Thanks, much appreciated. Proof right here why I do business on here.

I sent you a pm dirt track racer

 

DISCLAIMER:
This post is not meant to stir the pot or cause trouble. This post is to inform the masses about a situation we ran into using this tool. I don't want this happening to anyone else.



I want to begin by saying that the tool is a quality piece. I really like the design. Tyler obviously put some thought into this. Thrust bearing= genius!


My corvette had the ever present C6 separating/wobbling crank pulley (GM still won't put out a TSB ) which needed to be replaced. Rather than heating the pulley up like I always do to reinstall it, I wanted my $500 ATI damper pressed on correctly. I remembered this very thread and bought the tool from SDPC. It worked really well when I used it.

My buddy wanted to put a cam in his C6 so I lent it to him knowing he takes good care of tools and such. He called me last Saturday and asked how much the tool cost me. I was like, "Its pretty badass, huh? You want one for yourself, huh?" He explains that I'm a little off and the threads seized up in his crank and he can't get it out. Not wanting to snap the all thread off inside the crankshaft and not wanting to spend the money/time pulling the engine and have a machine shop get it out, he decided to cut it off and use it as a crank stud. He bought a nut and a washer and buttoned her up.

MY THEORY:
Correct me if I'm wrong but the tool is constructed entirely from stainless steel including the all thread. Stainless threads have a tendency to gall and seize without any sort of lubricant. Anti-seize lubricant sounds like an easy solution for the shaft and the nuts to prevent any galling or seizing. But what about the threaded end that goes into the crankshaft's threads? I'm no chemist but if you run threads with anti-seize in to install the pulley, then thread that new crank bolt (or ARP bolt) with red loctite in behind it, wouldn't it affect or negate the purpose of the loctite? (Somebody chime in if you know if this is true one way or another.) I know you can get a can of brake clean and hose the threads in the crank down to remove the anti-seize but I'm reluctant to bring anything that sprays Methyl Ethyl Ketone anywhere near my glossy black paint. I'm sure others are **** about their car/truck like me.

I wish I would have thought about this before using it because when I was in cryogenics, I saw stainless threads seize more than a few times.

MY RECOMMENDATION GOING FORWARD:
If its cool to use loctite in behind a little bit of anti-seize (it still sounds counter-intuitive ) there should be some sort of disclaimer included with the tool when it is purchased. I must admit, my expensive ATI pulley and pinning kit came with some half-assed directions but they did give some very important warnings on what not to do. Some directions on proper use and a warning to the consumer about thread galling would certainly benefit the quality of the product and the quality of the builder/designer's reputation. If the loctite/anti-seize combination is a bad idea, perhaps include some instructions explaining a method or two on how to clean those threads.

If some sort of anti-seize should not be used in conjunction with loctite, perhaps it would be better/cheaper to switch to carbon steel all thread. Carbon steel has less tendency to gall and seize. I know its not as pretty (and damnit that tool is pretty! ) Our TTY stock bolts are galvanized carbon steel. Hell, zinc coating may even help the lubricity of the threads in the crank. I am not a metallurgist either so if any one is, feel free to correct me!


Tyler,

Again, I'm not trying to tarnish your reputation. I saw your work and you built a very nice, well engineered tool. However, I want others to be aware of a hazard we came across. Maybe this experience was a freak occurrence but it made me think about your design. Perhaps his threads were screwed from GM. Perhaps there was some crud in the threads to begin with. All speculation aside, I'm out a $60 tool and my friend now runs the risk of seizing a nut on the all thread. If that happens, the engine will be pulled and either have a machinist get the all thread out or have to replace the crankshaft. It could have happened to my car/truck or even yours.


Beau

 

Just wanted to let everyone know I've used it over 20 times in the shop (I'm a tech @ Gregg Young Chevy in Omaha) without any problems! Also found it works very well on Colorado and Trailblazers!. That's not counting maybe a dozen or so other times other techs have used it! Just wanted to drop in here and give you all an update!

EDIT - Just read the above post. I've found some balancers to be more difficult to install than others due to build variances. Camaros especially! When I install the tool into the crank I bottom it out then back it off a thread or two. Never used any lube on the threads. Never had any problems removing it after the fact. If it is difficult going in at all then there is still loctite from the factory bolt in there. I have an old factory bolt I've cut a groove into I use for cleaning the threads in the crank first. Esentially a thread chaser. Works like a charm!

 

I have 400+ tools out there and have never had this problem or it would have already been posted numerous times. I have one tool I have rented out and let several people use that's been used 40+ times. That piece is not made from stainless steel.

My only thoughts is there was trash in the crank or the main bolt got ran tight and bottomed out. Anytime a bolt gets bottomed out and tightened, it expands the end and galles the threads coming out, or gets tight and will not come out.

In the last batch of tools I did send instructions, but I'll have Beau to revise them stating to screw it in and back it out a round or two to keep it from bottoming out.

pm me your address and I'll send you another tool.

 

PM sent

Thank you again, Tyler.

Beau

 

Alright I just ruined two perfectly good motors and two tools pulling the threads inside the crank. Didn't matter if I had to bust up a couple tools to find out why it did this, but I wanted to find out to prevent other people from doing this.
Not saying anything about your friend or anything. You know just as well as I do, if something like this happens, 99% of the people would automatically blame the tool.
The more I thought about this, the more I thought that it wasn't threaded in all the way. It takes 11 turns for the bolt to bottom out. I kept unthreading the bolt until I had problems. At 7 rounds you can see on the threads they're are starting to pull. At 6 rounds, it takes more effort to unscrew the main bolt as its starting to gauld. At 5 rounds it gaulded the threads and I couldn't get the bolt out. Happened on both motors exactly the same number of rounds.

In my opinion what I think happened. When he started to thread the tool in, the nut that's welded to the bearing was not threaded all the way back against the bolt and was run down quite a ways. So when he started threading the whole tool in, he only got a few threads into the crankshaft then bottomed out on the washer and rest of the tool and started to press the balancer on with only a few threads in the crankshaft.

 

Tyler,

Thanks for the tool. My wife confirmed that I got it in the mail.

I don't think that is what happened. He said he was able to thread it in easily. Prior to putting any stress on the threads, he was unable to back it off. The more he backed it off, the more it tightened up which makes me think there was some trash in his threads to begin with. On the flip side, once he threaded the all-thread in more, it threaded just fine. He just couldn't back it off. I'm pretty sure he got it to bottom out. After putting the pulley on, it didn't want to unscrew, so he ended up cutting it before it broke off in the crank.

 

Something wasn't right for sure, either trash in the threads or wasn't threaded all the way is the only way I can see why it did what it did. With the tool oiled and the crankshaft/balancer hub oiled it takes very little effort and doesn't put much stress on the bolt. I handmake every tool and myself and inspect every tool myself to make sure everything looks and works properly. If it was that big of an issue you'd see it a lot more often on my tool and hawks tool. That's just my thoughts on it.

 

I know im bringing up the dead but do you still make these?

 

You can order them from scroggin-dickey