Impact Wrench crank pulley nut 2.3 L Ford, wheels etc.

Was wondering though, say with a 1/2" 4 cfm, max 275 ft lbs of torque, 90 psi, ( my tank is small, but I'm in no hurry, no doubt I'll have to get a bigger compressor soon, currently using a Craftsman 2 HP/12 gal tank 4.7 cfm) would that be adequate for doing wheels and or the crank pulley nut on a 2.3 litre ford, incidentally you may remember me working on what was a mouse infested '94 ranger, turned that around though, runs good, cleaned every part of that cab after removing the entire interior and re-assembling. I have to change the timing belt in it though, never done one of those, assume most would use an impact or bump the starter with a breaker bar and socket wedge in place. I know the compressor is not large enough, but for the interim I just wonder what may work off it for now. One thing I miss from our old shop was the big 440 volt powered compressor, and the plumbing throughout the shop.

You will find that the cheaper impact wrenches aren`t nearly as efficient as the more expensive guns, there is no free lunch. If a more substantial compressor is not in the cards for whatever reason, perhaps you should consider buying yourself a higher quality impact?

I wouldn`t be surprised if you found that the cheap impact wouldn`t even work all that well with a high flow and pressure compressor, I`ve seen it firsthand with my neighbor who is the King of Harbor Freight.

I have not tried fooling with the crank pulley nut, probably have time tomorrow, was under the impression that was how they did them with an impact, sounds like some hefting on a cheater pipe may be in order, ought to be interesting.

About impact wrenches, I have a high dollar Black & Decker unit and an HF that was on sale for $9.99. For breaking bolts loose, the HF el cheapo has far more torque than the B&D.

Appreciate the input, don't know much about these, except the big electric ones the ironworkers use to torque flange connections on structural steel.

I think Ford hired the Jolly Green Giant or Paul Bunyan to tighen the crank bolts on the 2.3 and 2.8/2,9 engines. On mine, I used a socket, breaker bar, and a six foot piece of pipe (no joke). The clutch would not hold against the torque I was putting on it, so I used a 24 inch Stillson wrench on the damper (which is a large chunk of iron after you remove the pulley, no rubber in it like "normal" dampers) I wedged the pipe wrench on the frame and gave the cheater pipe several heave ho's and had the truck rocking and it finally came loose. A friend of mine had this same experience with the damper bolt on a 2.8 V-6 in a '89 ranger/bronco, and a local garage I talked with said "they were all like that from the factory". I went to the garage to confirm that the thread was right hand, it is.

I've changed the belt three times now (60K miles on each belt), I'm up to about 225K miles now on a '91 model, and I do nothing more than give the crank bolt a good heave to tighen it, with a 1/2 drive ratchet. No worry of it coming loose.

About the impact, a more powerful one would be better, but the one you describe would be adequate for most work. I have used a cheap Chicago Pneumatic Japanese made one for about 30 years now, for the first 25 years on a small 1 hp/12 gal/100 psi compressor and now on my big 7.5 hp/80 gal/two stage and it sure does make a difference.

Charles

That tool sounds interesting, and many a time I've taken a step back, realizing it's best to see if a specialized tool is avaialable or I need to make one. From the information I've read, and others experience, you can take a breaker bar say nothing less than 1/2" and get it tight to the frame, disconnect the spark to the cylinders, and bump the starter to get the bolt loose. Must be torqued in there at something like 250 lbs. The only thing, best to use a 6 point socket and have it stay firm onto the head of the bolt, stripping the head on this one would not be good. I'd imagine many shops just use an impact, hard to say, but I'll take my time as I go along. One thing is for sure, the right tool sometimes makes all the difference. The only thing Rotunda has and or is called for this job is a 303-097 timing belt tensioner tool, sounds like there should have been something made up for the crank pulley.

If you don't have a manual, find one on eBay or go to the library. Also look for a Ranger discussion forum on the net. As far as using the starter to break the bolt loose, I've found that the socket and breaker bar is too heavy and unweildy to stay on the bolt head. It can fall off with the slightest vibration. My book pictures all the special tools (with part number only) needed to work on the engine except one: "Crankshaft pulley remover also required".

The chance of finding one of the special tools is like looking for a needle in a hay stack. I would start by setting the breaker bar near verticle and wacking it with a brass or heavy rubber mallet. Or place a piece of plastic pipe over the handle to use a steel hammer. But you need to hold the damper fast to accurately torque the bolt. On the other hand, I'm not sure the damper needs to be removed to change the belt. Maybe just the V belt pulley. It's been a long time since I change the belt.

I think this is about the only thing I own that I actually do not have the manuals for. I am a firm believer in factory shop manuals and or original manuals, I got a new or like new set (2 volume) for my '96 F-150, lot of good tech. information, I've got to swap out the 5 spd trans in it for one I have that is rebuilt, reading about doing this and related work in one of those manuals just about intimidates you out of doing the job, they are intense and list the Rotunda special tools needed by part number, also found the cross reference in .pdf for Rotunda to the new part numbers, and finally found the tensioner tool i was looking for, little expensive, large screwdriver is supposed to work as well.

I'm thinking I'll get that breaker bar on there with a 6 pt socket and see what the deal is, no matter what, this is one bolt that cannot get screwed up, definitely have to take the pulley off to change the belt. I found some good information and posts about this job on the ford truck enthusiasts forum, enough that it should suffice, that and other things mentioned by those who have done this job before, really good side information, like the crank sensor, all the things to replace or do "while you're there" and how to mark the new and old belts so you can avoid fooling with the timing.

The double sided rubber and nylon mallet is a very handy tool to creat some impact, I'll see how it goes, it's worked on other things, just have to take my time, be careful, think and have some patience with removing that bolt.