This has been years of EPIC FAIL. Feel free to jump to PHOTOS BELOW if the narrative is too much blabber to start. Pictures speak more clearly, for the big view.

I made the mistake of hiring a hack mobile mechanic without necessary tools/skills to change my timing belt. I should have supervised. He had trouble with the PULLEY BOLT and decided to break the bolt WITH THE ENGINE by bracing and breaking a breaker bar that flew and bashed. After the job was done, he apparently did not manage to torque the bolt to spec (185lbs) and subsequently, after several months, the Harmonic Balancer Flew off while driving. This damaged the pulley as well as the threads at the tip of the crankshaft which he had attempted to repair by drilling out the rough threads and then using lock tight. Once again, it was not torqued to spec. Fool me twice shame on me. Balancer number 2 came off a few months later, this time sheering off half of the Woodruff key, the remaining half is completely jammed in the Timing Gear (e.g.Sprocket) which is has too narrow a clearance between its edge and the engine's casing so that prying is dangerous and most pulley pullers can't quite fit unless they are too light weight to succeed. Another mobile hack attempted to try a different puller (after damaging the sprockets when prying) and that involved drilling two holes in the now damaged sprocket, which has to be removed and replaced. But it still can't come off and in fact bends the screw bolt on the puller (somehow). I stopped him at this point because I just can't do any worse myself if I consult with people who know a thing or two.

I only know to ask you before doing further damage to the Crankshaft and the rest of the engine. How would you get this sucker OFF (in as many pieces you advise)?

To summarize my question to you:

1) What methods should I attempt in order get this STUCK TIMING GEAR (sprocket) OFF of the crankshaft. If there is more than one way to skin this cat, then list the methods in the order you would attempt it with limited money, most tools, but NOT in a professional mechanic's garage. I have TIME and IQ and PATIENCE but with the ability to follow instruction, think and troubleshoot logically, the ability to borrow (or buy) more tools...eventually.

2) Once that sucker is removed, without damaging casing or camshaft, then what would you suggest I do when putting this back together? I DO HAVE THE DEALER SHOP MANUAL supplement for the V-6 2.7L and I have a used TIMING SPROCKET GEAR that was EASY for me to remove at the junk yard (with a 6 foot cyclone fence pole as a breaker bar) as well as a used HARMONIC BALANCER and used BOLT. I bought a NEW WOODRUFF KEY from the DEALER for $15 just to torture myself, and I will buy whatever specific brand of LockTight I need to perform the LAST timing belt replacement because that BOLT will never need to come off again with 205,000 miles on this engine!

3) While I'm in there if you think I need to replace camshaft sensors or springs, seals, etc. or whatever else come to mind if you were going to do this properly so that it will not leave any stupid short cuts to fail. BEAR IN MIND that this car has 205K (But RAN LIKE A CHAMP IN 2017-8) and lives in MILD central coastal California climate but it HAS NOT RUN IN 20+ MONTHS. I don't have gas in the tank BUT I never flushed out gas lines etc so feel free to school me on every fluid and hose that I need to replace - feel free to lay it on me I wanna do this right.I know this is a negligent to wait so long.

4) I understand that I should have never dug a hole so deep with hacks, but I am willing to put in the effort to fix this out of sheer stubbornness even if it does not seem to be worth the blue book. I don't want to sell it, I just want to fix it so that I can get some level of SUCCESS after dealing with this sucker for 3 years of epic failure.

5) I REALLY HOPE that I can do this without needing to PULL THE ENGINE OUT. Its a can of worms I'd rather avoid since I'm working in my back yard and I don't have the heavy equipment. I realize that may be the only way after exhausting other alternatives with limited clearance in the wheel well

6) feel free to comment about any particular aspect of this process that you personally have experience with and would like to mention, even if it is not the entire step by step workflow. Share what you know, whatever tips or pitfalls that you'd like to mention. Your personal experience is always useful if it pertains to what I need to consider when putting this old duck back on the road

THANK YOU, IN ADVANCE FOR YOU HELP. I REALLY APPRECIATE YOUR ASSISTANCE. I WILL BE CERTAIN TO FOLLOW UP WITH THE SOLUTIONS THAT ARE SUCCESSFULLY IMPLEMENTED IN ORDER TO DOCUMENT SUCCESS AT THIS EXCELLENT HONDA ACCORD FORUM. THANK YOU VERY MUCH!



REPLACEMENT PART to be installed. Timing Sprocket stuck on Camshaft. Notice this is the 2.7 V-6

CLOSE UP OF STUCK SPROCKET with my notes

A hack removed the BOLT by bracing breaker bar and TURNING the engine. He never torqued the bolt after the timing belt job. Harmonic balancer came off twice.

