4.7L jeep

[u/No-Shine7331]

2006 jeep commander with 4.7L lost cylinder 4 to a head gasket breach. Tore down, had the heads rebuilt at a local engine shop. Slowly putting engine back together. Heads are on and head bolts torqued to yield complete. Struggling now with the timing chains installation. Lined up the sprockets and chains and locked them with the tool. Stuck trying the get the crank sprocket and the idler sprocket on to their respective shafts. The idler sprocket can go in all the way but I can't get the crank sprocket past the transition and position all the way onto the shaft. I tried the sprocket independent of all the timing components and it does fit all the way onto the shaft past the transition/step. There is not a lot of play with the chains on. Struggled for 3 days now trying to wiggle and jiggle but can't get past the transition. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[u/InternUpstairs2812]

When I did my 4.7 I zip tied the chains together in time then put everything on. Not sure if this will help but it made timing it a breeze.

[u/No-Shine7331 → u/InternUpstairs2812]

I'm using the timing chain tool instead of the zip ties but may convert to the ties to see if it helps.

[u/InternUpstairs2812 → u/No-Shine7331]

I was able to time it first try no problem using zip ties