They may be nice but also very strong and accurate, that’s why the MOD used them during WW2 although my one is post war late 40’s 50’s as it has ball bearing thrust and the earlier ones had solid steel thrust, this one hasn’t got any wear that I can see although the spindle has mark that I can see but not feel.
Gradually getting all the accessories I need , have collets from 0.4 to 7.9mm, vertical slide.milling/ grinding spindle, fixed steady, face plate, 3 and 4 jaw chuck, tip over tool rest ( although I had to extend it by 20mm ( I do most of my work using a graver ), to name just some.
Although there was no play or noise it didn’t seem to use any oil hence the reason I have stripped the headstock thinking the wicks need replacing but turns out everything was fine, wicks still good and plenty of oil in bearings and spindle, I will be using new wicks anyway, so it must just be that they don’t use much oil.
Dell