Jim,
Thanks for the reply. I finally got that sucker out. It was just as I thought......the nut is just a slip fit thru the bottom of the casting. 70 years of crud had semi frozen it in and a little PB Blaster did the trick. Got the compound rest top off, cleaned up and the face ground down where someone years ago ran it into the chuck dogs!!! must have made a fearsome noise. Now I have to figure out how the swivel assembly comes off????? any ideas?? Sid Gammon