How to: Repair Rocking Rails (EG/EK/DC)
Disclaimer: The following is provided as a GUIDE ONLY, and neither myself nor Ozhonda take any responsibility for the outcomes of someone else doing the following. You follow these steps at your own risk!
Aim:
To repair your loose/rocking seat rails. This DIY is performed on a standard EK seat but should also apply to most EG/EK/DC2 or Hondas of this era. The outer rail commonly becomes loose and starts to rock due to the steel ball bearings and/or the roller guide falling out. These ball bearings become dislodged because of excessive force when adjusting the seating position (i.e. slamming your seat back and forward when moving it) which wears out the indents in the tracks that stop the balls from coming out.
Required:
- 1/4" Steel Balls (4 per outer side)
- Spring Roller guide (2 per outer side)
- Bearing Grease
- Hammer
- Punch with dimple tip
Steps:
1. Remove the front seat with the faulty rail. 4x 12mm bolts
2. Lay the seat down on some shop towels.
3. Inspect the outer rail for missing ball bearings and roller guides. I lost all my ball bearings so had to buy new ones
http://img833.imageshack.us/img833/2489/img3041a.jpg
4. Turn the seat upside down and support it on a chair or something similar. The roller guides are positioned as below but it's easier to install one at a time. So leave the rear guide in place and remove the front one for now. Also apply grease on the guides
http://img545.imageshack.us/img545/230/img3043j.jpg
5. Now place the slider into the track from the front and push it towards the back until the indent on the slider passes the roller guide. Like below
http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/1036/img3044iu.jpg
http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/5272/img3046i.jpg
6. Push the slider forward so you can fit the front roller guide.
http://img836.imageshack.us/img836/654/img3047l.jpg
7. The roller guide must go pass this dimple
http://img441.imageshack.us/img441/2382/img3048a.jpg
8. With the slider pushed forward, place the roller guide in the gap and push it down pass the dimple. Grease the guide up aswell. It shouldn't take much force to push it in as the bearings aren't in place yet. Should look like this
http://img502.imageshack.us/img502/6127/img3049n.jpg
9. Now its time to insert the steel ball bearings. Place the seat back own on the shop towels. I did the front ones first. So keep the slider positioned towards the front. Place the steel balls between the slider and the track like below (apply a little grease too)
http://img694.imageshack.us/img694/4499/img3050l.jpg
http://img267.imageshack.us/img267/2167/img3051uf.jpg
10. Use your punch and push the ball bearing pass the little dimple. It shouldn't take much force if the other ball bearings haven't been inserted yet. Do both sides
http://img440.imageshack.us/img440/3630/img3052ae.jpg
11. Once that's done move the slider towards the rear so you can do the rear balls. The dimple on the rear is positioned on the side of the track.
http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/7218/img3061a.jpg
12. Use your punch and a hammer to hit the ball pass the dimple. These last two balls will require a decent hammering to get it in.
http://img17.imageshack.us/img17/7180/img3060fe.jpg
13. Once that's done apply some grease on the tracks and the edge of the sliders. Slide it up and down a few times to work the grease in.
14. Move the slider side to side and up and down to see if it's still loose. If it's really loose then there's a problem. If there's a tiny bit of play you can tap the side of the tracks to tighten it up a bit. Strike where the dimples are.
http://img804.imageshack.us/img804/8049/img3063d.jpg
15. And you're done. Every thing should be nice and tight, good as new.
http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/8476/img3065y.jpg
Other comments
1. You can get the steel balls from any bearing supplier. Ask for 1/4" steel balls, not ball bearings. Ball bearings usually refer to complete bearings with inner and outer race.
2. If you've lost a Spring roller guide, you'll need to find some from the wreckers. I'm not sure where you can buy them new.
3. If your dimples are very worn out, the steel balls will fall out again. You can try staking them in further with a punch.
4. This DIY only applies to the outer rail (closest to the door), the inner rail with the lever is slightly different in design.
