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Hi all I have read some really interesting and helpful articles on here; but looks like a I could spend a full weekend just reading the posts which doesn't get my DIY done! I've just bought lightly used machine and firstly I have a list of parts I may need. - Milling raising block (anyone selling or can advise on what I need?) - Fixed steady (given the narrow throat I expect it will be handy) - Chuck guard (I know everyone takes them off, but I'd like to use one at least until I get fed up with it)

Hi Mick, hope you are enjoying your Faircut. As far as I know there is no known surviving manual. 1930s lubrication specs often had much lower expectations than those of today though - I've seen one that (paraphrasing) says 'don't use cooking oil' I feed my headstock bearings with ISO 100 Mobil DTE Heavy... which I think is the stuff recommended for Myfords... but Myfords have a different bearing design. The oil will flow through the headstock and out again, sometimes on to the back of the chuck. I do find that ISO 100 is less likely to fly around the workshop when used in the headstock than ...

If the motor has failed and replacement caps and the centrifugal switch if fitted do not respond to TLC and replacement then it may be time to consider whether a VFD would be a good route to go down. If a replacement motor to give the same manual speed change facility is all that is required then motors are available, direct replacement motors with an imperial shaft tend to be a bit dear but a 3 phase motor and inverter package will cost more but the usability improvement is almost universally recommended. Mike

@Stuart Munro 1 - I thought those "Stanley 20-800 Adjustable Angle Clamping Mitre Box" do look interesting. But can they cut steel? At a quick look, I thought that they were only for wood, no? IF they can cut steel then they DO look useful but they won't allow me to cut sheets of material (plust they are a fraction bulky... and won't be able to cut very thin stuff...) Been doing some research. My saw is a Nobex bought 25 years ago for picture framing. It has not changed but is rather pricey. The Stanley is much better price. Mine takes a 630mm blade, the other Nobex size is 565mm.

Slight worry about the precision requirement - does John need more than a matching pair? It's easy to manufacture two almost identical V-blocks by grinding them together as a pair. So even a cheap pair of blocks should match accurately, and two blocks are usually all that's needed. V blocks don't have to be an exact dimension unless three or more are needed together. If that's the case, look at high end precision blocks, £££. It's the multiple precision part that's costly, rather than what they're made of. Much depends what they're for of course, but I avoid expensive tools for ordi...