Another hack failed attempt. When other pullers failed, two holes were drilled into the timing gear for the other puller which also completely failed.

The pullers bolt completely bent in this failed attempt. I stopped this fiasco to get some smart advice from you and do it myself.

Notice the broken Woodruff key is at 7 o'clock. It was at 12 o'clock when I removed the belt. This guy turned the Crankshaft counterclockwise without the belt attached and I don't know why! It was correctly timed before that move!

DAMAGE DONE BY HACK - notice that the key slot that was at 12 o'clock when the belt was removed turned counter clockwise.

This is the 2.7L V-6 with the double belt harmonic balancer that came off and broke the Woodruff Key

 

WOW!!! The end of that crank looks messed up. I'd probably warm the crank gear up with a torch to try and remove it. Maybe even in conjunction with a new puller, since that one in the pic is bent. The lower pulley/harmonic balancer in my 99 2.3L had come loose in my own car before I bought it. Fortunately, I only had to replace the pulley (the key slot was opened up 4 times the normal width) and key (along with resetting the timing) on it. I did add a drop of blue loctite on it, as I was worried since it had already come loose once. It's been fine for over 3 years now though. I replaced the timing belts while I was in there after I first put it together, as I wanted to make sure the engine was ok after all of that had happened first.
I don't know if you'll ever get a bolt to stay in that crank, short of using green loctite, and even then I'm not sure it'll stay. I'd try a new puller with a torch to help get that one off though. Then polish up the end of the crank before reassembly. All of those parts should slide together really nice (like butter), at least mine did.
I hope this helps.

 

Thanks! It does help to hear from survivors of the camshaft ordeal. Three years and running is an excellent repair success. I'll be sure to follow up with detailed results..

 

Toecutter hit what I was going to say. Heat it up and use a puller. It should come right off.

Many times I've been in rusty seized situations and heat did the trick. I keep torch cans around because i never know when someone from up north will come asking for help. I refuse to go through what I went through the first time I worked on someone's car from New York. It was a learning experience.

 

Wow! To me, it looks like the crankshaft itself is destroyed! (BTW title says camshaft but that's actually the crankshaft pulley/sprocket.)

It looks like he tried to drill into the broken bolt but allowed the drill to walk off-center & into the crankshaft material around the bolt-hole. The broken end of the bolt is still in there. If he originally used a shorter bolt (even worse, a weaker bolt from a hardware store) then it's no wonder it broke off again.

The end of the crankshaft is so messed up that I really wonder if it can be fixed without replacing the crankshaft.

 

I agree 100% Jim, and that was what I wondered too. I don't know what the length of the stock bolt is, or if it'll get down deep enough into the threaded area. That would be my main concern, getting into some good threads, and getting in deep enough to hold the bolt. But, if that can happen, some green loctite should hold it. By the way, the green loctite I speak of is Bearing and Sleeve retainer. It's even stronger than red loctite, and will need a torch to remove it. I mainly use it on screw in lug studs (I'm an air cooled VW guy with 20+ years of experience behind me).

 

Very likely true. This guy really did a number on it. I should have known better when he didn't have enough tools or a shop manual or any online reference material for my car. I had told him to let me know if he needed any tools or to get it into a shop, but he was not incentivized to spend elsewhere or to delay completion, and that's where I erred. Its like the fable about the scorpion and the frog....

Kermit the frog, here.

I figure if I can get that dang sprocket wheel off then at least I can move forward. How do I get that thing off without pulling the engine out? Then I can try the lock tight with all the parts I already have and see how it goes. I hate to sink anything more into it because having not driven for so long it may developed other issues. I'm nearly over my head now without opening the engine case, If I replace the camshaft I will have to pull the engine. This means putting in a used part is almost stupid, risky at the least, and the factory part wont be cheap, or a good fit in an old engine. It may very well be a total loss,

The sprocket (timing belt drive pulley) has got me annoyed. Its gotta go even if the engine never will. Its me or it. What tool does one use to get a hunk'a solid steel to come apart without damaging the camshaft? And can I rent one from Autozone or Home Depot? Or is this a job for the artillery ?

 

None of the photos are of the camshaft, so I don't know about that. They're all photos of the crankshaft.

Most of what I'd try, it looks like he already tried but buggered it up. Not just drilling but he may have slightly mushroomed the end of the crankshaft during the attempt that bent his puller.

 

Like I've already mentioned a torch. That and a puller like you posted used in conjunction. Heat the gear as close to glowing red as you can, and using the puller tool, wind it down and pull the gear off. Otherwise your next option becomes more mid evil, cut it off with a grinder. At this point, you have nothing to loose, as the damage is already done.

 

You are right on with your conclusion. I would do the exact same things.