Something I forgot to add about my engine is that it is in a 1973 G10 van where there is almost no clearance between the snout of the crankshaft and the front of the frame. If the drilling of the crankshaft snout is possible with the engine in place, perhaps I need to work on figuring out how to get that front sheet metal and the crosspiece from between the frame rails off. It's had some serious salt over the years, so I'm a little nervous about moving rusty pieces of metal. My last attempt resulted in me replacing almost everything in the front suspension.
By the way Fred, if you're reading. My silly Haynes manual said to drive the balancer on in the manner I described, but your response sent me to the other books I have, and my 1963 chilton's (the first year of the engine series) indicates that the balancer should be drawn on, but it listed some special GM tool.
I'm open to any suggestions and feel kind of sick thinking that I followed published instructions that led me down a path to wasting the price of a dampner.
