Okay: You guys were right.
I used the starter-bump method, and it worked fine.
And I expected that after all the drama loosening that big honking bolt, the rest of the operation would be a pain, too.
It wasn't! The harmonic balance/main pulley/whatever you prefer to call it came off very easily. I just put my fingers on both sides of it, and off she came. No hassle. Didn't even have to replace the woodruff key.
I actually was able to press in the new seal with my fingertips, as well.
This may be very obvious to everybody else, but in prying out the old seal, the hazard in using a steel screwdriver is not only to the seal bore, but to the lip on the seal bore, too. That is cast aluminum, and I wish I had been more mindful of that. It's a good idea to wrap a good cloth rag around whatever tool you use. I made a couple of little burrs on there that I had to brush off with emery cloth. On aluminum, when you go prying out a stiff old seal, it wouldn't be a bad idea to use some kind of delicate little nylon or polyethylene kitchen utensil.
You'd have to see me do it to understand exactly what I mean, but I used the head of a nylon wire tie to go around the circumference of the seal lips & make sure that the little garter spring was all happy & not binding anywhere before I finished seating the seal.
Everything seems kosher, I was able to wash a lot of accumulated oil & gunk off the engine, and I replaced those oil-saturated belts, too.
Here's hoping I can go another 90,000 miles or more!
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well-maintained winter blue B13 w/4-speed auto OD still itching for some upgrades (90+K on the clock)
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