Stupid ? but need help fast

I just bought this Jeep last week and previous owner said the bearing were going out - it knocks while idling, but not while revving in gear. So, I figured he was wrong and sure enough he was. I have the inspection plate cover off and the bolts are loose, but when I tighten them, after about 1/2 turn, the flexplate turns. Also, when I need to turn to get to the next bolt, how do I go about this? Is it safe to use a screwdriver on the teeth to hold it in place and turn to the next bolt? (yes I understand that this is how the starter starts the motor, so I'm sure it's strong, but thought I'd ask anyway). I'm doing the job now and I'm by myself. Also, should the tranny be in N? It's in park right now, but I do have it in 4wd and the e-brake set, so if I put it in N it won't roll, but not sure if it's necessary. TIA

tranny in neutral, ignition off and key out.

use a prybar to turn the flywheel till you get to the bolts. then use it to hold the flywheel while tightening them.

gone postal said:

I have the inspection plate cover off and the bolts are loose, but when I tighten them, after about 1/2 turn, the flexplate turns. TIA

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If you position your ratchet or wrench so that you are pushing up towards the center of the crank, it should stay still for you. In other words, keep the wrench as close to the crank as possible.

Don't forget to pry on the flexplate to look for cracks, not hard enough to break it but hard enough to show any cracks that may be there.

Don't just tighten them, replace them they have to be badly worn now.

Thanks for the quick replies. I tightened them up - about 1/2-full turn each - needless to say that quieted it down quite a bit. I still have a slight knocking, so maybe the bearings are starting to go and he just thought the flex plate noise meant is was about to blow. From what I've read though, all the 4.0's seem to have some sort of noise, so who knows. My oil pressure stays pretty steady at 40, but it did get up around 50 when the engine got a lil over 210 when in 4x4 (took a quick drive to the beach). It never dipped below 40 though (even at idle) and didn't flucuate w/ the RPM's, so I don't know how accurate it is. I didn't go over 40mph though b/c I have a brake issue (something in the power department isn't working, so it's just mechanical at the moment - like stomping on a rock).

langer1 - is this bolt something they could look up at a part store? Do you know the specs on the bolts in case I were to go to Home Depot or something? I definetely want to make sure I'm getting the right bolts. The job wasn't that hard to do, so I wouldn't mind gettting under it again, but it was too late tonight and my wife had her car so I had no transportation.

The are special bolts I'm sure I think 5-90 know the sizes.
What year did you say it was?

1991

I don't recall exactly, so I'd have to dig up my notes, but I'm inclined to think they're M10x1.5-20m/m (or thereabouts.)

I do recall that they're "place bolts" similar to those that hold the flexplate down, so you should either go to the dealer to get OEMR, or go to a farm implement supply house and see if they have "place bolts" in that size.

The head on a place bolt is different than a regular hex head - I could go into the engineering reasons why, but suffice it to say they wouldn't use them there without a good reason...

5-90

The motor probably has piston slap. A non-lethal but annoying condition common to inline 6 cyls (my '93 has had it for 50,000 miles)