The official timing chain / timing chair rail guide thread

[Zoso]

I've recently developed a rattling noise that eminates from the front of the engine near the thermostat area.

I first tried to elimate the noise by replacing my timing chain tensioner with a new M44 timing chain tensioner.  To my displeasure, the noise persists.

If a new tensioner didn't fix it, it must be something else like a worn chain, worn cogs, or worn guides.


I've never done any internal engine work, so this job is daunting to me.  

Looking at Brendan's writeup (http://www.esatclear.ie/~bpurcell/318istimingchain.html), these steps intimidate me:

1)  Removing the thermo-viscous fan.
2)  Removing the crankshaft bolt.
3)  Affixing the bolt to lock it, TDC.
4)  My lack of camshaft holding tool.
5)  I'm scared of messing up my timing and blowing the engine.
6)  Manual keeps referring to woodruff keys.  What the hell is a woodruff key and how does it hold a sprocket or a dampener onto a shaft?  How do you remove said sprocket or dampener?  Is the key reusable?

For those of you with experience doing this, can you give me any advice?  Any "gotchas"?  Any tricks?  

Since the engine will be taken apart this much, I'll probably remove the lower oil pan at the same time and loctite the upper oil pan bolts back in place and then remove the lower oil pan, pick the bolts up out of the bottom of the lower oil pan bolts out of the pan and loctite them back in place.

[Deutschbag]

A woodruff key is just a little piece of metal that keeps the cam gear from spinning on the camshaft. There's a slot on the cam gear and cam shaft that the woodruff key goes into, they match up to keep the gear from slipping around. When I did my cam on my Golf, the key was removeable and reusable.

[Zoso]

how do you take the cam off with the key in place?  Does the key fall out when the cam is removed?

[nickmpower]

there isnt one on the cam. there is only one on the crank, and the sprocket just slides off of it. it just like a little notch sticking up from the crank