Gear drive instalation....

[Warren96]

I am in the middle of the teardown part of the replacement process and am trying to remove the old woodruff key of the balancer on the crankshaft.I thought I could tap on it with a punch and a hammer and it would roll over and come out of the crank.But the more I tap on it the more I notice that the end of the key that I am tapping on is mushrooming and not moving.Since this is a very important part of the engine (to say the least) I thought I should ask for some help from someone who has done this before.How can I get this out of the crankshaft ? Thanks in advance for any help!

[rjschoolcraft]

I would suggest using a punch that is smaller in diameter than the key is wide to tap it and make it roll. If you are installing a Phazer gear drive, it will come with new woodruff keys that are connected with a "bridge" since the crank gear and reluctor wheel (for electronic engines) are two pieces.

[Warren96]

Thanks for getting back to me Ron,I apreciate having someone to bounce ideas off of.Isn't the bottom of the hole that the key is in round?

[rjschoolcraft]

Yes. I always remove Woodruff keys in the way that I described. Should just roll out till you can grip it with some pliers.

[Warren96]

Maybe warm it up a litle, and add a few drops of penetrating oil?

[David Brady]

I too had to get that key out and it didn't look perfect when it came out, it was tight the whole way. But the gear drive gives you a new key, so don't mess up the crank as it comes out. A small punch turned it up and in until we got the vise grips on it. My gear drive seemed to run smoother too.

[Warren96]

Thanks for the encouragment.I have to call DSG tomorrow to see what they think.I would hate to rush into this and screw up the crank!!!

[NH2112]

Go to Sears, pick up a 1/8" pin punch, and grind the end on a bias to make a cape chisel. Tap this in between the key and crank, then when the key comes out break the tip of the punch off and go get a free replacement at Sears :D

[restoguy]

NH2112's on the right track. When I couldn't get the key out of my crank by rolling it, I did just what he suggested. Put a chisel on the underneath side and popped it out real easy. However, I couldn't bring myself to play the 'tool game'. Good luck.

[Warren96]

Finely!!!! I finely see how they come out.If you tap almost straight down on one end the other end pops up where you can grab it with vise grips.I would like to thank EVERYONE who responded to my pleas for help,it was much apreciated!!

[Warren96]

PS; my last question is how do I break the tip off of a punch?

[rlvelin]

Breaking punch tips is really easy when you don't want to. Such as when it is the punch you need for the very next roll pin to come out. I've started buying cheap punches because they just bend and you can carefully straighten them for a couple more blows or the bend may turn out to be calibrated just for the job.