Honda HR214 self propelled lawnmower. How do I get the clutch assembly apart to change the bearing in the blade clutch assembly. It appears to be noisy. The bearing noise quits when the blade is rotating and comes back when the blade is stopped. This mower is over 20 years old, still runs every week and cuts a lot of grass but is smoking when it starts now. Also the rear drive wheels have all cracked so it may not be worth putting time into the blade clutch. Any suggestions as to how to get the bearing changed would be appreciated. The engine shaft just spins when I attempt to remove the bolt in the centre of the shaft and there appears to be no evident way to stop the spinning to mremove the bolt. I do have a mechanical background so have most needed tools and a shop - just don't have a manual.

Dave Bruce, March 2008

Use an impact wrench on the bolt in the shaft

Bill, October 2009

I just finished this job on my HR214 with a GXV120 engine. I tried the wrench + hammer combination but couldn't get it to budge. Here's what I did:
- Take the recoil starter and cover off the engine. Notice that the flywheel isn't a perfect circle on the outside circumference, there are places where it's notched in, including the area where the magnet is which triggers the coil.
- Using a longish screwdriver, jam the flywheel so it cannot turn using one of the notches and part of the crankcase body.
- Unbolt the center bolt on the blade clutch assembly. This is VERY tight, I used a 3-foot pipe extension on my ratchet handle.

The center bolt and the flywheel bolt are both regular right-hand thread. I had attempted to hold the flywheel bolt with one wrench whilst undoing the center clutch assy bolt but only succeeded in unbolting the flywheel bolt.

There is no need to a puller for the driven disk. It looks pressed in, but it is not. Lever at it from two sides with screwdrivers and it should pop right off.

Steve Chang, July 2008

I took mine apart tonight and got that bolt off by 2 quick hits on a box end wrench. It gets harder after that as there is a cast iron disk that I had to drill 2 holes in and use a puller to get off the crank. Then you'll need a slide hammer to pull off the upper bearing, that was the one that made the noise on my mower.

Brad, June 2008

Andrew, yours is the first response received and of course neither of us have an answer. I have just this week purchased a new Honda mower. The rest of the components on my old machine were to the point where it would have been uneconomical to replace all the worn items and the final straw, when I started it this spring I could not get the fuel mixture correct even after a thorough and repeated cleaning of the carb. The mower would run only with full choke. So my old mower is going to be past history. I wish you success with yours. If you get an answer I wouldn't mind hearing about it.

Dave Bruce, May 2008

Hi Did you get a resolution to this as I have exactly the same problem with my Honda and would like to know the answer too.

Regards

Andrew

Andrew Eady, May 2008