Hoping you guys can give me some advice - I've done this job on older/more basic vehicles and have the service manual for the blade so am good to go, but am concerned that tolerances may be tighter on the blade. Plus the service manual has all kinds of whizzy bearing removers and the like that I don't have (more like a hammer and a driver!). Has anyone here done this job DIY? If so, did you encounter any issues? Also, is it advisable to use OEM parts or aftermarket? Thanks in advance.
Most oem bearings are made by third parties anyway except you just pay the honda premium for them worth checking the prices out for comparison
Aftermarket stuff tend to be in the form of more heavy duty tapper bearings rather than the standard roller bearing type fitted as standard.
Thanks for the replies guys. Does that mean that the aftermarket bearings (which do seem to be taper type) are a better choice?
Yes, I've done it many times by upgrading to the taper type bearing, just make sure you purchase a new bottom dirt seal when purchasing and don't be tempted to buy the cheap Chinese offers on eBay (steel is poor quality). The only tool I made was from a piece of steel bar (or stud iron) will do which you have to grind down to an oval shape at one end. The reason for this is to enable you to knock out the lower outer race from the headstock. When you remove the steering head and look down the inside, you can see a slight cut out section in the outer wall where you can use the punch tool you made to knock out the outer race of the old bearing. Putting the new bearings in is just common sense, you can use a long stud with 2 end caps and pull both in together or just carefully knock them in with a tube (pipe) of correct diameter.
