Lathe Balance Question & Nova G3 Chuck

[Alan Gan]

Hello! My cheap HF lathe seemed to run pretty smooth running just the spindle and also a small Face plate.

I picked up a Nova G3 for $40.00 (I do trust the guy I bought it from) but when I get it on the lathe at a higher RPM like 2100, it vibrates, not terrible but the Sawdust on the bench dances. I do not have any wood on the Chuck yet.

I slow it down and it seems to run real smooth, still no wood.

If I take everything off down to the Head screw only, it runs smooth but placing a chisel on the spindle it hops just a little, little bit.

Can anyone give me some insight, I am sure it should run smooth at all times. Am I just wasting my time with this Lathe because the vibration will cause Turning issues? Or is there something I can check and possibly adjust? Or, will it be okay like it is?

Thanks

[Marty Tippin]

You'll get more informed replies, but here's mine...

You've got a fairly cheap lathe. Could have a bad bearing, could just be manufactured to poor tolerances or the spindle could have been damaged at some point. Not likely to have any adjustments you can make, though you could probably replace the bearings and see if that makes any difference.

If you have any way to measure runout (a dial indicator and some way to mount it solidly to the lathe bed would be fine), you can check whether the spindle is turning true or not; if it's way out, that's probably contributing to the vibration.

All that said, however, if you're just learning how to turn, I don't see why the lathe you have won't work just fine for you. If it's got significant vibration, you'll probably find it hard to turn ultra-smooth surfaces but you can sand your way around that.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Alan, most likely the problem is only that your lathe is not 100% level. You would be surprised at how much a lathe - even a big heavy one - will vibrate if the bed is not level.

[Harry Robinette]

+1 for what Steve said.

[Alan Gan]

Alan, most likely the problem is only that your lathe is not 100% level. You would be surprised at how much a lathe - even a big heavy one - will vibrate if the bed is not level.

I know it is not 100% but it is close. That is one of the 1st things I had checked. I will check it again. Thanks for the help.

[Thomas Canfield]

The lathe is fairly light and subject to vibration with any unbalance. You can add weight (100# as minimum suggested) to the stand to help dampen the vibration along with making sure leg are all siting solid to floor. You might try closing the jaw of the chuck to make the jaws ridged or add some fairly balanced wood to jaws in case there is some unbalanced with the open jaws.

[Alan Gan]

The lathe is fairly light and subject to vibration with any unbalance. You can add weight (100# as minimum suggested) to the stand to help dampen the vibration along with making sure leg are all siting solid to floor. You might try closing the jaw of the chuck to make the jaws ridged or add some fairly balanced wood to jaws in case there is some unbalanced with the open jaws. I am sure weight would help but this Lathe is a Table top, no legs. I do have the Headstock end bolted to the bench but have not bolted down the far end. I will check what you suggested also, Thanks

[Dwight Rutherford]

Strongly suggest you bolt your lathe at all four corners. You mentioned the vibration was noticeable at 2100 rpm. At that speed the smallest imballance will be pronounced. I believe this is potentially dangerous also. Bolted down and with weight added to the stand should take care of the issue and be much safer.

[Michael Mills]

For a check on the G3 remove the insert and check the interior for any chards of metal, a tiny piece can really throw it off. Clean and go around the threads with a q-tip in oil to pick up any small shards.
Make sure the insert is set well, it seats on the interior of the chuck and sometime requires a bit of pressure to thread it in fully. Make sure jaws are installed per Tekantool's instructions.
Make sure you have a real oem insert. One retailer is/was well know for selling their own insert; theirs gave a runout of .014 and when I switched to a Nova insert it dropped to .004.
Hopefully it was set up right but I did buy a Nova SN on the bay really cheap because it would not run properly (had drastic run-out). When I reset the insert and moved the jaws to the correct position it worked perfectly.

[Prashun Patel]

Also, make sure the jaws' set screws are tightened. I always forget to tighten mine on my G3 and they can rattle.

Does the lathe vibrate with a blank mounted to the faceplate when spinning at 2100?


I mean, if it does NOT, then it seems pretty clear that the problem is in the chuck and not your lathe, no?

[Dennis Ford]

If this is the sheet metal lathe from HF; 2100 rpm is too fast for anything that requires a chuck. Some things to check.

* Getting all four feet supporting approximately the same weight will help. This is what we are doing when we "level" a lathe (assuming that the lathe was manufactured and assembled "level").

* If the belt from motor to spindle has been left tight in one position for a long time; it will take a set and cause vibration.

* If the belt, motor pulley or spindle pulley have any damage or defects; that will cause vibration.

* Bad bearings could cause vibration but this problem is usually easy to recognize due to noise and hot bearings.