The little known and rarely encountered the capstan lathe based on the early 4-inch precision was one of several small production lathes that Myford manufactured during the late 1930s and World War Two. There seems to have been little coherent development of the machines with the simplest based on the established amateur-market M.L.4 and a completely different much more rugged machine,  probably marketed as the M.L.6, having a large-bore roller-bearing supported spindle and a heavier bed. The "4-inch" capstan illustrated below (it may well have been listed in the works as the M.L.5) was modelled on the early version of the 4-inch precision though with a modified bed casting. The headstock appears similar to that used on the ordinary machine.