Mark Rand wrote:

If the lathe has a bottom speed of 45rpm, just practice a bit more. You should
be able to get better than half a turn repeatability if there aren't any
distractions.

I'm thinking a dab of paint marker on the shaft and additional lighting
would help my chances out a lot. I'll practice a bit more and get some
muscle memory going. Noticed that the lathe I'm repairing engages the half
nuts by pulling up. The one I'm using engages by pulling down. I wonder
which way of engaging the nuts is standard?

My co-worker that was showing me a few things floundered when he pulled the
wrong way out of habit. In the past he has run some very big machines
though he doesn't do machining where we work. We fix em after the operators
break them.

Wes