You can heat the balancer up to 200 with out hurting a thing. And if you are quick, it will slide on 75% to 80% of the way with out the use of a hammer. For the remaining little bit, a hammer and brass drift will seat it just fine. This was advice from the dealer that sold me the balancer.
As far as damage to the bearings, none. You would have to hit it hard enough to smash it, which is way harder then needed to seat the balancer. The whole radius of the crank is resting on the bearing, not bouncing against it, its seated the very first hit. You are putting no more pressure against it then a clutch does 100 times a day when you force it forward with the pedal.
And if you wish to drill the crank, its a soft material and can be drilled pretty easy. Just center punch the crank and drill at least 1/2" deeper then the bolt length. I did mine with a hand drill and hand tap. Being dead center is not important, just get as close as you can. I used a stud and nut to pull the balancer on the last time, it saves wear and tear on the crank threads. The closer you are to the center of a rotating mass, the less its weight causes a problem, so no worries about being out of balance.
So I have done it both ways, and nether one is any easer then the other. Heating the balancer was a lot quicker and was done in the truck! Pulling it on with a stud, means you have to secure the crank from spinning and takes quit a bit of effort to pull it on. Maybe a combination of the two would be the best solution! One thing about the bolt, its good insurance that the balancer won't walk off if the crank snout is worn.
Joe
Last edited by Joe H; 08/26/2010 6:02 PM.
