I keep seeing NSK I think I’m gonna have to go with a couple of those to try out first!
C3 bearings seem to be a top answer! I take apart my throws every time a change strings 
(sorry to all that are religious about that kinda thing, I have never stripped an axle or made a throw vibe by taking it apart though). But I’m with ya for sure I’m always superstitious with it lol
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Oh I don’t worry about stripping (how else would I pay the bills?!), But I can’t bring myself to expose the bearing to 2 dogs and a cat’s worth of hair and dirt if it’s so smooth and quiet to begin with.
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Ya know as a guy who has two dogs and cats myself you’d think I’d be a little more careful lol. My thought process is that I have acetone and lube on hand always and that cleaning them every so often is just good maintenance. 
I will say back in the day when I couldn’t drive and didn’t have a job, and good bearings were all pretty expensive I would’ve had a different answer lol
Side note: if any of you ever trade throws with me in the future just know that bearing has been babied and you’re set with it for a long time lol
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In my opinion one drop 10 balls are the quietest. And I always lube them to keep them quiet.
Ceramic are very noisy also.
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That’s specifically the only reason why I don’t have any ceramics lol but I agree, in terms of consistency and everything my OD’s are always smooth and quiet.
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They’re loud but I put one on my edc because I like the spin time, the fact that I can rinse it off with water if I absolutely had to, and people seem even more impressed by the fact that a yo-yo would have a full ceramic bearing.
I recently purchased a Mazal top v groove full ceramic, but it’s still on the way.
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They definitely add to the aesthetic of the throw and look cool on top of being good performers, if there were only a way to make them use their inside voices
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I put the tiniest amount of oil on mine. It helped a little. I’m sure more oil would help but it would defeat the purpose
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I’ve got this 36 ball bearing made out of ceramic and frozen mercury. It’s pretty sweet. Hella quiet too. I’d send you a link but the site is sold out.
Insane. I know a friend of friend who knows a pro player that uses 40-ball bearings. So powerful he has to put the yoyo on a hook and let it continue spinning throughout the night while he sleeps
Is it the same site that sold the contactless mag-lev bearings? Those bearings were super quiet but they discontinued them due to complaints of popping noises caused by the rim of the yoyo breaking the sound barrier.
Anyway, I think the quietest throw I have at present is my JDS Shutter. Possibly because it’s chunky and tends to damp any resonance? Or the bearing is just that quiet.
I’m one of those who likes a yoyo that sings, my K.O is great at this. It does have thin walls which may be a contributing factor.
Ivan
I like seeing how quiet I can get everyone of my throws. My SS Koi and Chopstick Gorilla are near silent most of the time. I’ve found pixel bearings to be the hardest to quiet, guessing this is because they are the only unshielded bearings I’ve encountered.
I do a few cycles of acetone bath, dustless tissue and blow dry. Test spin on a chopstick between each cycle until the noise gets consistent / isn’t improving anymore. Half a drop of thin lube and its as good as it can be.
Yes I know this is probably pointless but its satisfying.
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I am the same way my friend don’t even worry about it lol, I clean and lube my bearings the second they get loud. If anything it’s just good maintenance!
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