Hi Jesse > Strangely enough my lathe is also fitted with the same non-kosher, left-handed braking system - highly efficient! > > Cheers! From Hubert in Sunny St Albans Hubert, I adopted the manual braking because of the many small items I make for Dixie Gun Works in Union City. Usually short run items in diameters of less than 3/8" and in 12L14 steel or brass. At the speeds I run the lathe, it takes too long for it to stop for reloading, so I help it out. Also helps me to locate that single chuck key hole quickly. Jesse in no longer foggy, but hot and humid West Tennessee > 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.