I couldn't find it through searching, so thought a good topic and new thread for dummies like me. . .

Through a self-inflicted "wound", I scratched the crankshaft's nose portion (where crankshaft "hub" and harmonic balancer will go). It has a couple of decent grooves from my large channel lock pliers.

Of course the ones I need to get to are UNDERneath where my Dremmel tools can't reach. What got me into this problem was turning the crank over to line up the "dots" for the cam & crank gears during new timing chain install. 'Nough said on that. I guess I could turn the crank with the hub's bolt, but when attempting this in the past it seemed like it was putting too much torque/force on it, hence moving to the "safer" turning with channel locks (after putting on a cut-out piece of bike tire intertube over the nose--not enough protection, get bigger condom ).

Okay, yell at me if it is instructive/constructive, but me knows I screwed up a bit here, so so easy on me.

My work/project is currently at a standstill because of this--I want to do this before replacing the timing cover and continuing on with the crank hub & harmonic balancer, else there'll be the obvious premature wear on the new seals on the timing cover and the difficulty getting the crank hub & balancer back on properly..

Any suggestions on how to "de-burr" or remove some deeper scratches from the crankshaft nose area?

Thanx in advance for any input.

 

Doesnt the front seal ride on the hub of the harmonic balancer and not the crank ? If so (dontknow all the intricasies of the LTx) put the balancer back on and forget about it. If the metal is pulled up some a roll of some fine paper oughta get rid of the burrs. Keyway keep the balancer in place like a Gen1?

 

You might be right (balancer "rides" on seal). . . BUT I want to avoid any binding when I go to put the hub & balancer back on. There ARE a couple of gouges I'm not too proud of. I thought the thick rubber "condom" was protecting it and my grip was, well, "firm"

Any special sand paper to use for quick removal on metal???

 

1'' wide fine tooth flat file, file ONLY on ridge tops...1/2'' vinyl hose, 2-4 ft long, with 'full custom' duct tape adapter to your shop vac, keep 'working end' of vinyl hose as close as possible to file op to keep metal bits out of engine... good lighting mandatory...go slow and gentle like a...

'shoeshine' of shaft with 220 grit 'emery cloth' 1'' wide would be fast/ez, but will reduce shaft dia beyond hurt spot (poor balancer installed grip) and metal dust into engine difficult to avoid.

 

Try a small, pocket size, emery stone. redrose has the right idea but I would be very careful with a file. A crank is not as hard as you might think, you can remove a lot of metal very quickly.

 

And in the future, never pry, clamp, or grab on to a finished surface. You can turn the engine by the front bolt. Take the plugs out if you want it to turn more easily.

 

first, determine what part of the distressed metal has been displaced ABOVE the surface of the crankshaft snout from that which has been gouged into and BELOW the surface of the crankshaft .

use a fine file and emery cloth to smooth down the former;

ignore the latter.

 

When you finally get it smooth enough for the balancer to press on, put a thin layer of silicone on the inside of the balancer for prevent oil from leaking between the crank snout and the balancer. It often happends.

 

Yes, I had to fix an oil leak because of that on an older V8 that uses a keyway for the balancer. Had to repull the balancer and fill the keyway with high temp black RTV and press it back on. It is good to clean the area real good with something like brake cleaner so the RTV will stick.

 

File like the others have said and just knock down the ridges - personally I'd pull the pan and timing cover and deburr then clean up everything real good then re-assemble those parts. And go get yourself a cheap crank turning socket or next time use a couple of OLD flywheel bolts in the rear and a pry-bar between the 2 bolts to rotate the crank (the bolts may bend slightly so don't plan on re-using them in a flywheel!)

Also - remember the balancer is a press fit and not a slip fit - don't file it down to where the balancer just slips on - then you've gone too far!

 

Use a tiny flat file on the high spots....you can get a set in a small package at any parts store. I would remove as little as possible, as stated, the metal is pretty soft. Those mini files come in very handy and are good to have around. Lightly polish it up with some emery if needed.