[quote author=Hawkeye link=topic=3670.msg26896#msg26896 date=1316838315]
Now we have the rest of the story. As I see it, the wiring is quite old. Two-prong, non polarized plug. Decades ago, they used the neutral as a ground and connected it to the chassis of fridges, radios and, it appears, power tools. Without a polarized plug, you had a 50/50 chance of getting it backwards.
If that is the original wiring, I would advise replacing it with new cable and a three-prong plug. Do not copy the old wiring, but instead, connect the ground wire to the chassis and leave the neutral to complete the power circuits.
I'm curious, though. What else were you touching that completed the circuit through you, so that you could feel it? If you didn't have a completed circuit, you'd be like a bird on a wire and feel nothing.
Mike (Journeyman Electrician)
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Actually it was a 3 prong plug but the ground wasn't connected (to the chassis) which I fixed right after I purchased the lathe. Regarding "completing the circuit", I was standing on a piece of carpet on a dry cement floor wearing sneakers.