Reviving this thread, as I had the same problem- Pilot bushing would not come out and new one didn’t want to go into my 261. Slide hammer would not budge the old bearing. Solution:
Insert a pipe thread tap that you can get started in there and thread until you reach the tapered portion of the tap- then stop. Insert 5/8” course thread bolt and chew through the threads that you made. The bolt will reach the back of the crank and it will push the pilot bearing out. It was unbelievably easy, and no pounding was required.
I mic’d two new pilot bearings and they had two different O.D.’s: 1.0935 and 1.0960. Otherwise they were identical.
My crank hole is smooth and looks just fine. I measured the OD of the bushing that removed, and I’m sure it has been squashed, but it was 1.0925. Pics:
Pilot bushing removed with 5/8” boltI think it’s going to take more than a few taps to get the smallest Pilot bushing that I have back in…we’ll see. [Edit] smaller bushing went in, but required firm smacks from my brass mallet- I did not have to “beat” it in, but it required a little more effort than others have described here. Pics of two bushings- smaller on on the left. They are actually different on the crank side- the smaller bushing has a bit of a nose on it:
Two sizes of Pilot bushing, smaller one on left, showing front and back
