Described by Wade as their "Unit Motor Drive" the construction of the underdrive stands was unusual in that the main framework was fabricated from stampings; the top was a heavy lamination of wood, with the lathe sitting in a metal chip and coolant collection tray. The  countershaft unit was designed to provide 6 forward and reverse speeds in geometric progression from 200 to 2000 rpm. The pulley system included clutches, built into the shafts, which were operated by a levers protruding more or less horizontally from the centre of the assembly. One clutch switched the drive between high and low ratios in a ratio of 4:1 whilst the other stopped and started the drive.
A Simplified Motor Drive was also available which, whilst identical in layout to the above, lacked the clutches and had a narrower speed range.

The countershaft assembly in the drawing, whilst similar to that in the photograph, has an auxiliary power take-off on the right-hand side which rose to drive an  overhead Auxiliary Drive used to power grinding, milling and drilling attachments held in the position normally occupied by the lathe toolpost.

A variation in the drive available for the No. 7 lathe was the use of twin V belts for increased torque transmission. No method of slackening the belts seems to have been provided, but the makers claimed that "It has been found that these (V belts) can be shifted over the step cone pulley practically as easily as the flat belt." As the President said, it all depends what you mean by practically …..