My 95 4 cyl pulls hard to the right and rocks back and forth when I drive it slowly (~10-20 mph). If I go really slow it will almost feel like it goes over a small bump as the steering wheel ***** to the right every couple of revolutions.

I took it into the shop for an alignment and they told me I needed a new steering gear and front wheel bearings. I don't have any specialty tools or expertise so I was just going to let the shop do it, but I want to make sure they weren't just blowing smoke up my ***. Does this sound like a correct diagnosis and is it easy enough to pay a friend who knows what they are doing to do it?