So, I am in the (very slow) process of un-bubbafying my Cherokee I picked up last year.

*The situation

Harmonic balancer let go after I had finished some drivetrain work and I picked one up for replacement. Lucky for me the front bumper was already off so I thought this would be an in and out job... of course not.

The threads on the bolt holding the HB were gummed up beyond recognition and the threads inside the crank snout look like a smooth bore rifle for the first 3/4. The guy must have caught just the last couple of threads when he cranked this bad boy on 20 years ago and never looked back. (also fairly certain that the woodruff was homemade) Their was also a repair sleeve that looked like it was driven in with the pein end of a ball pein hammer. Worked that out with a screw driver, pulled several thousand pieces of crank seal out, and cleaned her up.

Now, I have (through much google fu) found Part No. HEL5528-8 through advanced auto parts. It's a 1/2-20 helical thread kit. About $40.

Think that's my best bet? I ran a tap and die on the bolt and crank (just for fun really) to see if maaaaybe that would work, but it didn't. Any other ideas from the hive mind here?

Thanks for taking a look

 

Helicoil is probably the best option.

 

I know this was a super hot topic so I thought for what it's worth I would give ya'll some closure.

I went to Barnhill Bolt here in Albuquerque and got a grade 8, 1/2-20 bolt that was 1 3/4" and tapped the crank, voila. So far so good. The bolt needed an extra flat washer to seat properly but tourqed and locked it is running as we speak. I even got brave enough to take it to the gas station. Seems to be doing just fine.

I know their were thousands of you who subscribed to this thread so I thought maybe this little update would be helpful in the future for anyone else who is unbubbafying their poor little xj.

P.S +1 to Barnhill for being extremely helpful and friendly. If you need it, I would almost guarantee that they have it, and for a fair price. They have a great website and do mail order nationwide.

 

Tap and oversize bolt works too, lol. Glad you got it fixed!