The plate the chuck mounts to is not perpendicular to the shaft axis.
What is the best way to fix this? Hammering it back doesn't sound
like a good idea. I thought about taking the shaft over to a machine
chop, bolting a plate to the existing plate, then getting that adapter
plate machined flat, then tapped for the chuck.

Any other easier/cheaper ideas?

I am a beginner with the hands on operation so please use simple
words without too many syllables....

One other idea was to fabricate a different chuck mounting in
order to use other brand of chucks. Is this a waste of time too?

A brief history:

I've been saving up for a "real" lathe but do not plan on purchasing
for another year. I've been on the lookout for a small bench lathe
in order to practice with in the meantime. At a local swap meet last
month someone brought this lathe. At least it looked like a lathe
under all of the dirt and grime....

But all of the screws felt tight and I couldn't feel any play in the
bearings. What the heck. It was only US$25 and the motor alone
(1hp GE) was probably worth that much. Plus if nothing else I'll get
the education from tearing the thing apart and seeing how everything
works.

A month of scrubbing, a gallon of acetone, plus paint grease and oil
and the lathe looked pretty nice. I took it to the local club meeting
and whereas before when I purchased the comments were composed of
advice about getting some chain to go along with that boat anchor now
many were asking where I got such a nice little lathe g.

So I was happy until I started trying to actually machine something
today and found the above mentioned flaw. The chuck must have taken a
pretty severe whack at some time in its past. The shaft looks
straight, it is the mounting plate at the end that is not square as
best that I can tell.

Gene Horr
my name as one word at texas dot net