Balls.....

Thanks for the input edwyun. The Roadrunner requiring less power to spin the same platter speaks volumes. 

FWIW, the consensus over in the Garrard idler world is that ceramic balls wear stainless steel spindles. I use a titanium ball with a third party bearing. 

  PJ1 and Bel Ray motorcycle fork oil in SAE 5 weight are excellent choices as they are extremely low viscosity and work well with tight clearances.  I use this in my Platine Verdier turntable and it does not require lengthy warm up times due to the ultra low viscosity.
Ceramic ball bearings are available from McMaster Carr on line for very low cost.   

In a similar mode..I replaced the standard Rega subplatter on my RP6 with the Groovetracer precision subplatter....Big improvement...On any TT, if the platter turns as friction free as possible and the tonearm is as friction free as possible in both horizontal and vertical movement, you can get the max data off the LP....Analogue playback is a VERY highly refined mechanical process....As Art Dudley would point out, vinyl playback is the only type of domestic audio that does not need electricity to "read" the data off the LP....Of course, your speakers or headphones couldn't reproduce it without electricity/amplification but the data can be picked up off the "software" without plugging it in....consider that and the importance of getting the main bearing and tonearm to work as friction free as possible and you are on the way to understanding how to help optimize vinyl playback.

I upgraded my TT ball bearings, not with ceramics, but with Mobile 1:  Amazing lack of rotating resistance. You ceramic ball users should try it.