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Another 30,000 miles have gone by. It is once again time to
replace the timing belt. I remembered all of the gotchas from
the last time. This time I purchased an 8" C-clamp from Harbor Freight for $8.
It made compressing the tensioner relatively easy.
I couldn't find the retaining pin that came with the tensioner. I read the FAQs and tried the nail and drill bit.
The nail bent significantly. The drill bit bent enough that I couldn't
remove it from the tensioner after I reinstalled it.
I went to Autozone and was told that they had nothing suitable.
I went to Home Depot and got some 5/64" Cobalt and Titanium drill bits.
On the way home I stopped at Walmart and checked out the tools section.
I saw a set of 16 metric and standard Allen wrenches for 94 cents.
I decided to try to Allen wrenches first.
I tried the 5/64" Allen wrench and couldn't quite align it with the second outside hole. It remained usable(didn't bend too much).
I then tried the 1/16" Allen wrench and it easily went through all three holes.
It bent a little, but not significantly. It wasn't too difficult to remove.
The timing belt is now installed.
If I have to do this again, maybe I will remember this solution.
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