Ok so I think I've figured it out. I remembered when I had turbo noise issues before Brain suggested waste gate. Well I remembered the only thing consistent between the turbo and manifolds is the waste gate bracket.

I made it quick out of 18ga steel. I knew it would bend but I needed it fast. So I think it's probably bending and making the waste gate flapper rattle.

In other news I have no exhaust, or oil leaks anymore. No exhaust rattles. Any other then needing a new waste gate bracket everything seems good.

 

Here you can hear the noise

Ok so here's what I've done.
1) Thought it was wastegate bracket weakness. I built a heavy duty one out of 1/8" thick angle iron. Pushing on it moves the car, not the waste gate.

2) Found I still had an exhaust leak at the manifold-turbo flange. Used gasket maker and a gasket. Still leaked. Re-adjusted and took care of the leak once and for all. Noise still persists.

I'm fairly confident I don't have any other manifold leaks. I did vacuum test it when I built it. It's driving me mad though. In addition to all this good stuff I noticed I'm boost sagging again. I'll hit about 11psi then drop to around 8psi by redline.

I hate my life.

Edit: Yes I know I blow a buttload of oil out of my breather, I also know my filter moves. I've tried removing it to no avail.

 

The filter is moving on the rubber/metal joint, glue that bitch up before it cuts it.

 

Noted. Any idea on the noise?

 

Are you talking about that wierd rattling noise at 9 seconds? Sounds like bearing rattle to me.

 

Yes that is the noise. I will google. I just put new bearings in the turbo though...

 

double post sweeeeet

 

Ok I'm about to surrender. The only thing I didn't replace when rebuilding the charger were the two inner most snap rings, because I didn't have pliers that would fit them. Could those two tiny little snap rings really cause all these issues?

At this point I'm about to be actively searching for another turbo to swap in and see if the problem persists.

Edit:
What if I was to create a hybrid frankenturbo? I have my old turbo, which blew the turbine wheel, and my new turbo with a apparently sucks. What if I were to mash the guts of the two together?

Double edit:
I just remembered something probably important...when I fitted my waste gate vband adapter contraption I had to modify the waste gate flapper to actually cover the waste gate hole. I did this by removing the flapper and grinding back the raised edge so I could slide it back approximately 1/4". When I took it apart there didn't seem to be anything special in there to keep the exhaust from leaking out...Now I'm wondering if it's worn down a smidge too far and leaking slightly...This could explain why it doesn't happen at part throttle or part boost. But it does happen under high load/high throttle, and even when I revved the nuts off of it in the driveway. I will investigate further.

 

So I tried some stuff today with little to no success. I re-did my wastegate flapper mod, no difference. I was listening with my stethoscope and couldn't really hear anything.

I did however throw on an o-ring, at my friends suggestion. I now get a butt load of turbo flutter. It seems to be holding boost better but I don't know for sure. However, the turbo isn't meant for an o-ring so the compressor housing is about 1/16" or so out past flush.

 

Wish I could help you with this one, but I'm clueless. It's so frustrating to have an issue like this you can't figure out. I say swap in a known good turbo and give it a shot first, to at least narrow the issue down to the current turbo for sure.

 

Yeah the hard part is finding one, without buying one. I can swap just the chra's to see if that makes a difference. But the o-ring thing is really confusing. I'll probably seal the compressor side with rtv or the like.

When I was listening around with my stethoscope I could hear a minor vac leak where I have the IAT sensor but revving it didn't make a difference. Also when I pressure test the intercooler pipes it wasn't leaking there.

It's really annoying because some people think I'm crazy, but the car doesnt sound good and it's impossible to enjoy thinking I'm on the verge of breaking something.

 

So I took it for another drive. I realized I blew my signal to the wastegate and bov. Reconnected and drove. No more fluttering and back to 9-11psi. It looks and feels like its holding steady. I'll wait for rain to stop before I go log to be sure. The noise is definitely less noticeable now. I only hear it maybe slightly in 1st gear.

Also with the o-ring on the compressor housing is bumped out at certain areas. Its max out 0.073" but no compressor contact. I'm waiting for it to cool down and I'm going to pull the o-ring and put copper gasket maker on.