hi there i am planning on a cam swap. i aquired the A grind cam and redrilled timing gear. and reading archives and preparing for swap . i never did this before. as i was reading the 700-900 FAQ i was concerned by the crank removal procedures. i dont have the tool to hold the crank but may now get one. one person wrote if you use the breaker bar method and unhook coil wire then crank motor to loosen crandshaft bolt, you could damage a key type nib that helps hold or line up the crankshaft. when me and my friend did my timing belt on my other brick we used a air impact wrench. and everything seems ok. should i be worried or order the tool?? any help will be appreciated thanks again for all the help. ;-} yes i am doing all seals,belt,tensioner,
rear cam seal,valve cover gasket, checking-
adjusting valve clearance.

I used a breaker bar and jammed the flywheel teeth with a screwdriver. If I didn't have a Scantech pulley I'd probably buy the tool. Next time I'll probably do the rope in the cylinder trick.

If you have the impact gun then just use that. Be sure that the raised integral key fits perfectly before tightening, but other than that the air tool works great. Don't worry about the common misconception that you can "break the crank off" with the air tool.

If you have about $42, I'd buy the B230 crank tool if your engine is a B230. That's what I paid including shipping from Swedish Engineering. Beautiful tool and very nice to use.
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Thanks to everyone for the help, Doug C. 81 242 Brick Off Blocks, stock, M46; 86 244, 140k , auto.

I agree, except I learned that the tool won't work on cheap aftermarket (S-T, MTC) B230 pulleys. They are both so poorly finished that the tool won't fit into the pulley "slots" (BTDT). Which makes me suspect other quality issues too. Like balancing and rubber bonding.

For a (hopefully) long-lived item like this,and a minor PITA to change, the OE Volvo product is worth the extra bucks to me, pro-rated over 150k or more.

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Bruce Young,
'93 940-NA (current), '80 GLE V8 (Sold), '86 240dl, '85 244 ti, '83 245t
'76 244 (R.I.P at 255k), 73 142 (98K), '71 144 (ex circle track car)
Used '70 144 from '78 to '92, New 144 from '67 to '78, Used '62 122 from '63 to '67

I did the breaker bar as you discribed and had no problem with the woodruff key bending or breaking.
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Kevin * HONDA spanking,1985 240DL * VOLVO ON!!!!