Problem with lathe quill

Hello all.
I usually drill my pen blanks on my lathe. It’s a Turncrafter Commander 12 VS.
I may be doing something wrong because I think this is cumbersome and slow… or maybe it’s a problem with my lathe. When I try to advance the drill with the tailstock wheel, it’s like I’m wrestling the lathe. It’s really hard to advance. Once it has advanced a couple of inches, it starts to loosen up, but then my chuck starts to spin. So I have to turn off the lathe, disengage the tailstock, pull it backwards, steer the wheel to retract the drill once more, push it forward again further into the hole, engage the TS again, turn the lathe on and start again. By the time I finish drilling the blank I’m exhausted. There’s got to be something wrong here and I think the main culprit is the inner tube that goes inside the tailstock. I think this piece is the one preventing my tailstock to move freely. I have already tried to clean and lubricate the interior and exterior of this piece, so that wouldn’t be a solution. Pen State Industries, where I bought my lathe has not answered any mail from me, even asking to buy a new piece.
Any advice? Please? Is this like a standard part that could be purchased somewhere else?
Thank you for your time.

Ulises

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