Hey, how do I loosen the nut on the power steering pulley?

From the earlier threads, I suppose I should consider myself fortunate that it has not come off on its own. And I'll probably have trouble removing the pulley once I get the nut off. But for the time being, I can't figure out how to loosen the nut. How can I secure the pulley sufficient to turn a wrench on the nut? Is it a 4-handed job?

The really frustrating thing is that I've had it off in the past when I replaced my water pump but I don't remember how I managed to do it. And, I'm missing a pair of extra hands.

Or, as an alternative, is it possible to just remove the bracket instead? I see 3 bolts hold it on. Can Ijust remove those and pull the bracket and pump away from the block?

Needless to say, any suggestions would be appreciated.

Chuck

 

my favorite tool for removing junk like this and the bolts from the cam sprockets is....wrap a rag around the pulley and use a chain wrench to hold the pulley in place while you loosen the nut

 

It's way easier when the belt is still on. It is also easy to take the whole PS pump/pulley/bracket off if you're stuck.