I kinda feel like a broken record on this subject :-) but Ted Hansen's ‘Complete MiniLathe Workshop’ (available from Village Press ?) has a discussion of this very problem, and two solutions: one quick and dirty, basically shimming the existing saddle plates to provide better contact, and a more robust fix, switching to u-shaped saddle plates, similar to those on bigger lathes like South Bend, that considerably improves the rigidity of the mini lathe.?

Also a custom wrench: a bit of an allen wrench brazed to the top of a C-shaped piece of rod, allowing you to tighten the saddle plate screws without removing the front apron.?

I find myself again wishing they’d sell HSM in digital archive form, because there’s all sorts of references out there to this or that other back issue and it would really be nice to be able to just call it up, instead of having to troll through eBay for some well-thumbed old copy.?

All my woodworking magazines offer this and it’s very convenient. ?

I’d even be happy with just an online access instead of a portable copy.?

On Jan 31, 2022, at 4:23 PM, Stan Gammons via <buttercup11421@...> wrote:

Thanks everyone for the replies on this.? The backsplash is still in place. I'll remove it and see if I can adjust the carriage so it moves easier once I have some more time.


Stan

On 1/31/22 08:53, GadgetBuilder wrote:

The adjustment scheme for the carriage slide plates works better on large lathes than it does on our small machines.? Most 7X owners find that shimming the slide plates is easy and works well.? In addition, it often helps considerably to refine the bed thickness where the slide plates run.? See:


John

--?
Bruce Johnson

The less a man knows about how sausages and laws are made, the easier it is to steal his vote and give him botulism.