Entirely agree, Alan. It is the lack of twist in the bed that matters so that the lathe turns parallel. Dave The Emerald Isle --- On Thu, 7/7/11, Alan Stepney <alan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote: From: Alan Stepney <alan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> Subject: [modeleng] A level lathe To: modeleng@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Date: Thursday, 7 July, 2011, 20:43 I am sure we have all seen lengthy discussions on the best way to ensure that a lathe is level. Why? I dont believe that they need to be level at all. I have a lathe that came off a Royal Navy Cruiser, and the one thing I can guarantee is that, at times, the sea isnt level! The main thing is to ensure that the bed is not twisted in any way, and the headstock and tailstock in line, whether or not that line is level with the surface of the earth or not, makes no difference. If it did, vertical borers etc wouldnt work. Or rather, wouldnt give accurate results, which they do. The same would apply to face milling or fly cutting with a vetical mill. Does anyone agree or disagree with me? Alan MODEL ENGINEERING DISCUSSION LIST. To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list, send a blank email to, modeleng-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word "unsubscribe" in the subject line. MODEL ENGINEERING DISCUSSION LIST. To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list, send a blank email to, modeleng-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with the word "unsubscribe" in the subject line.