1948 version of the Willson 7.5" x  36" lathe, a solidly built machine of utterly conventional construction, which weighed just over 25 cwt. It was also available with an 8.5" centre height. Running on taper-roller bearings (though bronze bearings were a no-cost option) the spindle had 9 speeds, the drive incorporating a multi-plate clutch and brake unit, the operating handle of which can be seen protruding through the very top of the headstock casting. The spindle speeds, starting at 26 rpm and extending to 477 rpm were, by today's standards, rather slow - but that sort of range was very common during those times, even though all the headstock bearings were either taper-roller or ball. The headstock spindle was threaded, which limited the opportunities to run the lathe in reverse; the safety of later models was considerably improved when a change was made to the American L Series keyed-taper fitting.
The drive to the screwcutting gearbox passed through a tumble reverse system and all-steel changewheels. The gearbox, in standard form, could cut only 24 different threads between 4 and 28 tpi - but this range could be easily extended by the use of extra gears. The separate power shaft for sliding and surfacing feeds was fitted with a most useful automatic sliding feed knock-off. The bed had a (non-detachable) gap, able to swing a piece of material 26" in diameter by 9" thick and both headstock and tailstock centres were No. 3 Morse.

Willson 7.5" lathe circa 1949 with the self-contained motor drive and clutch/brake system. In this form the maker's production code was "Newel" - but when fitted with a single flat pulley, to take drive from an overhead countershaft unit, the designation became " Newag".