Fitted DRO to Lathe, showed up movement

[TomG]

Locking the cross slide is not something that is normally required, or even possible. In fact, I can't think of any lathe I've run that even had a cross slide lock. Like Sunset said, the pressures from the cut force the slide down and against the screw. The carriage is a different story because it floats and doesn't have a screw to hold it in place.

Chris,

When you say the cross slide moves .002", does it happen all at once, or over a distance and if so, how far? Also, your taper attachment should not be connected when you aren't using it. Most lathes have a bolt that can be loosened or removed to disable it.

Tom