Flex Plate Advice

[BFHOON]

I have a question for the auto drivers out there who have suffered a loose flex plate and how they fixed it.

a good mate of mine has a loose flex plate with oval holes in it, we have a new plate but the debate im having with him now is should we weld the bolts to the flex plate or is there some other fix that people are doing at the moment. car has 300 rwkw.

what do you guys think weld or locktight.

[senna_T]

Mate, I would avoid welding, might affect the flex plate in an adverse way - loctite it up and go form there

[FPV6T]

I'm with senna_t,loctite it or use a new plate as welding it could warp the plate (maybe only marginally)but cause a balance problem with the plate.

[turbotrana]

I did a CAD drawing of the centre of flex plate and had some plates cut out as per the pic.

The aluminium bits are locking tabs which prevents the bolts undoing but you need to cut slots in the bolts for circlips.

You can weld the bolts onto the plate and could even weld the plate to the flexplate.

Whichever way it gives more strength in the critical area.

[Seeyouentee]

I'm very interested in the lock tabs. I've had never ending dramas with flywheel bolts coming loose. I've tried loctite, bending locktabs, loctite with bending locktabs, lockwire, tackwelding the flywheel bolts, tackwelding the loctite'd flywheel bolts to the flexplate and the bendable locktabs. only to have welds break, lockwire snap and tabs flatten out etc. the only way I've managed to stop the bolts coming loose is to use a decent quality harmonic balancer and tone down the rev-limiter......and use loctite'd, locktabbed welded bolts.

I'm curious as to the strength of the aluminium and if it will bend or the hex hole flog out? wouldnt a marine grade stainless be a better proposition?

[turbotrana]

They could be made in 1.6 or 2mm steel. I just do them in ally because a large manufacture of this type of locking method uses ally. Weight diff is bugger all and really maybe should have done them in steel in the first place.

I dont think the ally hex hole would ever get flogged out but who knows.

If it was made in steel then you could use the flex strengthener plate, steel locks and once all put on in position with the circlips, TIG or mig everything to the strengthener plate.

That wont budge if you do it that way.

Now you mentioned Flywheel.

If you have got the dosh go Ally flywheel. A good harmonic balancer is really important but ally flywheel alters the harmonics in the straight 6 quite alot.

I use to vibrate the flywheel off in a Expensive Daewoo straight 6 all the time. Got an ally flywheel, and B&M Balancer and solved the problem.

I also have some ARP flywheel bolts that would help also. They are not threaded all the way thru (they have a bit of a shank)so they hold the crank heaps tighter.

I wouldn't use stainless steel. It does not weld very good and less strength. I get this stuff cut in a high strength steel

[BFHOON]

thanks guys.

[BFHOON]

update.

we welded the bolts to the flywheel one spot on each. no problems have occured from this yet.