swmic

Hi All,

I was going to start the job of replacing my timing belt this morning until I read that locking the cams with the proper tool is highly recommended. I don't want to do this with out the bar. Does anybody know of someone that rents out a bar in the Philly area?

Since I'm now short on time, can anyone recommend a good independent shop in the northern burbs? I know "Ex-PzKW Cdr" has shop in Montgomery county but I don't have his contact info.

Thanks for any info.

Shawn

vwraceguy

I would recommend the bar. I was planning on not using one, but when I took it apart, it was obvious that the timing was off.. both cams would line up, but the crank was off. Must have been built on a friday!
I ended up making one with a long piece of steel ($8) and very carefully drilling in a straight line for the pins. The inner pins are 8mm, outers are 6mm and 1-1/2" hole saw to clear the center bolt.

swmic

Thanks for the particulars on the bar. If I can't find one for rent, I'll fab one up. What did you use for the pins?

I was going to start this morning and was reading the archives about the procedure. I was going to skip the bar and mark the cam teeth and belt. I found the warnings about not using the bar and it totally made sense why you should use the bar.

vwraceguy

I found some M6 and M8 bolts with a shank that wasn't a reduced diameter. Then I just cut the threads off down to the length I needed.
I also made 4 x 90deg bends to get around the power steering pump, but since it needs to move out of the way to change the water pump, you could cheat and use a straight bar that might just need a notch out of it in the center. I had a tough time getting the bar flat and straight again once I put the bends in.