turn engine over using crankshaft nut

atch

atch

Senior Member
Recently I loaned my (homemade) crankshaft nut wrench to a friend who was helping another mutual friend time his newly acquired "A".

After they used my wrench I got to wondering if they could have put a 1 3/8" socket on the nut and ran some extensions through the hand crank hole to turn the engine over.

Is it really that simple or am I missing something?

b-t-w; neither they nor I have a hand crank that they could have used.
 
I have thought about it, but IIRC, there isn't space to get it there. Too long ago, but I rejected the idea then.
 
Yes you can get a socket on the crank nut , 1/2 drive socket from probably NAPA and various adapters . The bent wrench available from the suppliers or the original type hand crank works easier ! I think I was turning a too tight motor over after a refreshing ?! The bent wrench works the best for setting the timing IMO .
 
I have a 1/2 inch drive socket that I shortened in a lathe. It works provided the crankshaft nut still lines up with the hole in the radiator and frame guide.
 
The socket-and-extension-through-the-crank hole method works great as long as everything lines up. It was my preferred method until I put a toolbox on the front, which blocks the crank hole. I did have to turn a bit off my 1-3/8” socket to get it to drop into place, though. One advantage is that you can use a 12-point socket and a ratchet, which gives more options than the six-point socket in the solid arm dohickies you get from the vendors.
 
Thanks all. They borrowed my homemade wrench and got the job done but I'm wondering if they could have saved an hour of driving to my shop to borrow mine if they could have just done it with the tools they had on hand.

And yes, we all know that there are specialty wrenches manufactured for this job but see previous paragraph.

Also note that in my original post I mentioned that none of the three of us have a hand crank and the closest one we know of was another half hour further than coming to my shop.
 
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I once saw a fellow turning his crankshaft with a tool he made from a straight section of the tang end of a hand crank that was welded into a 1/2 inch socket. It worked nicely for turning the crankshaft.
 
J Franklin said:
Time to order a bunch of starting cranks.
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Well, the other guys might but my "A" has a tool box between the front frame rails that would prevent me from ever using a starting crank.

ursus said:
I once saw a fellow turning his crankshaft with a tool he made from a straight section of the tang end of a hand crank that was welded into a 1/2 inch socket. It worked nicely for turning the crankshaft.
Click to expand...
I like that.
 
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I recall seeing a tech article somewhere that showed how to modify a socket that fit inside of the crank nut by drilling through the socket sideways and adding a long roll pin. Basically, you’re emulating the tip of the hand crank.
 
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