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Torquing engine bolt in tiny space

LettersFromFlyoverCountry

Well Known Member
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What is the tools-combination-of-choice for torquing down (or even threading it beyond finger tight) for the top left Allen bolt where the cylinder gives you all of about an inch or two of access on the Rotax 912iS?

I was thinking of cutting down an Allen wrench to next to nothing, then using a crows foot in a rachet but perhaps there are more elegant, less tool-destructive solutions.
 
You can buy one ready made but you can make a tool by cutting the short leg off of a ball end 8mm Allen Wrench and then insert that into an 8mm socket.
 
Hmm, more measurements. There's a total of one inch to work with before the cylinder fins interfere. A socket adapter is one inch. Even if I got it so the socket was flush to the bushing, I couldn't get anything like an extension onto the socket.
 
Correct on the limited space available. Scott is suggesting to cut off ball-end Allen wrench so you have the ball with maybe 2" of hex shaft remaining. Then slip a socket with torque wrench over the hex shaft. The ball-end should allow enough off-angle for clearance to accomplish an accurate torque setting.
 
Giving it the old college try, I cut down the 8 mm Allen wrench to about 11/32, calculating the distance into the hole to the bolt, the distance into the bolt, and the distance into the 8 mm socket.

So I had the socket pretty much flush against the bolt.

Nope. The cylinder fin precludes getting any thing on the socket. So does putting the socket set into the wrench first.

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This is an interesting and educational challenge
 
Or you might be able to use a crow's foot on the cut off hex wrench end to bring it out where you can access it with the torque wrench. Just don't forget to adjust the torque wrench setting for the additional length of the crows foot.
 
Harbor Fright sells a set of long ball-end Allen sockets that might be just the ticket for something like this - about six inches long, they get into all sorts of places!

Paul
 
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