Wherefore Beaver?

Someone in Canada in search of parts has inquired which model of Beaver lathe most closely resembles the Rockwell/Delta 46-140. It is the Beaver 3400 lathe. They have inboard and outboard spindle thread sizes in common, thus faceplates and drive centers will be interchangeable. Just from looking at the photos over at OWWM it is almost certainly the case that the bed ways, headstock and tailstock of the later models will be interchangeable with the 46-140 as well. Look up the Beaver 3400 lathe on OWWM and you'll find considerable information there, including a manual that describes the procedure for removing the spindle from the headstock. The most significant difference (from reading the manuals -- I do not own a Beaver nor have I ever touched a living, breathing 3400) is that the headstock spindle of the older models from the early 50's would accept #2 MT tooling, whereas later ones were solid. I have no idea whether the spindle from one will fit the other or vice versa.