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This very early, possibly pre-1880, plain turning Britannia lathe Model No. 3 shown in the photographs below has an overall length of 29.75", a height of 5.25 inches and a bed 2.5" wide. The centre height is 3 inches and the capacity between centres 18".
The headstock spindle is carried in a single bearing - with its left-hand end held against a pointed support carried in an adjustable holder that fits into the space normally occupied by the left-hand bearing. This was a popular way, at the time, of arranging the headstock of a light-duty lathe and, despite its shortcomings, was a design that many makers persisted in using for several decades. The 3-step headstock pulley was not intended to use a V belt - it would be several decades before they appeared - but a round leather "rope", that is severely limited in the amount of torque it can transmit..
The tailstock is equally vestigial, though adequate for such a light-duty machine; two slender supports holding the barrel chamber. The cross feed handwheel in the photographs below is not correct - originally it would have been identical to that used on the top slide, as shown here.
When originally supplied that lathe could have been ordered in one of three bed lengths: 3 feet, 3 feet 6 inches and 4 feet; at an extra cost of £1 a gap bed could also be supplied.
Photographs of another No. 3 lathe, in particularly fine and original condition, can be seen here.
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