When it comes to drilling small holes there is nothing that beats the sensitivity of a lever feed on the tailstock. This attachment came about with a need to drill very small holes in a series of components. Although the accessory was designed about twenty years ago, this was the first opportunity I have had to tryout the attachment on a Compact 5,1 had however used the Unimat 3 version, both versions were supplied to various customers of Neil Hemingway. Having acquired a Compact 5 lathe sometime ago the need arose to drill 0.5mm holes in some experimental Diesel injectors for a 10cc 4-stroke engine I was constructing, so I thought it was about time I added this attachment to the Compact 5 to make this task easier. The design is a direct descendant of an attachment I used to market for the Unimat 3 or 4 series of lathes, a photograph taken from a 35mm negative shows this unit, but whereas the Unimat version came with a longer tailstock barrel the Compact 5 unit retains the existing tailstock barrel and the lever feed attachment is situated where the current Compact 5 handwheel fits. This unit is also designed to allow the lever feed handle to be set in the most convenient position for the operator, photographs show the two most common positions. I have since added to this design a version to fit the Unimat 3 lathe but due to the fitting arrangement on the Unimat tailstock the Compact 5 alternative lever positions are not possible on the Unimat series.
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