Rich, I`m about to do a top end on my CRF450 and was wondering the best way to prep the cylinder for the new piston & rings. My local Honda shop said to make a few easy passes with a ball hone & light oil. I`m not sure I`m comfortable with that on my nicasil cylinder.
Proper use of a ball hone won't cause any issues, but not everyone has that big a ball hone laying around the shop :).
As long as the cylinder walls aren't glazed then you can accomplish the same thing using a ScotchBrite pad and some light oil. I regularly use ScotchBrite #7447 pads with excellent results. The most important thing is to make sure the cylinder walls are perfectly clean before you apply the final coat of clean oil when you assemble it.