vwhobo 0 Posted October 7, 2023 The subject is tie rod ends and tie rods for a '91 300FW. The original tie rod ends on my '91 300FW are pretty close to being due for replacement. There's a butt load of options out there. My wheeler is neither a show piece or a mudder, just used around the property for dragging pastures, moving trailers, exercising dogs, going up the road for mail, etc. The tie rods themselves are straight and undamaged. I might do a 2" lift in the future for poops and grins. Total cost isn't really an issue but I don't want to waste money either (I'm not the US government). So... 1. My first thought is to go with OE Honda parts and be done with it, but; 2. I see "heavy duty" tie rod/end sets available. For my use are these any better than OE parts? 3. Or is there any good reason to go cheap and use eBay/Amazon, Caltric/Niche/other, made in Chy-Na parts? 4. If the HD parts are the way to go, is there any difference between the All Balls and the Quad Boss? The stock photos look the same parts. Thanks for sharing your knowledge. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fishfiles 20,145 Posted October 7, 2023 Hi vwhobo , welcome to the forum ! The 300s are debatably the best utility ATV ever built and your '91 ( First Generation ) is cream of that crop My opinion is that All Balls and Quad Boss are junk , the " Heavy Duty " in their product description is not more than marketing " !'a'ganda " >>> I myself was " blinded by the light " of e-bay and amazon and fell into that hole , finally learned the difference between " $hit from $hinola " , left you a video explaining the anal'al'a'gee below ...... O.E.M. Honda are as good as you going to get . If you dare to be different , LOL < I have run Yamaha Big Bear 400 tie rod ends on my 300s , they look just a little different , but screw right on and work , are they better , can't say , got no scientific facts for you , only reason I use to buy Yamaha tie rods , was my buddy at Cycle Shack , Picayune , told me about them , when he was out of stock on Honda and sold them a little cheaper --- Rocky Mountain ATV is about as cheap as you can find on OEM parts >>> With ^^^^ that being said , if you can find a better tie rod end , I would be all in and follow your lead , as I have broke a few off way back in the woods and that ais not fun ---- but , even though I too check the mail every now and then , 95% of my riding is acting acting a fool Show us some pics of your 300 , we love pics --- In fact we have a contest going on for the " 2,000th member Celebration Contest " , drop a pic and you might win >>> not long ago , in a ATV contest , I seen a bone stock rusted out 300 beat a high dollar modified , detailed out newer model >>> kid you not 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jeepwm69 7,619 Posted October 10, 2023 OEM are as cheap or cheaper than any of the aftermarket options, and the aftermarket stuff (even the "heavy duty") is junk. Get OEM ends, put them on your existing tie rods, and roll with it. 2" lift won't require any changes to the tie rods or ends. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
