Flywheel Puller?

[[jh]]

Will any puller work on our Visions? I thought I read somewhere that they required a special size?? Thanks

[Night Vision]

the harmonic balancer puller style needs about a 3" spread between the pulling bolts

not sure about the jaw type gear puller

[kiawrench]

i have always used a craftsman 8 inch jaw style puller,, big beefy center bolt, good striking surface on head of center bolt . and a 3 pound drilling hammer  (hand sledge).  do not forget to use a shallow cardboard box under everything with a couple of old towels; need a place for all the little parts to land when flywheel pops loose.

[Jimustanguitar]

The jaw pullers will work if you have one big enough to grip the flywheel, but be careful not to deform the wheel where the jaws land.

There are threaded holes in the flywheel just for a puller. Try the harmonic balancer type that has 3 holes in it for bolts. Like this: http://www.craftsman.com/craftsman-harmonic-balancer-puller/p-00947626000P?vName=Hand+Tools&prdNo=9    that's what I've used in the past.

Bolting the puller to the flywheel is less likely to come undone when you're hitting it with a hammer too.

[pinholenz]

Wow, I wish we could get craftsman harmonic pullers over here at that price. What a steael!

[PwrManDan]

On the heels of this, last night I went to sears and got one. 

[[jh]]

Do the bolts that come with it will fit ok? Metric?
Oh never mind, one of the reviews says it comes with the right bolts.

[Jimustanguitar]

All I know is that the kit I've had forever only had 2 of the right bolts left and I had to go to the hardware store :)

If somebody knows what thread the flywheel puller holes are, you should post it to the parts and upgrades section for future reference.

[[jh]]

Ok i hope this isn't a stupid question but I am trying to be very careful not to destroy my bike. I have the harmonic balancer(well one very similar to the above Craftsman)but am not really sure how it is suppose to work. I got it onto the flywheel, screwed the big center bolt in nice and tight, the instructions say to keep turning it until the flywheel comes off, but when i do that it only seems to be pulling against its self. I think, because the center bolt is fat and is pushing against the flywheel. Shouldn't it be pushing against the crank shaft. I don't know. This is becoming a very annoying job for me since I have to travel far to get to my bike.  I cranked it up good with a breaker bar bar it just didn't feel right to keep cranking it. The Tiger instructions I have say to hit it with a BFH, but I don't see the reason for it. If the center bolt is threaded then what is hitting it with a hammer gonna do?

Some reassurance is greatly appreciated.

[cvincer]

1)  After removing the retaining bolt you are looking at the crankshaft.

2) The 'big fat' bolt of your puller should have the same diameter (or just about)as the crankshaft it will be pushing against.

3) With the 3  bolts of the puller screwed into the flywheel & the 'big fat' bolt against the crankshaft, wind up 'big fat' hard.

4) Give it some REALLY HARD whacks, tighten up 'big fat' more ...then  REALLY HARD whacks. Keep tightening & whacking.

5) Eventually the flywheel will pop off.

6) Note:-  Those 3 puller bolts should have been tightened equally, making the puller sit square to the flywheel....if this is not so, you are actually trying to pull the flywheel off at an angle, & that's impossible.

                  The flywheel has probably not been disturbed for years, it is a very tight fit on the shaft + is held by a woodruff
key. These 3 things are the reason why the puller must be sitting square, the 'big fat' bolt must be the right diameter & you
have to whack REALLY  REALLY  hard.

                   Because the flywheel usually 'pops' off, place something soft for it to land on, or it might be damaged when it hits the floor.

                 

[Lucky]

The balancer is not threaded on its a tapered fit. On some pullers you have to grind off the "wobble" foot on the center bolt of the puller. Then the trick is to tighten the bolt, hit it with a big hammer tighten & hit. See my site www.xz550.com for pics & details


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[Night Vision]

The balancer FLYWHEEL is not threaded on its a tapered fit. On some pullers you have to grind off the "wobble" foot on the center bolt of the puller. Then the trick is to tighten the bolt, hit it with a big hammer tighten & hit. See my site www.xz550.com for pics & details http://www.xz550.com/flydetail.html

sorry for the edits, but they may help [jh]

[jh] - you're on the right track... the threaded bolt on the puller needs to push on the crank.. not the fly wheel

couple of helpful tips

1) place masking tape on the puller bolts to ensure they are inserted equally (square) into the flywheel
2) make sure the threaded bolt on the puller is smaller that the center hole in the flywheel.. if not, you will push on the flywheel and bend the puller or pull out the treads
3) if the puller bolt is larger than the flywheel hole, insert a "sacrificial" bolt with a couple of nuts into the end of the crank shaft to extend out so you can "push against the crank"
4) place a towel or box under the flywheel to catch the flying starter clutch bits when it does pop off.

it always scared me to bang the puller bolt against the crankshaft because if you mess up the inner threads... you're screwed.  I find using a "sacrificial bolt", that doesn't have the large fixed washer that the OEM bolt does, to work great... I have one that has a recessed head on it (not flat) so the threaded bolt on the puller doesn't walk off when you tighten it.  Tighten the sacrificial bolt tight so you don't pound the inner threads in the crank...

it's amazing how much force it takes to get it off... and how easily it goes back on... if the puller was perfectly square.. it should "screw right off", but it won't.... some have left the job overnight to find the flywheel and parts strewn across the floor

and yes you need to tighten the puller bolt... whack with a three pound hammer.. repeat.. repeat

[[jh]]

Ok great! thank you all for your help! At least now tomorrow morning I will be armed with a back up plan. Will let you how it goes.....................or comes?? Ha!

[[jh]]

Ok so she is all done and buttoned up! Had to use a bolt with my puller, but she came off rather easily with a few good whacks with BFH.  Only thing left to do is start her up and see what happens. Unfortunately i wont be able to do this for some time as I have nobody to help me maneuver her out of my storage space(it's very tight) and will be away for work for the next six days. Might not be able to do it when I get back either. Huh, that's rather anticlimactic.

Either way I will get it done some day and will let you all know the prognosis of my sweet baby. Thank you all very much for your help and advice, I was getting a bit annoyed for a while there.

[Jimustanguitar]

If nobody's around, just start her up where she sits :)

[[jh]]

It's alive! It's alive! It has been an entire year since I heard my baby perrrrrrrr. Took a wee bit of convincing to get her to start, but after that it was all good.Took her for a quick spin. Felt real good. Thanks for all your help visionaries! Happy holidays!

[QBS]

Merry Christmas [jh] and, Merry Christmas to all!

[Rikugun]

Nice work! Looks like you got an early Christmas present  :D