Couple of schools of thought on the needle bearings. Many modern bikes use them and they were thought (by me) to be an upgrade for our older bikes. But they are steel and the way they mount they won't be watertight I don't think and likely to rust up in a short time. Some think needles aren't the way to go for those types of loads, but as said many newer bike use them OEM. Maybe they are bigger in scale, certainly they seal better. And I don't think there is adequate provisions for lubing, could be wrong.
After much independent reading, besides HondaMan's missives, I've convinced myself that the original design, implemented with top quality materials and care, is the way to go. add to that improved lubrication that HM provides and the lifetime guarantee, that's the way i went.
