Boxford manufactured three models of precision plain-turning lathe. Two were introduced simultaneously during 1946/7 -  one a beautiful little 3.3" x  9.25" precision plain-turning bench type and the other a distinctly different dedicated capstan. The third, which did not appear until 1958, was constructed as a precision lathe designed to compete with what was described coyly as continental manufacturers - in other words the Swiss Schaublin 102 and similar sized lathes from Mikron and the German firms of G. Boley, Leinen and Lorch, etc. The 1946/7 machines were the first lathes made by Denford in their "Box Tree Mills" plant and, while the first catalogues are undated, included with them are sheets referring to a forthcoming 9-inch screwcutting lathe (an obvious reference to the company's well-known South Bend 9-inch copy introduced during 1948). Both lathes were the size of a Schaublin 65 - and so fell neatly between the larger American bench type as made by, amongst others, Stark, Hardinge, Ames, Waltham and Pratt & Whitney, and the smaller but heavily-constructed WW type watchmakers' lathes by Boley, Derbyshire, Levin and Pultra, etc. Unfortunately, neither lathe was to enjoy the same phenominal sales succes as the Schaublin 65 and 70, even though the quality was similar and prices, at £175 (when a backgeared and screwcutting ML7 was around £60) not too far apart. Nevertheless, a production run of around 400 was hinted at by the factory - a number that probably satisfied the UK's immediate post-WW2 demand for this type of lathe when deliveries from Switzerland (and Germany) would have been limited. Today, a small but regular supply of these well made little Boxford machines continues to turn up on the second-hand market
Eight belt-driven spindle speeds were provided, in two ranges of high and low using a 2-step V-belt from a 1425 rpm 1/4 hp motor and a 4-step flat-belt final drive to the 0.5" bore hadstock spindle. The spindle assembly, with a 7/8" BSF nose, was hardened and ground and ran in adjustable cast-iron bearings; on test in the company's toolroom one had been run for over 3000 hours without any appreciable wear becoming apparent.  However, for a small precision lathe the speed range was barely adequate - and the top speed too low: 170, 270, 280, 450, 460, 740, 760, and 1210 rpm. Unaccounatably, instead of a faster set, the factory offered one that was slower, from 40 to 630 r.p.m. Collets - of an unknown type but almost certainly by the local firm Crawford - appear to have been stamped "1487" and had a maximum though-capacity of 5/16".
Precision ground and scraped by hand, the bedways were formed from Vs and flats of quite massive proportions for so small a lathe; fitted with a simple two-way tool-holder, the compound slide was mounted on a swivel locked by a single, quick-action lever and, unusually for this class of machine, both feed screws were completely enclosed and protected from swarf; .
On the bench lathe, the tailstock barrel had an auto-eject mechanism and a No.1 Morse taper. The whole machine weighed 112 lbs with overall dimensions, including the countershaft, of 27" x 24" x 16".
Of an entirely different design to the plain-turning model, the Boxford Precision Capstan had a 3.5" centre height with the 25/32" bore headstock spindle supported on a taper-roller bearing at the front and a double-thrust ball at the rear. The spindle nose was threaded 11/8" x 11 t.p.i. and a lever-action collet closer fitted as standard with maximum collet through capacity of 0.5". . A 1/3 hp motor was part of the ordinary equipment and drove the lathe through a V-belt drive countershaft unit to give 8 speeds that spanned either 180 to 2100 rpm or, alternatively, a more useful 360 to 4200 rpm. Quite why Denford considered it necessary to design and manufacture two completely different small precision lathes, when one could easily have been adapted to the other's tasks, is a mystery.
If you have a Boxford Precision and could contribute a set of close-up photographs, the writer would be delighted to hear from you.
Details of the later 4.5" precision plain-turning lathe here