Easy tonearm replacement for Empire 598?

I was never very fussy about bearing oil. I just cleaned out the bearing with cotton sheeting wrapped around a q-tip and then lubed it with automotive differential oil. Never had any appreciable bearing wear after all those years of very regular use.

Most old vintage turntables made in the United States used regular automotive motor oil. The Rek-O-Kut, for example, used SAE 20. That said, Photon46's suggestion of a heavier, but similar, oil is a good one because the heavier weight provides a bit more dynamic braking. That's a good thing, and the Papst motor on the Empire can easily handle the extra drag on the system.

If you want to be a little more adventurous, you could try some of the more modern oils. Recently, I lubed a Fairchild 750 transcription turntable with a heavy weight of synthetic Royal Purple industrial grade oil. It was SAE 64, if I remember correctly. I also put a small amount of Royal Purple grease at the bottom of the bearing well. The results were very nice.

We use Dextron automatic transmission fluid. A couple of drops is all you need.

Ralph,
Did you try an oil that was heavier? If you did, what did you hear?

Mosin, I was mostly interested in an oil that would stand up for years without loosing much to the air due to neglect. Motor oil works fine too but to not last as long as it seems more volatile. We are talking about years here...