfortunately it dries out over time and then you have a lot of rattling and clanging and throw belts and stuff. That's when it's time to replace the HB.

deekster_caddy wrote:

Right. Nate, the harmonic balancer uses a rubber insulator between the piece which bolts to the crank, and the outer pulley. The insulator helps absorb crankshaft vibrations. Unfortunately it dries out over time and then you have a lot of rattling and clanging and throw belts and stuff. That's when it's time to replace the HB.

How many miles/years does it take for the HB to dry out?

Albertj

albertj wrote:

deekster_caddy wrote:

Right. Nate, the harmonic balancer uses a rubber insulator between the piece which bolts to the crank, and the outer pulley. The insulator helps absorb crankshaft vibrations. Unfortunately it dries out over time and then you have a lot of rattling and clanging and throw belts and stuff. That's when it's time to replace the HB.

How many miles/years does it take for the HB to dry out?

Albertj

It varies a LOT. But any motor 'build' I would do to a 3800 today would probably include a new balancer.

Albert, you have over 200k miles on your car.
Have you ever had to change the harmonic balancer due to failure.?

Mine went out at ~135k miles and the rest of my car is in pristine condition with 0 rust anywhere and garage kept most of its life. Dont know why mine decided to die other than it was 13yrs old at the time.