awesome sturdy good product

Yes, it is kind of a cheap plastic thing. Yes, they probably made it for all of $1.00 so they made a big profit. Yes, there is grease on the gears. But if you want something to rotate somewhat slowly, then there is no reason not to get it. I suggest you take the top off and with a paper towel wipe off the gears and motor a bit. There is a little blob of grease on mine which was not in the way and did not run out, but maybe in hot weather...

The "ball bearings" are indeed metal balls, and the support the table. However, they are in a plastic stand and not seem to turn easily. I suspect the table is really rubbing on the balls rather than spinning them

Indeed there are two speeds, which you get by changing the location of a gear. That is why the gear is loose, so indeed if the top comes off the gear also comes free. Not a big problem if you don't turn it upside down. Mine was in a small cardboard box so it could not come apart during shipping either.

So about the two speeds: You might have inferred that there are two speed RANGES and you can adjust in one range from 3-4rpm and in the other from 6-8rpm. Nope. Just two speeds--I imagine that the exact speed between 3 and 4 say depends on the battery strength at the moment.

I was somewhat surprised and pleased that you can reverse the rotation direction. The switch has 3 positions, forward/off/backward.

pretty good for the product type. Perfect for the price!
but dont forget you'll need a D battery!

Took a while to arive but it works fine.

The top part fall off easily and there is no way of locking it in but it does do its job