How can I improvise a crankshaft pulley holder?

I need to take my cylinder heads off and I ordered a

$95 OTC 4754 Universal Pulley Holder Wrench with Interchangeable pins, black

crankshaft pulley holder from Amazon but it takes them time to get prepare my order and I won't have it until next week. It is a really frustrating situation because the weekend, when I actually have time to work on the truck, will go by without me having the necessary tool.

Is there any way to macgyver something that can do the job this tool does on a Tacoma V6 crankshaft pulley so that I can move forward?

 

It's possible. I made one a couple of decades ago to hold the crank pulley on my Eclipse GSX. I had a long piece of metal (may have been a mower blade but I seem to recall it being longer and completely flat.. you get the idea) and I cut have half circle notch out of the edge for the center of the crank that stands out to clear and then drilled two holes in it for two of the bolts to thread into. In that instance the bolts had enough threads to do this so maybe you can do the same but drill the holes large enough for the heads of the bolts to clear so you don't have to remove them at all? I always wondered if that would have been easier/better but it worked for my needs at the time and gave me the leverage I needed so if you can picture that and have the resources that may be an option for you. Personally, I would just get the right tool or wait to do the job unless someone posts with a surefire way to do what I described for our trucks. Either way, good luck.

 

O'Reillys rents tools for free (require Credit Card deposit). Try that route.

 

Thanks but I think the Amazon delivery will come sooner.

 

You must not have a O'Reillys near you. Because in my case I could walk to the store and back in less than a weekend.

Autozone might rent tools too....

 

That would be correct. I'm in the Mid-Atlantic. I was assuming they would need to ship it.

 

Here's another idea. Buy a new serpentine belt. Take the old one and cut it. wrap it around the crank pulley so that it overlaps with the cut end, then take a breaker bar or maybe a jack handle and tie to the other end so that it can't move. That ought to lock the pulley solidly (make sure you wrap it the right way of course.). I've done this more than once in the past. When you try to turn the pulley, the belt will tighten and stop the turning, if you get the handle/breaker-bar or whatever in a solid location. Always be careful when pulling hard so that if it slips or the belt actually breaks. you won't hurt yourself when the tension is released.

 

Haha, I'm not going that route but I love your out-of-the-box thinking. BTW, what you're describing is called a strap wrench and is sometimes used in plumbing to turn big heavy cast iron pipes.

 

Is your engine on an engine stand?

 

No, it is under the hood

 

Transmission attached?

 

Yes sir.

 

Put it in 6th gear. Engage e-brake. Breaker bar and possibly a cheater pipe attached. Done.

 

I just finished doing this with a scrap piece of aluminum. I used a 1/4" thick, 24" long and 2 1/2" wide. Drilled a 1-1/2" hole and two 3/8" holes for the bolts at one end. Took me about 15 minutes to make and worked perfect. I also ended up replacing the pulley as it was groved pretty bad from mud and crap.

 

I was actually thinking about something along these lines. Thanks

 

This method works best for the automatic owners.

 

Can you explain why it matters?

 

In the manual, the gear reduction and clutch will hold the crank from spinning. While breaking loose or tightening the bolt. No specialty tool needed.

Not possible with the auto. So a strong compact impact gun, or this tool are needed. To prevent the crank from spinning.

 

Wow !! Now that I think about it, it makes perfect sense. Thanks !

 

Why do you need to pull the crankshaft bolt to remove the heads?

Or is it that you will want reassemble everything in the same weekend, and need something to hold the crank then?