Briggs had in thier I/c class cast iron bores, also in their Vangard line (made by Mitsubishi), All the I/C Briggs had ball bearings in on the rod...
...but of course the cheap Quantum, Max and other lines of Briggs did not., they're the mass produced engines for store sold home units (light duty)....
It all comes down to what you pay for the unit, the more you pay the better the unit...
If you buy a quality unit , it will be made to last...
A 5 hp Honda will run 4-6 hours a day at a job site and be beat up and need rebuild in about 5 years if it is took care of...
A 5 hp Max or Quantum Briggs will do the same job for about a year and then should be thrown away or scraped for parts...
BUT both will make 5HP and do the job / and get it done.... It's just what doo you need it to do?
Friiy