Due to the abundance of time there seems to be in the current climate I decided I would dismantle all the slides on my mini lathe and reassemble it with care and some mods.

On my to-do list for a long time has been a carriage lock, so that's what I've been making today. Later once some shim arrives I'll be replacing the carriage retaining plate adjustment screws and just shim them instead. As well as replacing the screws holding the plates with studs and nyloc nuts instead of cap head bolts to hopefully make putting it all back together easier.

The carriage lock is made from some bits of plate I had hanging around and wasn't really made with any precision in mind, aside from it fitting together and working . The thinner plate is 5mm and the bolts are stainless, not sure how thick the other plate is. I also had to replace the smaller cap head with a button head as it caught on the bed webs. It appears to work OK but until everything is back in place I won't know for sure.

Simon.

Thank you. I don't think it will get in the way to any significant degree. Here's a photo with the tailstock too. The carriage still has space to move further towards the chuck and is butted up against the tailstock in the picture.

Simon