Could use some advise

His lathe noise sounds like a much lower rpm than the spindle, it doesn't sound horrible. I'm kind of wondering if it's a change gear rubbing on something. I might pull the end over off and have a look.

There was a guy a while back who had a horrible noise, like the headstock was about to blow...it ended up being the plastic fan on the back of the motor was rubbing. He pushed the fan back in place and noise gone.
 
His noise sounds like a bent carriage drive spindle with some keyway knock to go with it, but what would I know, it's a cell phone recording coming from the other end of the internets. If it were me, I would disengage the feed transmission and see if the noise goes away to isolate the headstock from the feed/thread gearbox, but only after checking the belts for the possibility of zero-load tension oscillation. Hard to say from here in my recliner with my laptop and a cat on my lap.
 
Finally located his video, yeah, not so good, almost sounds like something loose riding the shaft.

Are you running the RPM up and down or is it surging?
 
Great input guys!!
So I did loosen the change gears and the noise went away. I then put the change gears back and the noise came back just as before but only in high range and it sounds like its right in the front part of the box where the threading shafts exit the box??
Not that this matters but it does it in both forward and reverse and no I do not see surging in the RPM
Still odd to me its only in High Range but maybe its right at that higher RPM
 
Great input guys!!
So I did loosen the change gears and the noise went away. I then put the change gears back and the noise came back just as before but only in high range and it sounds like its right in the front part of the box where the threading shafts exit the box??
That was my guess. The output shaft that drives the carriage feed, is it clutched? Is the clutch partially popped out? Is there play in that joint at the output when you turn the feed shaft back and forth? It sounded to me like you had a knock coming from right there.
 
OMG what is with the puke cream colored paint with maroon highlights? Same colors on this bed mill I just purchased, yech!
When I bought this lathe I thought what a God awful color combo, but it had all I wanted and the price was right so when I get it I'll paint it machinery gray to make it look the part. Well its been 16 years and its still as I refer to it as DESIGNER puke cream. Machinery gray was too dark anyway. Glad you like it though.
 
That was my guess. The output shaft that drives the carriage feed, is it clutched? Is the clutch partially popped out? Is there play in that joint at the output when you turn the feed shaft back and forth? It sounded to me like you had a knock coming from right there.
There is zero play in that shaft nor clutch. I can see them turning (I think as they should) and the noise sounds a little deeper into the box.
There seems to be no play in the input shaft either. A little gear lash but nothing I would think is bad.
 
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Have not seen your video, mine is noisy, not what I would consider excessive though. I do not know if it helps but this is what my gear head sounds like at 700RPM.

View attachment 511983
On mine if I don't tap the direction lever after changing powered carriage feed direction to absolute center it makes a comparable noise. Check to make sure that's not your problem also. Sometimes it doesn't completely disengage when returning to the neutral position and its rubbing the side of the gear train.
 
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Understood. This has a VFD, so I believe the spindle direction is electric. Just a switch and the VFD determines that.
 
When I bought this lathe I thought what a God awful color combo, but it had all I wanted and the price was right so when I get it I'll paint it machinery gray to make it look the part. Well its been 16 years and its still as I refer to it as DESIGNER puke cream. Machinery gray was too dark anyway. Glad you like it though.
I would hurl each time I looked at it. Though I saw where someone repainted a bed mill grey similar to the one I purchased recently and it didn't look so hot. I'm in favor of a brighter white color. Puke cream, smoking room tobacco stain color ugh I intensely dislike it.
 
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