If you have a choice and it fits, go for the 9", if you ever get something that is marginal for a 7" , you will be kicking yourself. Measure the rad between the spindle centre and the nearest part of the bed, it should be over 4.5" The Smart & Brown model A takes 9" faceplates and the first part of the bed that anything sticking out 1/2" would hit is at the back.

Edited By old mart on 01/04/2023 19:17:19

According to the Lathes.co.uk website, Boxford centre-height is actually 4 5/8", so the 9" faceplate should fit. My 5" Boxford was supplied from the factory with a 7.5" faceplate, I don't remember a 9" size being offered. I soon added a 9" faceplate though, machined from a casting that Reeves used to supply. I think that mounting this casting was about the only time the original was used. However, the greater utility of the larger faceplate is due to its considerably greater number of slots, 12 IIRC The original Boxford one had only six and they never seem to line up with what I want to do.

Think, here, if the ways were reeeally wide apart (which obviously they are not) you could fit a reeeeally large faceplate. If it is even exactly 4.5” to centre height, a 9.0” faceplate would clear unless the ways were very close together.

Hi Simon, just to reassure you that a 9" faceplate should fit your your Boxford, but is it important it is not be any bigger, as there is very little clearance over the front parts of the saddle. I've used my disc that I trued up for tramming my Chester mill, which has a diameter of 8.9609375", which is just a shade over being 0.039" under 9" and In the photo below, the piece of 0.035" thick aluminium between my disc and the front side of the saddle, just fits in snugly, which will give a clearance of around 16 thou on a 9" diameter faceplate on my lathe, so I wouldn't want to much swarf dropping in there while turning.

Regards Nick.