I was going to suggest Company23 then I read your post completely.

 

I have the C23 wrench, and will (hopefully) finally get to try it sometime this week ( this "1 days worth of time" on this project has now stretched to well over a month!) so that I can change the cam seals before finally bolting everything back together. '01 OB 2.5

 

So nobody has tried to use anything like these ones from Princess Auto?

 

I thought the Company23 expensive and 2 days away when I needed them and did the old belt and vise-grips. But the CO 23 is $44 vs 39.00 (that's $6) ... unless the Canada comment changes all that. I get that, from a Canadian is better value vs. a USA boarder crossing ****.

People modding and working in AUS face the same. I am so happy most of CKE SSP products are under 16 oz. My shipping cost and declaration facilitation though USPS makes Canada and AUS $18 instead of $7 and maybe 10 days.

 

Yeah, the Canadia part means add 30% to the list price, then add shipping and GST - and brokerage if they happen to prefer the wrong courier company (like UPS) - so it gets stupid pretty fast compared to a general-purpose tool I can buy just down the street (and can return anytime in the next two years if I don't like it) for a fraction of the list price.

 

Company 23 is fantastic. At the dealer we all started buying them cause they were better then the factory tools

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

I use Company23 tools because their tough and fit perfect on every application. I get your issue, though. Research the company you're looking to buy from and try to find reviews from others. If they offer a good warranty on the parts, such as fit and breakage, then go for it. On the plastic gears/pulleys, that plastic is tougher than it looks.

 

I got this for my PT Cruiser.

https://www.lislecorp.com/specialty-tools/universal-cam-adjuster

$24 online and $40 at a local parts store. It works but it's awkward. I use a cheater bar to get the 80 ft-lb bolts on and off (I've done this multiple times, don't ask why).

On the Outback, I did the timing belt job without a holder. I simply wrapped the old belt around the sprocket on top of itself so that when you turn try to turn the bolt, the belt tightens against itself. I then anchored the other end of the belt elsewhere. If you are mechanically inclined (and most here are much more than I am), you can figure out the same principle as how I got the harmonic balancer off using the old accessory belt. Just be sure to anchor it where it won't cause damage. I took the alternator off to give the socket wrench a solid footing. Never use another pulley as and anchor like this.

But the right tool is probably the way to go and the Lisle tool works. Maybe the other tools work better, but this was all I could find locally when I needed it.

 

Someone posted this pdf on an old post. I made one and used it to hold the crank pulley. I used 1/4 inch aluminum plate.

 

This right here is pretty sweet. I am going to make one for sure.

 

Well, truth be told, I brought it up because I was in a pinch, didn't have a tool, and hadn't yet discovered these Princess Auto ones (whether or not they work). So I picked up a gate hinge strap that had been lying in the driveway for the last couple of years and drilled a hole in it. Steel's too soft, so it twisted when I used it, but it got the job done.

One of these days I'll get a mill in here...

 

Oops - Looks like I bought the wrong thing for breaking the cam sprocket bolts loose - the one I bought is for the twin cam engine! Looks like I now need to make my own if i want to get the job done this week!



I DID get the wrench for the crank pully, and it worked just as expected - very well.


If someone wants the twin cam locking tool ( Camlock Tool 1), it's theirs for half price ($25 plus mailing).

 

Oops - Looks like I bought the wrong thing for breaking the cam sprocket bolts loose - the one I bought is for the twin cam engine! Looks like I now need to make my own if i want to get the job done this week!



I DID get the wrench for the crank pully, and it worked just as expected - very well.


If someone wants the twin cam locking tool ( Camlock Tool 1), it's theirs for half price ($25 plus mailing).

do you still want to get rid of the cam lock 1 tool?

 

Has anyone ever used a rubber strap wrench for the cam sprockets?

 

Yes. I tried the larger one of these:

Harbor Freight Strap Wrenches

It was a single use tool or should I say single failure tool. As soon as I started to put torque on the handle, the fibers in the strap started snapping and fraying within the rubber strap. Didn't do a bit of good, but at least it was cheap!

Maybe a bigger more expensive wrench would work, but a metal sprocket holder with a long handle or cheater bar extension is the best. I've seen someone use channel lock pliers on a cam sprocket, but I'd be terrified of wrecking the sprocket.

 

Harbor Freight Single Failure Tool....

:21:

Afternoon belly laugh.

 

I use a chain wrench, with old belts I’ve the pulleys for protection.

 

Still have it here somewhere. Will find it later this evening - trying to finish machining a differential body right now - and will get back with you either later this evening or in the morning. I have to make a trip to Fed Ex sometime tomorrow afternoon, so the timing may be perfect.

 

Got it still. Email me your address so that I can figure out the shipping cost. rpare@prodigy.net